Thursday, July 8, 2010
Moving In
Well my lovely wife and I now have the keys to our new apartment. In the first day back (Tuesday) we rented a van from UHaul and moved 95% of our stuff out of the secret storage location. We got Alex to help us with that one. Then all three of us went out to a lovely Italian dinner. Then wifey and I dropped Alex off and proceeded directly to Wal-Mart to obtained the first round of goods we needed for our apartment. After this fruitfull trip we returned to our domicile and promptly fell asleep.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Graduation Information
Friday May 14-University Ceremony at 7:30pm Lane Stadium
-Gov. Whatsit will be talking
-Probably not a good idea to bring a backpack stuffed with knives
-I will have to enter through the South Endzone, I don't know about the rest of you
Saturday May 15-ECE Reception 11:00am-12:30pm Hokie Grill
-I would like to go to this
-My immediate thought is to walk over, but there is a couple fairly large parking lots if anyone would rather drive
Saturday May 15-The Real Deal 2:00pm Cassell Coliseum
-Doors open at 1:00pm
-All Guests should be seated at 1:30pm
-I will be sitting with the other Electrical Engineers
-All the EEs will be in Alphabetical order so I will likely be near the middle of the group
-I would like to be there around 1
-Hanicapped parking will be in the small lot by the tennis courts
-They only allow their photographers to be on the floor
-Below is a helpful diagram that shows where I will sit, where the stage is and the path I will take to get my diplomas
If there are any questions please let me know.
-Gov. Whatsit will be talking
-Probably not a good idea to bring a backpack stuffed with knives
-I will have to enter through the South Endzone, I don't know about the rest of you
Saturday May 15-ECE Reception 11:00am-12:30pm Hokie Grill
-I would like to go to this
-My immediate thought is to walk over, but there is a couple fairly large parking lots if anyone would rather drive
Saturday May 15-The Real Deal 2:00pm Cassell Coliseum
-Doors open at 1:00pm
-All Guests should be seated at 1:30pm
-I will be sitting with the other Electrical Engineers
-All the EEs will be in Alphabetical order so I will likely be near the middle of the group
-I would like to be there around 1
-Hanicapped parking will be in the small lot by the tennis courts
-They only allow their photographers to be on the floor
-Below is a helpful diagram that shows where I will sit, where the stage is and the path I will take to get my diplomas
If there are any questions please let me know.
A random update
Well it has be a long time since I've written an update for this here bloggy type thingy so here we go. I am approaching the end to my undergraduate life. I feel as though this is a rather good thing, and that in all rights I have lived 10 years within the past four. Four years were spent as a full time Electrical Engineering student (I think of this as the primary grouping), Four years were spent as a full time Computer Engineering student (the differences between Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering start of subtle but one day you notice that all of a sudden everyone in the world walks backwards, on their hands, while humming show tunes), and the final two years were spent as a full time college football player (an experience that I both very happy to have had and that I very happy is now over with). I don't count the social experiences as their own years because a student/athlete has such experiences as part of their lives. At this point I'm rather excited about my paths converging in grad school were I will only be pursuing a single major.
I'm stuck in a Documentation arc now so don't be surprised if other short messages like this appear, but for now I must to class as they say.
I'm stuck in a Documentation arc now so don't be surprised if other short messages like this appear, but for now I must to class as they say.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Another Revision
Ok so I looked over the essay I posted last night and consider input from various peoples and I have come up with the current revision. Let me know what you think:
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student and what I hope to accomplish is that I want to be a “mad scientist.” I don't use the term to conjure up mental images of a crackpot or societal deviant. Rather, I use the term to highlight the passion and endless exertion in pursuit of “why.” Many people do not understand or appreciate this passion and tend to view it as abnormal. This response it what I expect and is, in many ways, what I'm going for in my graduate work. As an undergraduate engineer I have already developed such a passion for Electrical Engineering and the corresponding accusations of abnormality.
