Belgrade Airport Taxi Scammer

Belgrade Airport

 If you are arriving at the Belgrade Airport, be very careful about the taxi scammers. After a tiresome day at the Belgrade Airport due to the horrible AirSerbia, I encountered this Taxi dude. Before entering the taxi, as a smart traveler, I made sure he turns the taxi meter on. He clarified I will pay by card since I do not have local currency. Throughout the ride he kept saying how the country has become very expensive and fuel has become extremely expensive due to the wars. When we arrived at my booking.com apartment, the meter showed RSD 889 and the receipt he gave me correctly showed the amount. He shows the credit card reader for me to tap my card with the correct amount. Before I tapped, he quickly typed something. I assumed he was just choosing the currency or whatever. He had added a zero! So, for a 9 minutes quick drive, he had charged me RSD 8890 instead of RSD 889. 

That was USD 87.38 instead of USD 8.74. 10 times the money.  USD 78.64 more than the actual price. I got the notification that I was charged USD 87.38 from the bank. At that time, I did not remember the conversation rate between RSD and USD. I was already tired and at the bottom (thanks, AirSerbia!) I assumed perhaps RSD 889 is indeed USD 87.38. I had been to Serbia once before. But that was 11 years ago to remember anything. Especially the currency rate, when I was all tired after a tiresome day. When I came to the booking.com apartment, I had this uneasy feeling. My booking.com apartment was very close to the airport. It was not in Belgrade--the airport is indeed somewhat far from Belgrade City. But the apartment was in Surčin, the same town as the airport and it took exactly 9 minutes for the drive! So, this was an insult to pay this much. Something did not feel right. I decided to check my receipt and calculate actual amount using xe.com. Yes, RSD 889 should have been USD 8.74. That makes sense for the 9 minutes drive. If it is indeed USD 87.38 for the 9 minutes drive, that would have made Belgrade the most expensive unlivable city. The driver was hinting on the increased expense in Belgrade throughout the journey. I believe he was prepared to overcharge me in cash, if I decided to pay him in Euro or USD, since he knew I did not have RSD but had Euro and USD.

I immediately reported this to my bank, Bank of America (BoA), with the receipt and the ride path, showing it was just 9 minutes. The bank declined my dispute for the extra USD 78.64. I was horrified how they sided with the scammer, despite me having all the evidence. Then I called them and also published this story on Twitter. The first BoA agent said their AI system flagged and declined my dispute as an AI without human oversight! The second agent was very unhelpful and somewhat patronizing and rude. Uncharacteristic of a call-center person. However, by the time the BoA social media team came online on Twitter, this was resolved. Perhaps, the BoA social media team quickly had a human look over it and realized there was no AI involved in this story and dispute. It felt like it took them just ten minutes to resolve this scam and return me the overcharged USD 78.64!

I have been scammed by taxi guys. Usually, 16 euro instead of 12 euro. In the worst case, getting charged twice the amount. This was the first time someone decided to scam me 10 times! Such a greedy dude. If he had charge me USD 18 instead of USD 8.74, I would have ignored this scam. This magnitude is too much to ignore. 

Verdict: Avoid AirSerbia and Belgrade Airport if you can (more details on this later, if my time permits). But if you must use them and if you end up in Belgrade, make sure to avoid taxis. Public transport is free in Belgrade and you can easily take the bus to Belgrade city center. 

Take it one day at a time

Pula, Croatia

We all like to take it one day at a time. I do. We live in the present and every day is one more day. But in addition to one day, I also tend to have some additional units of time I usually consider. This blog post is just that!

1. Week 

Each day can be different. Monday to Sunday. But weeks tend to have this rhythm. Often all the Fridays feel the same, and all the Sundays feel the same. That is why week is my favorite unit of time!

2. Year. 

I want each of my year to be better than the previous. There are a few ways we can measure the year though!

2.1. Calendar year.

Yes, new year, new diary, new resolutions. I love how we start each year with that energy and optimism. Every year has a winter, spring, summer, autumn, and winter again! It is a circle. I love it.

