Ido Akkerman focused on improving the reliability of Hessian-based finite element calculations in the mfem/mfem repository. He refactored the existing Hessian calculation tests by replacing the ConvHessian function with CheckTaylorSeries, which enhanced the accuracy of the test suite. Working primarily in C++ and leveraging his expertise in finite element analysis and unit testing, Ido updated test_calchessian.cpp to adopt this new approach. His work addressed a specific bug, reducing the risk of false positives and negatives in numerical solver regression tests. Over the month, Ido’s contributions deepened the robustness of MFEM’s optimization workflows through targeted test improvements.