I entered Virginia Tech as an engineering student and Division I athlete. My “madness” became quickly apparent in my decision to tackle the considerable challenges offered by Bradley's Department along with those presented by Frank Beamer and company. Others would have been satisfied with being a “full time jock,” but I decided early on to pursue a double major, covering both Electrical and Computer Engineering. I knew myself well enough to know I would never be happy if I didn't challenge myself academically. In fact, I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to the mix, but, by this time, I could hear my true calling in life and it only involves two “E”s.
That calling was then, and still is, to be that passionate “mad scientist.” In light of this, I dropped my inconsequential past times to more thoroughly pursue my dream. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering, so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree a support degree for my EE aspirations. Thus, I took leave of Beamer's squad, to dive, head long, into Electrical Engineering. Many people say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school. I simply laugh, thinking of the many ways in which my life became more hectic after football.
Since leaving the football team: I worked in two nationally recognized research labs, became involved in various Engineering clubs, increased both my GPA and course load, and got engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonomous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I met a group of “mad scientists,” led by, perhaps, the model for the term. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonomous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. These people were looking beyond all the naysayers to pursue knowledge that has the potential to revolutionize navigation. It's the sort of world changing work that the average person would simply never think of. It is also an example of the work that Electrical Engineers do everyday, driving their knowledge beyond the limits of conventional thinking to satisfy their own passions. In short, these people exemplify what I mean when I use the term “mad scientist.”
At the ASCL, I was exposed to life as one of those “mad scientists” and I loved it. For a long time I dreamed about being in a research lab, pushing out the boundaries of science, fueled by an unquenchable drive to discover the unknown. I got a small taste of that dream at the ASCL. Although, I was mostly involved in the more down to earth tasks, I knew that the advances made in this small lab had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware that the techniques developed there could and would apply to all kinds of things, many of which lie beyond our imagination. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver driverless transportation or housemaid robots that don't walk through coffee tables. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference by turning today's fiction into reality one step at a time.
While working in the ASCL, a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before: communications. I'd never really thought of the importance of providing systems to connect people before. However, the area seemed to embody many of the aspects of Electrical Engineering that I had grown to love. This area held a special attraction for me, as well, because I didn't know that much about it. So, once again driven by the possibility of new knowledge, I wished the world of path-finding robots well, and continued my journey to a new world know as the CWT.
At the Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT), I met a truly fascinating technology: Cognitive Radio. This systems can sense its environment and react intelligently. This is, therefore, the quincentennial “mad scientist” technology in that it takes a passion for learning from its designer. The interest in bestowing my love of learning onto a machine is what drove me initially to the ASCL. It is also apparently what drove the invention of Cognitive Radio.
Working in the CWT, I experienced a whole new level of my conception of “mad scientists.” This group is developing a system that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication, all without the aid of a human brain. It's a system that operates in a world completely beyond the senses of humans. The researchers in this lab are truly driven by a passion for exploring and mastering an unknown realm.
The CWT already developed a cognitive radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it has thought of in the past. Currently, a few of the challenges the lab is tackling are: developing smart communication networks that manage themselves, providing communications that only occupy unused sections of the wireless spectrum, and allowing public safety personal to stay connected even without an infrastructure in place. These are only some of the big picture projects the lab is taking on and I already get to play a small part. This exactly the sort of work I can dive into more deeply as a graduate student.
In the work of the CWT, the thinking part of their system is separate from the radio part. That means the thinking part, the Cognitive Engine, could be applied to other situations, completely independent of radios or even any communications. This technology already has the potential to completely revamp the entire communications infrastructure. Even more exciting, though, are the unexplored possibilities of using the Cognitive Engine for other purposes. There are endless possibilities to this work. This is precisely the sort of thing that demands the passion and drive of a budding “mad scientist.”
It is the passionate for exploration of the unknown, the drive to make the impossible a reality, and the willingness to continue to ask “why” in the face of conventional wisdom that forms my view of the “mad scientist.” I have grown to appreciate the nature and work of “mad scientists” through my work in research labs. Many can recite facts or equations, but few possess the passion of the “mad scientist”. The passion of a true “mad scientist” drives me to continue my education through graduate school.
