Octavio Pérez Kempner

About me

I was born and raised in Uruguay. I have always wanted to study abroad, and I have been extremely fortunate to be given such opportunities on more than one occasion. I met incredible people along the way, and I am very thankful for that as well. Before getting into college, I thought I would become a penetration tester or a security engineer. After taking math courses, I got deeply interested in Cryptography and Theoretical Computer Science, which reshaped my interests and drove me to pursue a PhD in Cryptography. I am committed to a vision of global equal opportunities where privacy is an established human right. I always try to push in that direction wherever I go or work.

Sports

Throughout my youth, I played basketball, competing for Club Biguá. Nowadays, I remain a fan who follows every season. I love practicing sports and take even for fun ping-pong games very seriously.

Languages

I really like learning languages. I consider myself fluent in Spanish (mother tongue), English and Portuguese. I also speak French and Italian at an intermediate level. Furthermore, I studied Japanese for almost 8 years while I was in school/high school. During those wonderful years, I was extremely fortunate to study with Hachiuma Sensei. I am currently trying to improve my Japanese.

Philosophy

I very much enjoy discussing about philosophy, from epistemology to ethics and metaphysics. Although deeply influenced and attracted to existentialist authors, I also enjoy reading about greek mithology and Plato on my spare time.

Cooking

• Foccacia (in English)
• Shakshouka (in Spanish)
• Ottolenghi's roasted whole cauliflower (in English)
• Risotto with onions and gorgonzola cheese (in Italian)
• Caramelized onions (in French)
• Aioli (in French)