June 4, 2004 UNT Inhouse publication: portrait gallery

Krishna Kavi: Working to make tomorrow's computers faster and better than today's

Krishna Kavi, professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and a national and international traveler, enjoys soaking up the regional culture of the places he visits.

At the UNT Research Park, Krishna Kavi, professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, is developing ways for computers to work better.

"By redesigning the central processing unit, the main ‘thought' center of a com-put er, we can make it work faster and more efficiently than the Pentiums that are available now," says Kavi.

Kavi is originally from Andhra Pradesh, located in the southern region of India, but has lived in the United States since 1976. After receiving his bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, he came to the North Texas area to attend Southern Methodist University, where he earned a doctorate in computer science and engineering in 1980.

He worked in the Dallas-Fort Worth region until 1997, when he took a job at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. But Kavi and his wife, whom he had met in Dallas during the early '80s, missed the area they had called home for almost 20 years.

"We missed the cities and our friends," says Kavi.

They returned in 2001, when Kavi joined the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at UNT.

"Dr. Kavi is an important leader in the engineering college at UNT," says Oscar Garcia, founding dean of the College of Engineering. "His extensive knowledge of computer systems architecture is a real asset for our students, and the entire college benefits from his broad computer science and engineering experience as department chair."

In his free time, Kavi enjoys reading mystery novels. He just finished reading John Grisham's The King of Torts, and one of his favorite books is Mystic River, by Dennis Lehane.

But Kavi isn't content to just read about other places and distant locales. He and his wife have traveled all over the globe.

"I'm trying to see as much as I can," he says. "There are only five states in the U.S. I haven't yet visited."

When he visits a university campus in another state, Kavi likes to try things that are unique to the region.

"I usually spend an extra day or two where I am visiting to explore," he says. "If the area has mountains, I'll go hiking, or I'll spend time in a local museum."

Kavi also tries to sample the regional cuisine of different areas.

"I love any kind of unique food, so when I get the chance I take it," he says. "For example, in New Mexico, their version of Mexican food is a lot different than the Tex-Mex here, so I try to see what else is out there."

Kavi has also traveled all over India, Australia, Taiwan and China — including the cities of Beijing and Xian. In Xian, Kavi viewed the breathtaking display of 7,000 terra cotta statues. The statues, which are 2,000 years old, take the form of soldiers that guard the tomb of a long deceased emperor.

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