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student and what I hope to accomplish is that I want to be a “mad scientist.” I don't use the term to conjure up mental images of a crackpot or societal deviant. Rather, I use the term to highlight the passion and endless exertion in pursuit of “why.” Many people do not understand or appreciate this passion and tend to view it as abnormal. This response it what I expect and is, in many ways, what I'm going for in my graduate work. As an undergraduate engineer I have already developed such a passion for Electrical Engineering and the corresponding accusations of abnormality.
I entered Virginia Tech as an engineering student and Division I athlete. My “madness” became quickly apparent in my decision to tackle the considerable challenges offered by Bradley's Department along with those presented by Frank Beamer and company. Others would have been satisfied with being a “full time jock,” but I decided early on to pursue a double major, covering both Electrical and Computer Engineering. I knew myself well enough to know I would never be happy if I didn't challenge myself academically. In fact, I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to the mix, but, by this time, I could hear my true calling in life and it only involves two “E”s.
That calling was then, and still is, to be that passionate “mad scientist.” In light of this, I dropped my inconsequential past times to more thoroughly pursue my dream. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering, so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree a support degree for my EE aspirations. Thus, I took leave of Beamer's squad, to dive, head long, into Electrical Engineering. Many people say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school. I simply laugh, thinking of the many ways in which my life became more hectic after football.
Since leaving the football team: I worked in two nationally recognized research labs, became involved in various Engineering clubs, increased both my GPA and course load, and got engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonomous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I met a group of “mad scientists,” led by, perhaps, the model for the term. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonomous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. These people were looking beyond all the naysayers to pursue knowledge that has the potential to revolutionize navigation. It's the sort of world changing work that the average person would simply never think of. It is also an example of the work that Electrical Engineers do everyday, driving their knowledge beyond the limits of conventional thinking to satisfy their own passions. In short, these people exemplify what I mean when I use the term “mad scientist.”
At the ASCL, I was exposed to life as one of those “mad scientists” and I loved it. For a long time I dreamed about being in a research lab, pushing out the boundaries of science, fueled by an unquenchable drive to discover the unknown. I got a small taste of that dream at the ASCL. Although, I was mostly involved in the more down to earth tasks, I knew that the advances made in this small lab had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware that the techniques developed there could and would apply to all kinds of things, many of which lie beyond our imagination. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver driverless transportation or housemaid robots that don't walk through coffee tables. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference by turning today's fiction into reality one step at a time.
While working in the ASCL, a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before: communications. I'd never really thought of the importance of providing systems to connect people before. However, the area seemed to embody many of the aspects of Electrical Engineering that I had grown to love. This area held a special attraction for me, as well, because I didn't know that much about it. So, once again driven by the possibility of new knowledge, I wished the world of path-finding robots well, and continued my journey to a new world know as the CWT.
At the Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT), I met a truly fascinating technology: Cognitive Radio. This systems can sense its environment and react intelligently. This is, therefore, the quincentennial “mad scientist” technology in that it takes a passion for learning from its designer. The interest in bestowing my love of learning onto a machine is what drove me initially to the ASCL. It is also apparently what drove the invention of Cognitive Radio.
Working in the CWT, I experienced a whole new level of my conception of “mad scientists.” This group is developing a system that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication, all without the aid of a human brain. It's a system that operates in a world completely beyond the senses of humans. The researchers in this lab are truly driven by a passion for exploring and mastering an unknown realm.
The CWT already developed a cognitive radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it has thought of in the past. Currently, a few of the challenges the lab is tackling are: developing smart communication networks that manage themselves, providing communications that only occupy unused sections of the wireless spectrum, and allowing public safety personal to stay connected even without an infrastructure in place. These are only some of the big picture projects the lab is taking on and I already get to play a small part. This exactly the sort of work I can dive into more deeply as a graduate student.
In the work of the CWT, the thinking part of their system is separate from the radio part. That means the thinking part, the Cognitive Engine, could be applied to other situations, completely independent of radios or even any communications. This technology already has the potential to completely revamp the entire communications infrastructure. Even more exciting, though, are the unexplored possibilities of using the Cognitive Engine for other purposes. There are endless possibilities to this work. This is precisely the sort of thing that demands the passion and drive of a budding “mad scientist.”
