My name is Adrian Phua and I am a
computer engineering student at the University of Oklahoma. I
(hopefully) will be graduating this spring at the end of this
semester. I believe the coolest thing about my major is that we get
to work with both computer programming and the electronics that goes
to support it. The best class I took last semester was Digital Design
Lab. It was my favorite because it really blended all the things we
had learned in our major. We worked with both analog electronics as
well as microcontrollers to create all sorts of cool projects. An
example of one such cool project would be my memory game knock off.
(Image Information: Microcontroller Memory Game; photo from December 2017)
It would allow you to select a song and then it would play notes from the song for you to play back to it from a keypad. As you followed along the notes from the song would get longer until you were finally able to play the whole song from memory. Then if you lasted that long the computer would play the song back to you as a reward. Other than working at my internship all break the only real exciting thing I got to do was go to my friend’s wedding in Colorado. It was really nice seeing them so happy together. This is a photo my friends and I took together while getting ready for the wedding.
(Image information: My friends and I getting ready for the wedding; photo from January 2018)
I really like watching movies and I own a moviepass which has allowed me to see every single movie in theaters. So I probably have seen any recent movie you can think of. My long time career goals are to eventually work for a civilian space company and put something that I worked on in space. Whether it be a microcontroller helping to flush a space toilet or a computer program that allows astronauts to phone home. My current hobbies when I am not being lazy are either training for long distance races (like marathons) or trying new recipes to cook.
That picture of your Digital Design Lab project is sooooo cool, Adrian! I am the kind of person who looks at my computer or my car as a kind of magical device; I don't know anything about the engineering of the thing at all... so it really is all like magic to me. And I am so impressed by your career goal of building things that will work in space. Maybe you will do some science-fiction inspired writing in these classes. I am a huge science fiction fan, and I always enjoy the scifi stories people tell inspired by the old myths! :-)
ReplyDeleteHey Adrian! It’s nice to meet you! Congratulations on your upcoming graduation in May! I am graduating in May 2018 too! The photo of the Microcontroller Memory Game looks awesome and super complex, and that’s really impressive that you were able to create that. That’s awesome that you did so many projects like that. Also, that is so cool that you like to try cooking new recipes! I am always looking for new recipes to cook at home, so if you have any favorites you’d recommend please let me know!
ReplyDeleteAdrian,
ReplyDeleteI have to say that, as a Letters major (among other things), it always strikes me as odd that there are some people at OU whose academic experience is more focused on hard skills than anything else. That music-based project sounds like an awesome blend of science and art, and I can’t imagine how much work went into producing it!
Hi Adrian! The project you mentioned sounds really interesting, as well as extremely difficult, so props to you for creating that. Working at a civilian space company would be amazing, so good luck with your career goals! I also like running long distance races (I have only done a few 5ks in my life, but I want to be able to run the OKC Marathon one day).
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the rest of the semester, and congrats on almost being done with college!
Hi Adrian! I am in a sorority for STEM majors, so I kind of know what digital design lab is... but basically I don't lol. That is pretty cool! This is the first time I've actually seen what people do in there. It sounds difficult. I can tell that you are going to do some great hands on work when you graduate! Even though you say you'll "hopefully" graduate, I have confidence you'll make it through.
ReplyDeleteHello Adrian, nice to meet you! I really liked learning about your favorite class, Digital Design Lab. I could never make something like that or even know how to work it, but it is awesome that you are learning to do all of that. It is also nice that the digital design lab brought everything in your major into one class. That is nice when learning and trying to apply different aspects. Good luck with your last semester, I hope it is a great one!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian! You have incredible talent with computers because I am not tech-savvy at all. I have heard that computer science is one of the most sought after majors right now for graduates, so you are practically guaranteed to get a great job this spring when you finish! I also love to watch movies in my free time, although I am not much of a runner (but I wish I was). Good luck with your future endeavors after you graduate!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, Wow! You have such a cool major that will give you the opportunity to find an exciting job. I'm personally someone who struggles with anything having to do with electronics, so I'm jealous of your capability. Also, very jealous you have a movie pass to all the theaters, I love seeing movies but hate the price of them. I wish you luck in the future and look forward to reading other posts.
Adrian! When I read your week two story, I didn't realize it was you. I'm good friends with Gabe, and we've definitely met a few times at poli-sci club. It'll be fun to read your stories this semester! I had no idea you ran marathons, that's super cool and I wish I had it in me to train that hard. Props!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian! I find your major super interesting as computers are a passion of mine that I have never had a chance to really get into. Its also very exciting that you are getting ready to graduate! Do you have any plans for what you do after you graduate (ie new job, grad school etc)? Also, the microcontroller memory game, although it may look simple to an outsider, must of been a great accomplishment! As someone who loves to play piano and learn new songs, that project got me really excited when I read about it. I wish you the best of luck post graduation and look forward to reading your posts!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian!
ReplyDeleteI think your goal of putting something into space is awesome and totally doable! Your talk about computers and engineering gives me a little anxiety (I can barely work an iPhone, haha) but I am so glad that there are people like you that can do that kind of thing because they are so needed in today's world. I can't wait to read some of your stories this semester!
Hey Adrian.
ReplyDeleteI'll not pretend we don't know each other, but it is neat to read about that project. That memory game actually seems like it could be a really cool way to learn songs on the piano, especially since it sounds like it had the notes play in the correct rhythm. I know when I was learning piano, getting the more complicated note patterns could be difficult to figure out. If the notes lit up as you played them, showing you exactly which notes to play when, it would be a great way to get them into your memory.
Hey Adrian! I have skills on the opposite side of computers. I cannot build them, but I can do some cool things on them. I am a gamer. What you do looks very intricate. It sounds very interesting. I was told about the moviepass thing recently by someone I served at work. I wonder if that was you. I will have to get one.
ReplyDeleteHey Adrian! From the beginning looks of this introduction, I knew you must be super smart. I could definitely not do anything engineering-wise, but the world definitely needs people like you! Congrats on almost graduating - I know it's been a long road. Also it's awesome that you run marathons. I'd love to run a half marathon one day, but I'm not sure I'll ever do a full one! Good luck this semester!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian!
ReplyDeleteBeing a computer engineering major must be super beneficial with this day and age! I'm super impressed because I could not do what you do! Your project sounds super cool and again can't even imagine what goes into that. Maybe one day I will hear about you on the news that one of your creations was launched into space :)
I love movies myself, but I never think to go to the movie theatre. And the few times that I do go I always have such a great time so I will have to make it a point to go more! Goodluck with the rest of your semester and graduation!
Hey there Adrian. That is a really cool major. I've always been interested in computers, but I never felt like I knew them, or ever could know them, well enough to make a career out of it, so I'm impressed at your commitment. That's also a neat direction to want to go with your career, maybe Musk will be hiring after you graduate! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHi Adrian. You're obviously a very talented computer engineer. I've heard that its a pretty tough major. I'm jealous about your technological talents. My family often jokes that I put off an electromagnetic field because all of the technology around me breaks so frequently. Congratulations on graduating and I wish you the best of luck. I look forward to reading your stories.
ReplyDeleteHey Adrian! I'm also hopefully graduation in May. I think that your major sounds cool and I'm glad you like it. I don't really do computers like that, so its all kind of mysterious and interesting. I think that learning all the different coding languages would be hard.That memory game sounds so cool, like it would be really fun.
ReplyDelete