Hi, I'm Mourtalla Diop

A Computer Science student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

View My Work

About Me

I am a graduate computer science student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, specializing in cybersecurity and the design of secure, scalable systems. My work focuses on understanding how systems fail—and how to build them to withstand real-world adversaries.

My primary interests lie at the intersection of cybersecurity, systems programming, and applied machine learning. I am particularly driven by vulnerability analysis, exploit development, and data-driven threat detection. Through hands-on platforms like pwn.college and systems-level coursework, I actively develop an adversarial mindset—analyzing software the way attackers do to build more resilient defenses.

In parallel, I am expanding my full-stack development skills to better understand security across the entire application stack, from backend logic and databases to APIs and deployment. This allows me to approach security not just as a constraint, but as a fundamental design principle.

I continue to strengthen my technical foundation through advanced coursework, practical labs, and professional certifications in areas such as ethical hacking, system security, and modern development practices.

Outside of academics, I enjoy playing soccer, the piano, and chess—activities that reinforce discipline, creativity, and strategic thinking, all of which influence how I approach complex technical challenges.

My technical skills include:

  • Programming Languages: C++, Java, C#, Python, JavaScript, C
  • Web Technologies: React, Node.js, Express, TypeScript, HTML/CSS, REST APIs
  • Databases: SQL, MongoDB, Git, Linux, Socket.IO
  • Tools & Platforms: Git, Docker, Linux
Get In Touch
Mourtalla Diop

My Projects

Checkmate by algorithm

Machine Learning: Checkmate by Algorithm

This machine learning project, completed with a classmate in Fall 2023, aims to analyze chess game openings through the lens of machine learning.

Python Pandas Scikit-learn
Regle de trois

Règle de Trois

A full-stack web application for traditional Senegalese board game with real-time multiplayer functionality

React Node.js MongoDB
Calculator Application

Calculator Application

In this project, I developed a fully functional calculator using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

HTML CSS JavaScript
Etch a Sketch

Etch a Sketch

A straightforward "Etch a Sketch" game made with JavaScript, HTML, and CSS for the web.

HTML CSS JavaScript
xv6 lottery scheduler

xv6 — Lottery Scheduler

Implemented a ticket-based lottery scheduler inside the xv6 teaching OS, adding `pstat` tracking, new system calls, and automated tests to evaluate fairness and responsiveness.

C xv6 OS Makefile
Stocks Serverless Pipeline

Stocks Serverless Pipeline

Serverless market-data ETL that ingests and normalizes raw feeds, stores canonical records in DynamoDB/S3, and exposes a REST API for queries.

Python AWS Lambda DynamoDB S3 Terraform
Rock Paper Scissors

Rock Paper Scissors

This is a simple implementation of the classic Rock, Paper, Scissors game. The game allows a player to compete against the computer in a series of rounds.

HTML CSS JavaScript

Experience

Undergraduate Research Assistant

November 2025 - May 2026

University of Tennessee, Knoxville — Digital Archives Research

  • Data Engineering & Cleansing Pipeline: Built a Python preprocessing pipeline to clean noisy archival scans — visual deduplication using Pillow + ImageHash (pHash), textual deduplication via TF‑IDF similarity (scikit‑learn), and OCR extraction with Tesseract/PyPDF2 to produce structured, searchable text.
  • Cloud Infrastructure & Vector Search: Provisioned an Azure stack with multi‑tier Blob Storage (production vault historyarchive0054869046 and sandbox testarchive), migrated indexing to Azure AI Search (HNSW) to store document embeddings and enable high‑performance cosine‑similarity semantic search.
  • Cognitive Integration & Embeddings: Orchestrated an Azure AI Foundry workspace (historyarchive0023275199), integrated Azure OpenAI (gpt‑4) and embedding model text‑embedding‑3‑small, and managed secure service tokens to enable natural‑language synthesis and vector generation.
  • AI Governance & Frontend Deployment: Authored strict prompt guardrails to enforce source grounding and explicit "information not found" responses; deployed a lightweight iframe chatbot widget and an Azure App Service Web App (South Central US) to isolate heavy processing from client load.
  • Tech Stack: Python, Pillow, ImageHash, scikit‑learn, PyPDF2, Tesseract OCR, Azure Blob Storage, Azure AI Search (HNSW), Azure OpenAI (gpt‑4), embeddings, cosine similarity.

Client Solution Intern

May 2025 - August 2025

Alvissoft

  • Conducted lead generation and outreach for 30+ businesses weekly using Google Maps, Yelp, and BuiltWith; managed pipeline in HubSpot CRM.
  • Onboarded clients to AI chatbot and web automation solutions, providing technical support and product demonstrations.
  • Assisted in developing automation workflows and integrating third-party APIs for client implementations.

Retail Associate

June 2021 - July 2021

Kroger

  • Managed inventory organization and restocking in fast-paced retail environment.
  • Maintained product presentation standards and assisted customers with inquiries

Contact Me

Get In Touch

Feel free to reach out if you're looking for a developer, have a question, or just want to connect.

Email

mourtalladiop127@gmail.com

Phone

+1 (615) 602-6918

Location

Nashville, TN