It is the passionate for exploration of the unknown, the drive to make the impossible a reality, and the willingness to continue to ask “why” in the face of conventional wisdom that forms my view of the “mad scientist.” I have grown to appreciate the nature and work of “mad scientists” through my work in research labs. Many can recite facts or equations, but few possess the passion of the “mad scientist”. The passion of a true “mad scientist” drives me to continue my education through graduate school.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Essay Revisions Everywhere
Well in talking to Spud about my essay, he mentioned that it might be an idea to shift the tone from "insanity" toward "passion", after thinking about it for a bit and giving it a try I agree. I am including below the latest update. This one should be fairly free of spelling and grammar mistakes as well, but please let me know if you find any. Also let me know what you think.
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student and what I hope to accomplish is that I want to be a “mad scientist”. I don't use the term to conjure up mental images of a crackpot or societal deviant. Rather, I use the to highlight the passion and endless exertion is pursuit of “why”. Many people do not understand or appreciate this passion and tend to view it as abnormal. This response is what I expect and is, in many ways, what I'm going for in my graduate work. As an undergraduate engineer I have already developed such a passion for Electrical Engineering and the corresponding accusations of abnormality.
I entered Virginia Tech as an engineering student and Division I athlete. My “madness” became quickly apparent in my decision to tackle the considerable challenges offered by Bradley's Department along with those presented by Frank Beamer and company. Others would have been satisfied with being a “full time jock”, but I decided early on to pursue a double major, covering both Electrical and Computer Engineering. I knew myself well enough to know I would never be happy if I didn't challenge myself academically. In fact, I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to the mix as well, but, by this time, I could hear my true calling in life and it only involves two “E”s.
That calling was then, and still is, to be that passionate “mad scientist”. In light of this, I dropped my inconsequential past times to more thoroughly pursue my dream. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering, so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree to be a support degree for my EE aspirations. Thus, after taking leave of Beamer's squad, I dove, head long, into Electrical Engineering. Many people say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school. I simply laugh, thinking of the many ways in which my life became more hectic after football.
Since leaving the football team, I worked in two nationally recognized research labs, became involved in various Engineering clubs, increased both my GPA and course load, and got engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonomous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I met a group of “mad scientists”, led by, perhaps, the model for the term. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonomous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. These people were looking beyond all the nay sayers to pursue knowledge that has the potential to revolutionize navigation. It's the sort of world changing work that the average person would simply never think of. It is also an example of the work that Electrical Engineers do everyday, driving their knowledge beyond the limits of conventional thinking to satisfy their own passions. In short, these mean exemplify what I mean when I use the term “mad scientist”.
At the ASCL, I got to be one of those “mad scientists” and I loved it. For a long time I dreamed about being in a research lab, pushing out the boundaries of science, fueled by an unquenchable drive to discover the unknown. I got a small taste of that dream at the ASCL. Although, I was mostly involved in the more down to earth tasks, I knew that the advances made in this small had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware that the techniques developed there could and would apply to all kinds of things, many of which lie beyond our imagination. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver driverless transportation or housemaid robots that don't walk through coffee tables. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference in the world by helping to lay the foundation for tomorrow.
While working in the ASCL, a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before: communications. I'd never really thought of the importance of providing systems to connect people before. However, the area seemed to embody many of the aspects of Electrical Engineering that I had grow to love. This area held a special attraction for me, as well, because I didn't know that much about it. So, once again driven by the possibility of new knowledge, I wished the world of path-finding robots well, and continued my journey to a new world know as the CWT.
At the Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT), I met a truly fascinating technology. Systems that sense their environment and react intelligently had always been the most interesting to me. The interest in bestowing my love of learning onto a machine is what drove me initially to the ASCL. It is also apparently what drove the invention of Cognitive Radio.
Working in the CWT, I experienced a whole new level of conception of “mad scientists”. This group is developing a system that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication, all without the aid of a human brain. It's a system that operates in a world completely beyond the senses of humans. The researchers in this lab are truly driven by a passion for exploring and mastering an unknown realm.
