Ph.D. in Computer Science | Blockchain Researcher | Senior Software Engineer | Computer Science Educator
chris.liu@dal.ca • linkedin.com/in/drchrisliu
Dr. Christian G. Liu is a blockchain and software engineering researcher and is affiliated with Dalhousie University. Dr. Liu recently achieved his Ph.D. in Computer Science research in early 2024, in the same institution. Moreover, he utilizes his knowledge as a computer science educator on these institutions. With more than two decades of experience in the technology sector, he has gained a strong background as a software engineer in technology companies. His hands-on experience has provided him with deep knowledge of technicalities and methodological knowledge thus positively contributing to his research and training experience.
Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS
Doctoral Researcher / Teaching Fellow (9/2018 4/2024)
As a Doctoral Researcher and Teaching Fellow in Dalhousie University in Halifax, Dr. Liu focused on software modeling and blockchain applications. His responsibilities included research and teaching with a research focus on the integration of state-of-the-art blockchain technology into the software development process:
Teaching Experience:
CSCI 2133 (2019) - Rapid Prototyping: Led courses on design thinking and programming tools for software prototyping.
CSCI 4140 (2017, 2018, 2021 Summer & Fall Terms) - Advanced Database: Instructed on distributed databases, Big Data, NoSQL, and database optimization.
MCDA 5560 (2018 Summer & Fall) - Business Intelligence: Taught business data analytics and visualization techniques.
CSCI 5408 (2018 Winter) - Data Warehousing: Taught data warehousing techniques.
Teaching Assistant Roles:
Assisted in courses like CSCI 6313 (Blockchain: 2022 Summer Term, 2023 Summer & Fall Terms), CS4140 (Advanced Database), and CS5409 (Cloud Computing), providing support in lab sessions, grading, and student guidance.
Research Contributions:
Published research papers on blockchain technology in peer-reviewed journals and conferences.
Successfully implemented blockchain-based projects as part of doctoral research.
Played a pivotal role in establishing the university's first blockchain virtual lab.
Contributed to launching university's inaugural accredited blockchain course.
Samsung
Senior Lab Manager (5/2018 8/2018)
Dr. Liu led four research teams dedicated to developing AI solutions for Samsung’s mobile devices. He delegated work activity among participants, designed new features, kept track of timelines and budgets, and regularly reported progress. His approach facilitated successful AI projects with improvements to voice recognition and image processing for the Bixby platform. Dr. Liu focused on implementing stringent project management activities and ensuring proper communications for meeting Samsung’s strategic objectives. Colleagues and management recognized the impact his contribution had on this organization, enabling him to pursue academic work focused on blockchain and software development research and education.
IBM Canada Ltd., Halifax, NS
Senior IT Specialist (4/2015 5/2018)
As a Senior IT Specialist, Dr. Liu cooperated with a large group of business analysts, test analysts, and developers, and my tasks were to correctly implement the customer’s requirements, create test scenarios, and improve the system’s performance.
Some key accomplishments for that project are as follows:
Worked closely with business analysts to understand their clear and implementable requirements.
worked with the test analyst on the case of the test case and monitored the system to identify issues and suggest solutions.
Drafted detailed technical design documents and conducted peer reviews to guarantee the quality of the developers’ work.
Documented coding best practices and developed as well as implemented test units for system functions and modules.
The technological stack includes such tools as Angular, CSS, Node.js, REST, Webstorm, DI, CI, UT, GIT, etc.
CGI Inc., Halifax, NS
Senior Java Developer (1/2012 2/2015)
During work at CGI, Dr. Liu had the opportunity to provide services to the largest insurance organization in the United States. The work required close cooperation with business analysts, test analysts, and developers to ensure the correct implementation of customer requirements and monitoring the operation of the system. Dr. Liu had to bring up new employees, supporting them in the process of adaptation in the working team, and offer new solutions to the current conditions.
Key milestones in this role were:
Engaged a close partnership with business analysts to correctly compile customer requirements and compile test scenarios with test analysts
Compiled technical design documents and peer review of the quality of developer work.
Prepared documentation of coding and testing practices for different modules of the system; bringing up new workers by teaching them our methods.
The working tools used were JAVA, J2EE, JSP, JSF, JavaScript, CSS, SOAP, REST, GIT, ANT, JIRA.
Ericsson., Montreal, QC
Software Developer (7/2007 11/2011)
Dr. Liu worked as a Java developer who was responsible for designing vital projects for the company’s core network. He was in charge of developing test cases in JUnit and creating external testing environments in Python for component tests.
Key contributions were:
Spearheading Java development for pivotal projects within Ericsson's core network.
Designing and implementing JUnit test cases for unit testing.
Setting up a Python-based external testing environment tailored for component testing.