2.2 Academic year.

This is going to start in the August. New academic year, new students, new faces. Also, coming back from the summer, ready for new adventures and the cold winters.  

2.3 Age.

Counting from the birthday. Age++. This feels special too. Getting older. Yes, we get older each day. But when the age is incremented by one, it feels special.

3. Month 

This does not feel that special. But, it is important in adult life. Bills, rent, salary, and other money stuff usually revolves in a monthly cycle (even though currently I am paid bi-weekly).

 4. Decade 

4.1. Literal decades.

From 1980s (I was just 2 in 1989, so it does not really count), 1990s (this is the first decade I should count. I have memories starting from 1992), 2000s, 2010s (this is my most favorite decade so far), and 2020s (hopefully this decade will overtake my 2010s. It is ongoing, after all. Started as a bad decade, but recovered quickly).

4.2. Age. 

0s, 10s, 20s, 30s, .... I am in my 30s and will be in my 40s next year! Decades of age feel special for a reason.

4.3. Decades counting from 5 y/o.

Although I was born in 1987, I have memories only from 1992. So I tend to calculate the decades  of age as 1992-, 2002-, 2012-, 2022-, and 2032-.

5. Half Periods 

This is dynamic. Any event, whether a semester, a year, a vacation, or a project visit, can be split into two. By tracking the half-period, you know which half you are in. If you have completed the first half, you know you have one more half to go. Just like a merge sort, splitting into halves help you plan the time surprisingly more efficiently. It also makes you appreciate the time better as this is more of a relative unit than a fixed one like everything else above.

6. "Seasons"

I look at my life as if it is a telenovela. In that sense, I see it as several seasons, with several episodes in them. Season 1: The young days (1987 - 2012), Season 2: Grad Student Life (2012 - 2019), Season 3: Postdoc/COVID-19 Period (2020 - 2023), Season 4: Faculty life (2023 - ). In that sense, I am in Season 4 since 2023 August and enjoying it! Bring that main character energy!

Finding a conference or journal to publish your article as an undergraduate

An undergraduate student recently asked me where should he publish his research work. This blog post is from the reply I drafted for him.

 

Depending on who you ask, you will get a totally contrasting opinion. I also answer the question based on who is asking. Let me explain.

Some researchers/professors want to strictly publish in top-tier conferences and journals.

You can check the conference ranking here: https://portal.core.edu.au/conf-ranks/

Journal ranking here: https://www.scimagojr.com/journalrank.php

For journals, Q1 means, top 25% journals. They are good to target.

For conferences, A* are the top-most ones. "A" are good too. Then you have B and C conferences. There are also unranked conferences. Unranked conferences are ok as long as they are not predatory. If you know who is organizing those, that can be good.

Don't submit to predatory conferences (such as those hosted by WASET) and predatory journals. Some journals are in the gray zone and not well respected. For example, MDPI and to some extent - Frontiers In. Avoid those.

Now, we should be realistic too. Most of the undergraduate research (including Google Summer of Code) is something undergraduates do during a semester. Then, once the semester is over, the students usually do not stick around. So, if we want to publish something out of that, either we should make it a part of a larger research, or aim accordingly. We are unlikely to get an "A*" conference or Q1 journal publication without some extra work beyond that one semester of undergraduate research.

Another factor to consider when you publish is the cost. For journals, Article Processing Fee. Open Access journals charge around $2000 or more. Many journals waive that fee for corresponding authors from developing countries. But you need to check. Otherwise, stick to journals that do not ask for that fee to publish.

For conferences, you cannot skip this fee. Because for conferences, this fee also covers the conference organization and participation cost. If you submit a paper to a conference, then one of the authors must attend the conference and present the paper. Some conferences allow remote presentation - but they usually still expect the full article processing fee (which can be almost $1000). So, if you are submitting a paper to a conference, be prepared to pay for that. Usually, your university should have some fund to cover your registration. But usually they cannot cover students who are not from the same university.