The CWT already developed a cognitive radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it has thought of in the past. Currently, a few of the challenge the lab is tackling are: developing smart communication networks that manage themselves, providing communications that only occupy unused sections of the wireless spectrum, and capabilities for public safety personal to stay connected, even in the face of total loss of infrastructure. These are only some of the big picture projects the lab is taking on and I already get to play a small part, but this exactly the sort of work I can dive into more deeply as a graduate student.
In the work of the CWT, the thinking part of their system is separate from the radio part. That means the thinking part, the Cognitive Engine, could be applied to other situations, completely independent of radios or even any communications. This technology already has the potential to completely revamp the entire communications infrastructure. Even more exciting, though, are the unexplored possibilities of using the Cognitive Engine for other purposes. There are endless possibilities to this work. This exactly the sort of thing that demands the passion and drive of a budding “mad scientist”.
It's the passionate exploration of the unknown, the drive to make the impossible a reality, and the willingness to continue to ask “why” in the face of conventional wisdom that forms my view of the “mad scientist”. I have grown to appreciate the nature and work of “mad scientists” through my work in research labs. Many can recite facts or equations, but few possess the passion of the “mad scientist”. I know I have the drive to turn science fiction into reality.
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student and what I hope to accomplish is that I want to be a “mad scientist”. I don't use the term to conjure up mental images of a crackpot or societal deviant. Rather, I use the to highlight the passion and endless exertion is pursuit of “why”. Many people do not understand or appreciate this passion and tend to view it as abnormal. This response is what I expect and is, in many ways, what I'm going for in my graduate work. As an undergraduate engineer I have already developed such a passion for Electrical Engineering and the corresponding accusations of abnormality.
I entered Virginia Tech as an engineering student and Division I athlete. My “madness” became quickly apparent in my decision to tackle the considerable challenges offered by Bradley's Department along with those presented by Frank Beamer and company. Others would have been satisfied with being a “full time jock”, but I decided early on to pursue a double major, covering both Electrical and Computer Engineering. I knew myself well enough to know I would never be happy if I didn't challenge myself academically. In fact, I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to the mix as well, but, by this time, I could hear my true calling in life and it only involves two “E”s.
That calling was then, and still is, to be that passionate “mad scientist”. In light of this, I dropped my inconsequential past times to more thoroughly pursue my dream. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering, so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree to be a support degree for my EE aspirations. Thus, after taking leave of Beamer's squad, I dove, head long, into Electrical Engineering. Many people say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school. I simply laugh, thinking of the many ways in which my life became more hectic after football.
Since leaving the football team, I worked in two nationally recognized research labs, became involved in various Engineering clubs, increased both my GPA and course load, and got engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonomous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I met a group of “mad scientists”, led by, perhaps, the model for the term. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonomous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. These people were looking beyond all the nay sayers to pursue knowledge that has the potential to revolutionize navigation. It's the sort of world changing work that the average person would simply never think of. It is also an example of the work that Electrical Engineers do everyday, driving their knowledge beyond the limits of conventional thinking to satisfy their own passions. In short, these mean exemplify what I mean when I use the term “mad scientist”.
At the ASCL, I got to be one of those “mad scientists” and I loved it. For a long time I dreamed about being in a research lab, pushing out the boundaries of science, fueled by an unquenchable drive to discover the unknown. I got a small taste of that dream at the ASCL. Although, I was mostly involved in the more down to earth tasks, I knew that the advances made in this small had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware that the techniques developed there could and would apply to all kinds of things, many of which lie beyond our imagination. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver driverless transportation or housemaid robots that don't walk through coffee tables. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference in the world by helping to lay the foundation for tomorrow.
While working in the ASCL, a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before: communications. I'd never really thought of the importance of providing systems to connect people before. However, the area seemed to embody many of the aspects of Electrical Engineering that I had grow to love. This area held a special attraction for me, as well, because I didn't know that much about it. So, once again driven by the possibility of new knowledge, I wished the world of path-finding robots well, and continued my journey to a new world know as the CWT.
At the Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT), I met a truly fascinating technology. Systems that sense their environment and react intelligently had always been the most interesting to me. The interest in bestowing my love of learning onto a machine is what drove me initially to the ASCL. It is also apparently what drove the invention of Cognitive Radio.
