May 17, 2017 RE: Ruben Safir, Ph.D. Admissions Letter of Recommendation Dear Members of the Selection Committee, It is my pleasure to write this letter in support of Mr. Ruben Safir’s application to your Ph.D. program in Computer Science at Ariel University, Israel. I have known Ruben for about two years throughout his graduate studies at LIU Brooklyn as instructor, Acting Chair and then Chair of the Department of Technology, Innovation and Computer Science at LIU Brooklyn. I strongly recommend him to your Ph.D. program based on his extensive professional background and proven academic achievements. As Chair, I had the privilege and opportunity to witness first hand his growth, passion for learning, quest for knowledge and dedication to conduct his Master’s thesis research. In my graduate course on “Systems Analysis and Design” I was impressed by his inquisitive questions, insights into complex problems and technology trends, and solving abilities. He gained tremendous maturity and discipline in modeling, documenting, and presenting his solutions with the most appropriate software engineering techniques and tools. Subsequently, I had him in Operating Systems when his hacking abilities were put to use in dissecting the kernel code to examine process scheduling in Linux. His track record at LIU Brooklyn reflects his incredible transformation to a disciplined thinker and a practical problem solver. His thesis provides an exploration of Paleontology using graph theory, pattern recognition, and Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems. He has shown an outstanding capacity for independent work. During my meetings with Ruben, I have always found him to be incredibly professional, engaging, ambitious, hardworking, dedicated and passionate about his field of study and desire to give back to his community and be an agent of change and empowerment in Computer Science. He spends countless hours guiding undergraduate, graduate, and international students through their plans of studies; offering “tutoring” ; discussing the latest trends in Linux and Open Source Software Development. Ruben is truly an extremely gifted individual in engaging and building rapports with faculty, students, staff, and stakeholders of the institution. Many of the traits, which are at the core of his success, are on display in his strong professional and ethical conduct. Ruben has the right attitude and focus, maturity, and work ethics to meet the expectations of your SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND INFORMATION SCIENCES 1 University Plaza, Ste H700 Brooklyn, New York 11201-5372 (718) 488-1073 FAX (718) 488-1125 mohammed.ghriga@liu.edu www.liu.edu Department of Technology, Innovation and Computer Science

Ph.D. program. Therefore, I strongly recommend him and offer my highest endorsement for his application to the Ph.D. in Computer Science at Ariel University. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding Ruben’s application. Sincerely, Mohammed Ghriga, Ph.D. Associate Professor Chair, Department of Technology, Innovation and Computer Science