Has previously presented as an author at conferences:
1. 2021 3rd International Conference on Blockchain Technology (ICBCT 2021). March 26 - 28, 2021. https://dl.acm.org/doi/proceedings/10.1145/3460537
2. ACM BSCI 2021 : The 3rd ACM International Symposium on Blockchain and Secure Critical Infrastructure. June 7-11, 2021. https://dl.acm.org/doi/proceedings/10.1145/3433210
3. 7th IEEE International Conference on Engineering and Emerging Technologies (ICEET), 27-28 October 2021, Istanbul, Turkey. IEEE
4. ACM Fourth International Conference on Blockchain Technology and Applications (ICBTA21), December 17th-19th, 2021
5. 2022 IEEE Fourth International Conference on Blockchain Computing and Applications (BCCA), SEP. 05 – 07, 2022 – SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA
Have served as an instructor
DAL: CSCI 5408 (2018 Winter Term)
DAL: CSCI 4140 (2017 & 2018 & 2021 Summer Term & 2021 Fall Term)
DAL: CSCI 2133 (2019 Winter Term)
SMU: MCDA 5560 (2018 Winter Term)
SMU: MCDA 5560 (2018 Summer Term)
SMU: Hadoop (2017 Fall Term)
Have served as a teaching assistant
DAL: CSCI 6313 (2021 Summer Term & 2022 Winter Term & Summer Term & 2023 Fall Term)
DAL: CSCI 4140 (2019 Fall Term & 2021 Winter Term & 2023 Fall term)
DAL: CSCI 5408 (2020 Fall Term)
DAL: CSCI 1106 (2020 Winter Term)
Education and Training
Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS (2021-2024)
Doctor of Philosophy - PhD in Computer Science
Throughout my Ph.D. in Computer Science, I specialized in integrating Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) with blockchain technology, particularly in the domain of smart contracts. My doctoral dissertation [http://hdl.handle.net/10222/83441] aimed to bridge conventional business processes with the blockchain landscape.
Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS (2019-2020)
Master of Science in Computer Science Thesis Based
At Dalhousie University, I pursued a thesis-based Master's degree in Computer Science, with a deep dive into blockchain technology research. My focus was on enhancing the efficiency of e-business transactions through both public and private blockchain networks, emphasizing off-chain computation strategies.
Concordia University, Montreal, QC (2005-2007)
Master of Applied Science in Computer Science Course Based
Certifications
SCJP Sun Certified Programmer SCWCD Sun Certified Web Component Developer
IBM IT Specialist Experienced Certification UPEI Faculty Development Summer Institute
Patents
1. System and Methods for Automated Generation of Smart Contracts from BPMN Models Using DE-HSM Multi-modal Models Executed by Smart Contracts with Sidechain Processing. Bodorik, P.; Liu, C.; and Jutla, D. USPTO Utility Patent Application Number: 17968047; Submitted: 2022-10-18. USPTO Utility Patent Applications
Publications
1. Liu, C. 2021. FSM for Modeling for Off-Blockchain Computation. Faculty of Graduate Studies Online Theses. Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. http://hdl.handle.net/10222/80335.
2. Bodorik, P., Liu, C., Jutla, D. (2021). Using FSMs to Find Patterns for Off-Chain Computing: Finding Patterns for Off-Chain Computing with FSMs. In 2021 The 3rd International Conference on Blockchain Technology (ICBCT '21), March 26-28, 2021, Shanghai, China. ACM, New York, NY, USA, 7 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3460537.3460565.
3. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., Jutla, D. (2021a). A Tool for Moving Blockchain Computations Off-Chain. In Proceedings of 2021 3rd ACM International Symposium on Blockchain and Secure Critical Infrastructure (BSCI'21), June 3-7, 2021, Virtual Event, Hong Kong. ACM, New York, NY, USA, 8 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3457337.3457848.
4. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., & Jutla, D. (2021b). From BPMN to smart contracts on blockchains: Transforming BPMN to DE-HSM multi-modal model. 2021 International Conference on Engineering and Emerging Technologies (ICEET), 17. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICEET53442.2021.9659771.
5. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., Jutla, D. (2022a). Automating Smart Contract Generation on Blockchains Using Multi-modal Modeling. Journal of Advances in Information Technology (JAIT). https://doi.org/10.12720/jait.13.3.213-223.
6. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., Jutla, D. (2022b). Supporting Long-term Transactions in Smart Contracts. 2022 IEEE Fourth International Conference on Blockchain Computing and Applications (BCCA), 1119. https://doi.org/10.1109/BCCA55292.2022.9922193.
7. Bodorik, P., Liu, C., Jutla, D. (2023). TABS: Transforming automatically BPMN models into blockchain smart contracts. Blockchain: Research and Applications (Elsevier), 100115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcra.2022.100115.
8. Liu, C. G., Bodorik, P., & Jutla, D. (2023). Long-Term Blockchain Transactions Spanning Multiplicity of Smart Contract Methods. In Springer BlockSys: Blockchain and Trustworthy Systems. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-8104-5.
9. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., Jutla, D. (2023). Nested Blockchain Transaction for Multiple Methods of a Smart Contract [Manuscript submitted for publication]. ACM Distributed Ledger Technologies: Research and Practice (DLT).
10. Liu, C. G. (2024). Supporting Long-term Transactions in Smart Contracts Generated from Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) Models. Faculty of Graduate Studies Online Theses. Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. http://hdl.handle.net/10222/83441.
11. Liu, C., Bodorik, P., & Jutla, D. (2024). Transforming Automatically BPMN Models to Smart Contracts with Nested Trade Transactions (TABS+). Distributed Ledger Technologies: Research and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1145/3654802