Working in the CWT, I experienced a whole new level of conception of “mad scientists”. This group is developing a system that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication, all without the aid of a human brain. It's a system that operates in a world completely beyond the senses of humans. The researchers in this lab are truly driven by a passion for exploring and mastering an unknown realm.
The CWT already developed a cognitive radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it has thought of in the past. Currently, a few of the challenge the lab is tackling are: developing smart communication networks that manage themselves, providing communications that only occupy unused sections of the wireless spectrum, and capabilities for public safety personal to stay connected, even in the face of total loss of infrastructure. These are only some of the big picture projects the lab is taking on and I already get to play a small part, but this exactly the sort of work I can dive into more deeply as a graduate student.
In the work of the CWT, the thinking part of their system is separate from the radio part. That means the thinking part, the Cognitive Engine, could be applied to other situations, completely independent of radios or even any communications. This technology already has the potential to completely revamp the entire communications infrastructure. Even more exciting, though, are the unexplored possibilities of using the Cognitive Engine for other purposes. There are endless possibilities to this work. This exactly the sort of thing that demands the passion and drive of a budding “mad scientist”.
It's the passionate exploration of the unknown, the drive to make the impossible a reality, and the willingness to continue to ask “why” in the face of conventional wisdom that forms my view of the “mad scientist”. I have grown to appreciate the nature and work of “mad scientists” through my work in research labs. Many can recite facts or equations, but few possess the passion of the “mad scientist”. I know I have the drive to turn science fiction into reality.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Another Essay Update
Someone be sure to tell Spud that there is another essay update so he is assured that I am not forgetting about this. Also this time I am not posting the requirements.
Here you are then:
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student or what I hope to accomplish is that I would to be a "mad scientist". Probably not adhering to all of the mental images that the term likely conjures, but I believe the fundamentals of expression accurately describe what I wish to achieve. If you take mad to me crazy and the moniker to be applied by some observer, it precisely defines the response I expect to get from some portion of society.
Already I have in many ways achieve a status that is in line with the label of "mad scientist". As an undergraduate engineer most of my work is in fact based in science, and I am already accustom to accusations of insanity from many of my peers. Entering college I played football for Virginia Tech. Very quickly I was labeled as loopy because I decided to not only tackle the considerable challenges presented by Frank Beamer and Company but also all of those offered by Bradley as well. I had decided before begining my collegiate experience that I would persue a double major, covering both Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering. In fact I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to mix as well, but by this time I could hear my true calling in life.
That calling was then and still is to be that "mad scientist". In light of this I dropped the inconsequential past times I had taken on to more thoroughly persue my new addiction. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering; so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree as a support degree for my EE aspirations. After I had taken leave of Beamer's squad, I dove, head long, into Electrical Engineering. To those who say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school, I display my life since that point.
Since actively rejecting the status of deranged sportsman, I have worked in two nationaly recognized research labs, become involved in various Engineering clubs, increased my GPA and course load, and gotten engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonmous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I ment a group of young "mad scientists", lead by a very kind man, who is also thoroughly outside of the normal thought processes of mankind. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonmous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. To see why I keep refering to insanity, consider the idea that these grown men are attempting to seriously build a boat that swims through the water, guiding itself. This is the sort of thing that science fiction is made of, but much more importantly this is the sort of thing that has the potential to completely the change the world. This just one example of the taskes Electrical Engineers have taken on that both seem far too difficult to complete and have the power to completely alter the world in which we live. In short this the sort of thing that the average person would call someone crazy for attempting.
At the ASCL I was one of those crazy people tackling a new chanllenge that might not have a solution, and I loved it. For a long time I have dreamt about being in a research lab somewhere sitting on the forfront of science and perhaps the world as we know it. I got to live that dream at the ASCL. I was mostly involved in the more down to Earth tasks involved in keeping the dream machines operational, but I knew that the advances made in this small lab had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware, just as the other members of my asylum, that the techniques developed there could and would be apply to all kinds of things, many of which we can not image. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver tansportation that is fast, effiecient and driveless, or maybe the techniques will be the key to unlock housemaid robots that don't walk through a coffee table. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference in the world and the people there are doing exactly the kind of work that I have dreamt about.
