02 December 2024 Events From the Community My Week at TechEX24: Mary Bull From William & Mary Subscribe for more like this Share By Amber Rasche - Senior Communications Specialist, Internet2 Estimated reading time: 5 minutes Embracing ‘Go With the Flow’ with First-Time Attendee Mary Bull at the 2024 Technology Exchange In this My Week at TechEX24 series, we spotlight research and education (R&E) community members as they count down the final days to the Internet2 Technology Exchange, Dec. 9-13, in Boston, MA. Mary Bull, senior network engineer at William & Mary, is a first-time TechEX attendee. Still, she is a familiar face to many in the community, having attended the 2023 Internet2 Community Exchange as part of the Internet2 Inclusivity (I2I) program with support from the Women in IT Networking at SC (WINS) program. From her first TechEX experience, Bull hopes to gain a “better understanding of how universities are meeting the challenges unique to our implementation of technology.” Often one to “go with the flow,” Bull dug deeper into the TechEX24 program for this Q&A to share what she’s most looking forward to — from innovative wireless technologies and NetDevOps talent development to the Fun 5K Walk/Run and Boston’s quirky social spots. She is excited to immerse herself in the conference’s dynamic mix of technical sessions, networking opportunities, and moments to reconnect with community peers. Mary Bull Senior Network Engineer, William & Mary First-Time TechEX Attendee Years of Experience in the R&E Community: 7 Tracks of Interest: Advanced Networking and Identity & Access Management What is your favorite resource for planning your week at TechEX? Bull: I’m a big fan of the Internet2 events mobile app so I remember when things start! I should branch out into planning things with colleagues ahead of time — usually, I just go with the flow. What session or speaker within your primary tracks of interest are you most excited about at the 2024 Internet2 Technology Exchange? Bull: Mobility Day at TechEX24 on Monday, Dec. 9, covers all kinds of different wireless technologies. I’m excited to see what universities and other Internet2 members have as use cases and how they are implementing Wi-Fi and other wireless tech. I’m also very interested in the poster session about using perfSONAR to create low-cost Wi-Fi monitoring, Wi-Fi Monitoring Improvements with pSSID and perfSONAR. TechEX is also a great conference for cross-topic exploration. Is there a session from one of the other tracks you plan to attend? Bull: I’m looking forward to seeing some of the presentations from SCinet* friends. I wish I could attend part of Jennifer Kim’s tutorial on network switching in science DMZs with HPC networking because I don’t work on that kind of network. I say “I wish I could” because, unfortunately, the tutorial Network Technologies for Data Movement Supporting Research and Education on Campus Networks overlaps with Mobility Day. Joseph Karam’s presentation on Visibility Analysis to Improve Performance and Security Monitoring on Wednesday, Dec. 11, fits well with my interest in better education for operational staff. I’m hoping to get some insights into how I could provide better resources to the folks who have the most communication with users. What’s one innovative topic or trend in advanced networking, cloud, identity and access management, or security that you’re eager to explore more deeply at the event? Bull: I’m curious about the Update from the Federation Proxies Working Group on Wednesday, Dec. 11. New methods to help people connect while traveling or to allow institutions to offer more options for local connectivity could be very exciting. Tim Cappalli’s The End of Passwords is Finally in Sight presentation on Tuesday, Dec. 10, is intriguing, too! Furthermore, two of my systems colleagues, Jenn Wheeler (Scaling the Cloud for Savings) and Phil Fenstermacher (Rapid and Automated Application Deployment, Where in the Cloud Are We, Containing an Application), are also presenting throughout the week. I want to support their work by attending those sessions and understanding better the topics and initiatives they are focused on. TechEX offers plenty of opportunities for fun and networking. Do you have any plans to explore Boston while you’re there, and which social activities are you most looking forward to? Bull: Yes, Boston has some quirky bars and great Chinese food. The quirkier bars are in Cambridge near Harvard, including a cool spot called the Plough and Stars. For restaurants, the Dumpling House has incredible soup dumplings, and Victoria Seafood has really good salt and pepper squid. If I can make myself get up early enough on Wednesday, Dec. 11, I’m also hoping to see some of the city on the Fun 5K Walk. If I’m lucky, I might also get back to the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum — their indoor garden is phenomenal and extra nice when it’s cold outside. What are you hoping to gain from your first Internet2 Technology Exchange? Bull: I’d like to have a better understanding of how universities are meeting the challenges unique to our implementation of technology. I’m excited about the presentations on developing in-house NetDevOps talent, including The Road to NetDevOps or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Automation on Tuesday, Dec. 10, and Building Successful NetDevOps Teams in Higher Education on Wednesday, Dec. 11. That topic hits close to home for me. Plan Your Week at TechEX24 and Register Today Are you ready to join us in Boston, Dec. 9-13? If you haven’t yet registered for the 2024 Internet2 Technology Exchange, now is the time! Don’t miss out — explore the full program and secure your spot. Connect with peers, gain fresh insights, and be part of one of the year’s most essential gatherings for IT professionals in R&E. *Editor’s note: SCinet is the SC conference’s dedicated high-speed network built each year by volunteers from across the R&E community, government, and industry. Mary Bull has been a SCinet volunteer since 2021 when she was selected to join the Women in IT Networking at SC (WINS) program. About the Author(s) View Author Articles Amber Rasche arasche@internet2.edu Senior Communications Specialist, Internet2 Amber Rasche contributes to Internet2’s strategic communications and public relations efforts. She has 10 years of experience with the research and education community, serving previous roles in both higher education information technology and government high-performance network environments.