If you submit your paper to a conference, even if they allow you to present remotely if you want, it is best to go to present in-person. That way, you can experience the conference in full. But then be prepared to spend for the flight tickets, hotels, and meals. Usually, the total cost for such a conference trip (as a conference usually lasts around 4 days) is around $4000 (it depends on the location and the hotel you stay, of course). Then, the visa challenges. For many researchers from the developing countries, getting a visa to Europe or US is a challenge on its own. Oftentimes, it is not worth the hassle and we end up finding conferences that are in the same country where we live or a country where we already have a visa or a visa-free access.

So, you are going to make a decision based on all these factors.

A few things that made my 2025 interesting..

Kigali, Rwanda by night!

2025 is my best year so far, followed by 2024, 2023, 2019, and 2017. 2025 had some resemblance to 2024: two academic semesters, with a "mostly jobless" summer vacation in between! The year started with the fear that the Mt Spurr volcano would erupt. Luckily, it never did! This post lists 30 things that made my 2025 interesting.

1. New Year 2025 in Shenzhen, China.

Family time and busy streets.

2. Smoggy and windy Los Angeles, CA.

Although the wildfire with its smog was not fun, the winds and the dark sky were interesting in a scary way. 

Hilly Kigali!

3. Coffee in the mornings in Bangkok, Thailand.

The interesting drinks and ending the year in style with family. 

4. Experiencing the first real earthquake.

It was 6.0 and felt strong in our home in Anchorage, with things moving and books falling down the shelves. Luckily, the center was still a few tens of miles from Anchorage. So it was not a disaster.

5. Northern Lights at Cleary Summit, Fairbanks, AK. 

While I have seen northern lights before in Anchorage and Utqiagvik, this one was stronger and clearer in the darker location.

6. Music of 2025.

What is a year without some new good music! 

 

7. Published journal papers!

A CONTROL-CORE-2 CLUSTER journal paper: my last paper from the postdoc era. Nice to see it getting published, finally. Two IEEE Computer Magazine papers: Both are products of my collaboration with the Department of Alaska Native Studies. And one RSASE Polar Science paper, a collaboration with Canadian researchers.

Harrison's Cave, Barbados

8. Making friends at a community event in Kigali, Rwanda.

This time for Africa! Now I have visited 6 continents. Only Antarctica is pending! 

9. Walking the hills of Kigali, Rwanda.

It was up and down, and Kigali looks peaceful at night, with lights that look like stars in the adjacent hills.  

10. A long hike in the Foreshore Trail around UBC.

Muddy trail and mudflats of Vancouver, BC, Canada. The stay at UBC for the IEEE CCECE 2025 conference. The university town is peaceful and calm.

11. San Antonio River cruise and dining by the river at night.

Beautiful restaurants of Kigali

It was a productive workshop by NHERI. 

12. Trying diverse cuisines in New York City.

Got to love the diversity of food in the US.

13. Waves of Christ Church, Barbados.

The beachfront hotel let us go to the beach several times.

14. Atlantis Submarine in Bridgetown, Barbados.

The colors disappear, and everything gets blue as we go deep underwater.

Deep into the Ocean, Barbados

15. Black bear sighting at Campbell Park, Anchorage.

A momma bear and her two cubs on our little hike in the park, pretty close. None of us were harmed. The bears minded their business and we minded ours as we slowly walked away. Anchorage reminds us every now and then that we live with wildlife with the frequent moose sightings and now, these black bears.  

16. New Research collaborations.

Including Stellenbosch University in South Africa and Cooper Union in NYC.

17. Fall 2025 semester. Teaching three courses.

One of the three was a new course for me. A full load. I survived.

18. MATLAB Educator Workshop at Carleton University.

Busy days in Northfield, MN, followed by a long walk in Mall of America.

View from the submarine, Barbados

19. My big diary!

I got a nice diary in China. It was very heavy though, like a big brick. 

