Think of a situation where you are working on a challenging puzzle when someone asks you to demonstrate that you’ve solved it, but you can’t show them your work. That sounds like near impossibility. But for 18-year-old Celine Zhang of Princeton, New Jersey, that challenge became the foundation for an innovative computer science project: building a better robot. According to a report by Society for Science, Zhang’s computer science project at the Regeneron Science Talent Search was based on a mathematical idea called zero-knowledge proofs. These are techniques that allow a person to prove to someone else that they know something without revealing the knowledge, mentions the report. Zhang realized the idea in puzzle games with a moving avatar that fuses blocks. Her method allows a player who has solved a puzzle to prove that they know the solution without just giving it away to another player. Instead of giving away the entire answer, the solver might offer some particular, but limited, guidance that lets others check off the achievement. The idea is that it gives you the ability to build trust without giving away the solution .
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From games to cyber security
Though the project is based on puzzles, Zhang’s work has applications far beyond games. The same principles that underlie her approach could potentially be useful in fields like digital security, machine learning, and blockchain authentication, where it can be valuable to prove that someone has the right information without revealing sensitive data. Her project demonstrates how an abstract mathematical concept can be tied to real-world problems in technology, transforming an ordinary question about puzzles into an investigation of privacy and authentication.
A student with many interests
Zhang is a student at Phillips Exeter Academy and is co-head of the engineering club and co-leader of the Junior Computer Programming Club. Through the programming club, she teaches beginning computer science to elementary and middle school students in the Exeter area. Her interests extend beyond the realm of technology. Zhang is the section leader for the sopranos in PEADQUACS, a co-ed a cappella group that performs at school showcases, admissions events and community gatherings.
Beyond the project
Zhang also serves as an instructor and teaching assistant at AlphaStar Academy where he teaches computer science classes and helps students with their questions. She enjoys being game-ready when she’s not working on computer science or music. Fun fact about her? Zhang always has a deck of cards with her, in case she can play the strategy game Avalon with a friend.
Images Courtesy: Society for Science and istock