While working in the ASCL a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before, communications. Previously I had felt disconnected from the disciple, having a larger interest in making systems make intelligent decissions. However, it seemed like a good idea to experience a new area of a major I had grown to love. So I wished the world of path finding submarines well and continued on to a new world know as the CWT.
The Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT) is were I meant the technology that is the fulfillment of my short life's dream. I mentioned earlier that I have wanted to work as a researcher for a large portion of my life, but I negelected to mention that I wanted to develop a system that senses its environment and reacts intelligently. This is what drove me to look at the ASCL in the first place; it is also a brief an simplified definition of Coginitive Radio.
Now if the staff of the ASCL is crazy, there is not a sufficent term to describe the insanity of the members of the CWT. These people are trying to develop a systems that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication given the information it has gathered, all without the aid of a human brain. If you have seen the movie "Terminator", this is the system SkyNet would use to talk to is drones. It's a system that opporates in an imaginary world (in that humans can not directly sense radio waves) and produces a useful result.
What a result it is, though. The CWT as already made a Coginitive Radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it thought off in the past. Now the only work that's left is developng smart communication systems that never lose connecton, systems that don't interfere with other users of the specturm at all, intelligent networks that update and maintain themselves without need of human supervision, and that's just a few of the things currently being developed. Also that limits the field to communication applications.
On of the biggest advantages of the CWT Coginitive Radio system is that thinking bit is seperate from the radio bit. That means that the part of the Coginitive Radio, the Coginitive Engine, could be apply to other situations and is independent of the radio used.
This technology already has the potential to complete revamp the entire communications infrastructure of the world, let allong what could be done if the Coginitive Engine was applied elsewhere. This is exactly the technology that I've always wanted to be a part of.
The members of the CWT fulfill my definition of "mad scientists"; they are developing the sort of thing only heard in science fiction. If they were biologist Coginitive Radio would be renamed Frankenstein. People look at the work they are doing and just shake their heads, knowing that it can never work, knowing that these people are crazy for trying. This is the spirit of Electrical Engineering, pasted down from manic Maxwell, flaky Faraday, and (one of my heros) twisted Tesla. This tradition of thinking radios follows in the footsteps of the man that originally brought us radios. Tesla is still viewed as being insane because of how far from "the box" he thought, and that is exactly how I would like history to remember me.
Here you are then:
Perhaps the best explanation of why I want to be a graduate student or what I hope to accomplish is that I would to be a "mad scientist". Probably not adhering to all of the mental images that the term likely conjures, but I believe the fundamentals of expression accurately describe what I wish to achieve. If you take mad to me crazy and the moniker to be applied by some observer, it precisely defines the response I expect to get from some portion of society.
Already I have in many ways achieve a status that is in line with the label of "mad scientist". As an undergraduate engineer most of my work is in fact based in science, and I am already accustom to accusations of insanity from many of my peers. Entering college I played football for Virginia Tech. Very quickly I was labeled as loopy because I decided to not only tackle the considerable challenges presented by Frank Beamer and Company but also all of those offered by Bradley as well. I had decided before begining my collegiate experience that I would persue a double major, covering both Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering. In fact I entertained the idea of adding a major in Economics to mix as well, but by this time I could hear my true calling in life.
That calling was then and still is to be that "mad scientist". In light of this I dropped the inconsequential past times I had taken on to more thoroughly persue my new addiction. I had become utterly consumed by Electrical Engineering; so much so, that I now consider my Computer Engineering degree as a support degree for my EE aspirations. After I had taken leave of Beamer's squad, I dove, head long, into Electrical Engineering. To those who say that I quit football because I couldn't balance the time demands of sports and school, I display my life since that point.
Since actively rejecting the status of deranged sportsman, I have worked in two nationaly recognized research labs, become involved in various Engineering clubs, increased my GPA and course load, and gotten engaged, all of which demand a considerable time investment. However, it was my work in the research labs that fueled my desire for graduate work the most. I worked in the Autonmous Systems and Control Laboratory (ASCL) on the second floor of Whittemore for a year following my departure from the ranks of student-athletes.