20. Harrison's Cave Eco-Adventure Park in Barbados.  

Exploring the caves in an underground tram!

21. Atlanta once more!

Returned to Atlanta after two years briefly. Visited both Ponce City Market and Krog Street Market. Interestingly, not too strong memories from the past even from the airport and these places that I used to frequent. 

22. IEEE IPCCC 2025 at Hotel Viata in West Lake Hills, TX.

and some random walks in downtown Austin.

23.  Temples and statues of Hindu Gods in Bangkok. 

Mariamman, Brahma, and Indra. 

24. Croatia EQUISYS project until September 30th, 2029.

This project collaboration of four summers. I am looking forward to it in 2026. 

Malls of Bangkok, Thailand

25. Snowy mountains of Juneau, AK.

Juneau has the mountains much closer to the town than Anchorage! Makes it feel more beautiful and wild than Anchorage.

26. A night in Singapore.

Family reunion, which was supposed to be the moment in 2020 February. Pandemic memories. We have come a full circle.

27. New Year's Eve, crowds, and celebrating 2026 in Bangkok.

Siam Center and Em Quartier malls, celebrating the new year. The malls of Bangkok are so inviting.

28. Museums of Seattle, WA.

Northern lights in Fairbanks, AK.

Although Seattle is not new to us, this time we had a long time to explore it well.

29. A long multi-part trip that started with Tacoma, WA.

Night walks in Tacoma. The beautiful view of the Puget Sound from the hotel window. One of those magical moments. Perfect wrap to the year. 

30. The Amsterdam Airport!

It felt nice to be in Europe, even though it was just a layover in the air side. The last time I was in Europe was 2019 December when I visited Istanbul (and 2020 January in the LHR airport, air side). It reminded me it is long overdue to visit Europe, and also perhaps time to visit Portugal again sometime. I have not been in Portugal since 2019 July.

Every year, I have only one new year's resolution - to outperform my previous years. :) 2026 appears exciting with interesting events already planned. I wish you a happy new year. Thanks for reading my list until the end. You may read the blog posts of all the previous years as well. 

AI, the end or new beginnings?

AI has made it easy for quick fixes into code. As a maintainer of several project repositories, it feels like a relief. Lots of frameworks to assist in coding. I know what I want to do and AI feels like a little helper to quickly type certain code segment that I understand. It also helps find mistakes in code quickly. Similar to what IDEs did, but with extra support. But as an educator, I also feel dangerously horrible use of AI. Students are just throwing essay titles into ChatGPT. When an assignment slightly deviates from the norm and when they cannot let AI to complete it for them, some students are feeling frustrated. Students (both local and those who participate in remote programs - so the issue is global. Not limited to Alaska) simply let AI do coding and writing for them, and when something goes wrong, they are confused. For a trivial fix that would take the code author just a couple of minutes and a couple of lines to fix, the AI ends up with drastic changes. 

Sunset in Barbados

Many student essays feel bland. They lack soul and personality. If you give the student an well-designed homework, they quickly get the answer. When the problem involves thinking on architecture beyond what AI can handle for them at this point, they are stuck. "Can you tell me what I should exactly do here?" For vaguely defined problems, they want clear step-by-step instructions which they can then easily feed into LLMs.

As educators, we should spend more time in teaching architecture and thinking. If all students want is to simply feed clear instructions into ChatGPT, if I were an employer, I would rather do that myself. Why would I pay someone when they need clear instructions, step-by-step guidelines to a software program that they can easily feed into ChatGPT or other more advanced AI coding tools?

I used to enjoy fixing student papers. Those essays had life and personalities. They read like what students wrote. They sounded like the student. Now, they all sound bland. Like an AI slop. And they are indeed detected at 50 - 100% as AI by AI detectors of tools such as Grammarly Premium. At this point, I could simply write everything on my own. That will be, starting from zero, as opposed to trying to fix AI slop, which feels like starting from -100.

Computer science undergraduates are giving up the fight to LLM even before they start. This is sad as this is also a self-fulfilling prophecy.