By Colleen Dabrowski
Photo from drew.edu
Drew University’s Professor Emily Hill was recently awarded the Most Influential Paper award in the field of Computer Science. The research paper she helped develop, titled “Using Natural Language Program Analysis to Locate and Understand Action-Oriented Concerns,” developed simple methods to search and comprehend software. According to Drew Today, Hill described their work as “Google for source code”. The International Conference on Aspect-Oriented Software Development presents this prestigious award to research papers written ten years prior, based on their effect on the field. Hill worked on the paper during her years as a doctoral student at Delaware University, where she received her PhD in 2010. The research paper was developed by a team of fellow doctoral students made up of David Shepherd, Zachary Fry and professors Lori Pollock and Vijay Shanker.
Drew’s Computer Science students reacted to the news of the award with overwhelming positivity. Samantha Dipierro (‘19) shared that “Emily Hill was the first professor to teach me anything about Comp Sci, and that class was the reason I decided to be a Computer Science major.” She continues, “She really cares about each student she teaches and wants them to succeed. She’s also a great promoter of women in computer science, which is a field that is notorious for being male-dominated.”
When asked about Professor Hill’s accomplishment, Charlotte Grimm (‘21) gushed:
“Drew having such an influential Computer Science professor definitely makes me more confident in my decision to be a Computer Science major. It’s great knowing that I and other students have a great connection at the University. With her receiving that prestigious award, I know that she, along with the other fantastic professors at Drew, will ensure I am prepared for my career.”
Dave Velasco (‘20) just picked up his Computer Science major and, in a discussion with the Acorn, said “I would love to read [Hill’s paper] and am interested to see how it has influenced the advancement of computer science.”
Professor Hill is teaching Computer Science 150 and Computer Science 151 at Drew and is currently seeking student research assistants.
