Allegra Angus, a senior at Cornell with a dual major in mathematics and computer science, has been selected as one of two winners nationwide, of the Computing Research Association's Outstanding Undergraduate Award for 2002.

She will receive a $1,000 cash prize, to be presented at a forthcoming research conference. The award is based on a student's independent research and academic record, as well as service to the community.

Angus describes herself as not being a typical computer science student, and therefore, when she learned of the award, "I was shocked," she said. "It's really a nice vote of confidence. It's important to show that computer science isn't a field that's only for men and it isn't a field only for people who eat, breathe and sleep it. You don't have to have done it forever and your parents don't have to do it."

Angus, a native of Rochester, N.Y., is the daughter of Jan and David Angus, professional musicians with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. She has been studying violin since age 5 and seriously considered majoring in music, she said, but also has been intrigued by mathematics from an early age.

When she came to Cornell, Angus said, she had very little experience with computers, but after taking introductory computer science courses, she was hooked. She gives special praise to Keshav Kumar Pingali, Cornell professor of computer science, who taught one of her introductory courses.

"I don't know if he realized it, but having a little pat on the back was really important," Angus said, adding that he was especially encouraging to the women in the class.

Angus also is the recipient of the Intel Women in Science and Engineering Scholarship and has held internships at Xerox and Intel Corp.

The independent research that earned her the CRA award was conducted with Dexter Kozen, the Joseph Newton Pew Jr. Professor in Engineering at Cornell, and deals with Kleene (pronounced 'CLEAN-ey') algebra, a method of working with what are called "regular expressions." Regular expressions are familiar to some computer users as a way of describing things that have a common overall pattern but differ in details. Angus has been working with an extension of Kleene algebra called Kleene algebra with tests (KAT), which allows a user to expand the use of regular expressions to describe computer programs and statements about those programs. Flow charts -- the diagrams computer programmers use to plan the structure of a program -- also can be described by KAT expressions.

Angus has developed a simple method of proving that two KAT expressions representing flow charts are equivalent, something that previously could be done only by "combinatorial" (i.e., brute force) methods. She and another student are working to create an automated tool to compare programs. Among other applications, this method could enhance computer security by providing a way to certify that a program actually does what it is supposed to do, Kozen said.

"She has a lot of good ideas and I've enjoyed working with her," Kozen said. "I'm ecstatic that she won the award. She really deserves it."

Although she has spent her senior year concentrating on classes and research, Angus pursued her musical interests through most of her four years at Cornell, playing with the Cornell Symphony Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra and singing in the women's chorus. She was concertmaster for the Chamber Orchestra during the 2000-01 school year. She also is active in swing dancing and a church organization.

Angus currently is considering job offers in industry.

The Computing Research Association is an association of more than 190 North American academic departments of computer science, computer engineering and related fields, as well as laboratories and centers in industry, government and academia engaging in basic computing research, and affiliated professional societies. Its mission is to strengthen research and education in the computing fields, expand opportunities for women and minorities and improve public and policymaker understanding of the importance of computing and computing research.

Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs is sponsoring the 2002 Outstanding Undergraduate Awards Program. Microsoft Research and Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs sponsor the program in alternate years.