In the ASCL I ment a group of young "mad scientists", lead by a very kind man, who is also thoroughly outside of the normal thought processes of mankind. During my time with these folks, the ASCL was developing self contained autonmous submarines for the purpose of mapping underwater environments. To see why I keep refering to insanity, consider the idea that these grown men are attempting to seriously build a boat that swims through the water, guiding itself. This is the sort of thing that science fiction is made of, but much more importantly this is the sort of thing that has the potential to completely the change the world. This just one example of the taskes Electrical Engineers have taken on that both seem far too difficult to complete and have the power to completely alter the world in which we live. In short this the sort of thing that the average person would call someone crazy for attempting.
At the ASCL I was one of those crazy people tackling a new chanllenge that might not have a solution, and I loved it. For a long time I have dreamt about being in a research lab somewhere sitting on the forfront of science and perhaps the world as we know it. I got to live that dream at the ASCL. I was mostly involved in the more down to Earth tasks involved in keeping the dream machines operational, but I knew that the advances made in this small lab had application far beyond the depths of some murky lake. I was aware, just as the other members of my asylum, that the techniques developed there could and would be apply to all kinds of things, many of which we can not image. Perhaps the ASCL will one day deliver tansportation that is fast, effiecient and driveless, or maybe the techniques will be the key to unlock housemaid robots that don't walk through a coffee table. Either way, the ASCL is making a difference in the world and the people there are doing exactly the kind of work that I have dreamt about.
While working in the ASCL a professor convinced me to give some thought to an area of Electrical Engineering that I had never really considered before, communications. Previously I had felt disconnected from the disciple, having a larger interest in making systems make intelligent decissions. However, it seemed like a good idea to experience a new area of a major I had grown to love. So I wished the world of path finding submarines well and continued on to a new world know as the CWT.
The Center for Wireless Telecommunications (CWT) is were I meant the technology that is the fulfillment of my short life's dream. I mentioned earlier that I have wanted to work as a researcher for a large portion of my life, but I negelected to mention that I wanted to develop a system that senses its environment and reacts intelligently. This is what drove me to look at the ASCL in the first place; it is also a brief an simplified definition of Coginitive Radio.
Now if the staff of the ASCL is crazy, there is not a sufficent term to describe the insanity of the members of the CWT. These people are trying to develop a systems that senses its wireless environment and then proceeds to design the best possible means of communication given the information it has gathered, all without the aid of a human brain. If you have seen the movie "Terminator", this is the system SkyNet would use to talk to is drones. It's a system that opporates in an imaginary world (in that humans can not directly sense radio waves) and produces a useful result.
What a result it is, though. The CWT as already made a Coginitive Radio that can avoid jammers and remember the clever things it thought off in the past. Now the only work that's left is developng smart communication systems that never lose connecton, systems that don't interfere with other users of the specturm at all, intelligent networks that update and maintain themselves without need of human supervision, and that's just a few of the things currently being developed. Also that limits the field to communication applications.
On of the biggest advantages of the CWT Coginitive Radio system is that thinking bit is seperate from the radio bit. That means that the part of the Coginitive Radio, the Coginitive Engine, could be apply to other situations and is independent of the radio used.
This technology already has the potential to complete revamp the entire communications infrastructure of the world, let allong what could be done if the Coginitive Engine was applied elsewhere. This is exactly the technology that I've always wanted to be a part of.
The members of the CWT fulfill my definition of "mad scientists"; they are developing the sort of thing only heard in science fiction. If they were biologist Coginitive Radio would be renamed Frankenstein. People look at the work they are doing and just shake their heads, knowing that it can never work, knowing that these people are crazy for trying. This is the spirit of Electrical Engineering, pasted down from manic Maxwell, flaky Faraday, and (one of my heros) twisted Tesla. This tradition of thinking radios follows in the footsteps of the man that originally brought us radios. Tesla is still viewed as being insane because of how far from "the box" he thought, and that is exactly how I would like history to remember me.
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