You Rad if you attend URAD

I had a vision for my poster and I was planning on portraying the two most important engineers in my life thus far as hard working, mysterious, and competitive with boss like features, but apparently URAD is not the event to express such an idea. I learned that at URAD one must strictly present the research one has conducted while not making the poster boring: sounds hard and it is. Either way I was able to communicate with my Dr. Pohlman and Mohammad about what their opinion was on the poster. They gave me constructive feed back.

I also received help from Alyssa from the Engineering Building: she does graphic design etc. She made many suggestions which changed the way my poster looked. She helped make it URAD relevant: all about facts minus the creativity.  Either way I appreciate her time, patience, and constructive feed back as well as time spent on helping me change the poster.

I turned the poster in on time and I am currently finishing up the speech I will be saying on Tuesday. I will be practicing today and for the days to come until I am fluent int it. There is a lot to remember but I have faith in myself and in god that he will help me make the best of my presentation.

Back on our Feet! #BackInBu$ine$$

During the past couple of weeks Dr. Pohlman and the graduate student Mohammad have been assisting me in understanding MATLAB, the computer program that we are using for this research, so that I may help them in data analyzing portion of our research. It was difficult for me coming into the lab for about four to five hours practicing and learning MATLAB. Thanks to their support and help I have been able to understand it more and more.

Meanwhile, we were all on time crunch trying to get our camera and scale fixed. I was in charge of communicating with the company that made the scale in order to get it fixed: as it turns out nothing was wrong with It, it was a simple misunderstanding. We thought the scale was broken because it would not turn off it would just stay on: talking with the technician I found out that it was supposed to stay on, which seems very insufficient. This whole process took about three weeks, just imagine how long it took to get everything else done and out of the way.

Also, I focused upon creating a chute for the conveyor belt. The chute was made to channel the particles into the bucket: the bucket was on top of a scale that would help us determine the mass being outputted. It was also hard to get the chute built because the people in charge of cutting out the parts for the chute that I designed would not cut it. This was due to how the design was drawn, they wanted me to draw it in a program that I did not know how to use. Luckily I was able to communicate with Michael Reynolds, the head honcho of the workshop facility, and he was able to make it possible. If you are reading this I would like to say Thank You Michael Reynolds! 🙂 you should come by the lab and see how it looks on the conveyor belt.

With much of this out of the way  we have been able to continue were we last left off: before everything began breaking down. This week we have received the scale and the camera from the companies and we plan on collecting data. Once everything gets set up we will be able to obtain data for URAD event. I feel like everyone is stress free now, but we are still on our grind to get our work done and to come to the lab and put in work. I am glad I was able to contribute so much into the research project this time. I was blessed with another opportunity to prove why I should work next to Dr. Pohlmand and Mohammad.

Faculty Mentor and Latest Progress

Working with Dr. Pohlman has been an honor and an experience that I will never forget. I am not afraid of asking or going to him if I have any questions or concerns. To me Dr.         Pohlman’s patience and knowledge has assisted and inspired me to work harder in order to contribute to the research project. A faculty member such as mine can have many benefits. Dr. Pohlman has a reputation for being involved in projects, classes, and having publicized articles of research he has conducted. His reputable construct may benefit me in the long run if I do my best, showing that I am capable of working hard and balancing my life, because he can expand my social capital and enhance my learning in the field of engineering.

So far Mohammad Athar and Dr. Pohlman are working on getting some of the lab equipment to work or trying to replace devices that no longer work with some that do. All of this was not because of a mistake that we caused but rather an inevitable technical problem: mainly the camera that we are using. Simpler things such as errands I take care of. I am also working on implementing the MATLAB knowledge that I have gained into a programming assignment. The most current assignment that I have done is working on a program that can simulate a real life clock.

                Working on the clock program will help me gain a greater understanding of how MATLAB operates. This will be helpful when the devices are fixed and are able to record data because I will have the skills to organize data onto MATLAB: allowing us to make and create better representations of our understanding of particle flow. So far, what we are doing is the most that we can do at this point. Initially we were supposed to be analyzing data, but we must work in order to get back in track with our research plans. 

My first experience with undergraduate research as a college student.

As an undergraduate student it has been a very challenging but interesting experience to be part of the undergraduate research. The most challenging part of my experience is also the most rewarding. Coming into Dr. Pohlman’s research with motivation and enthusiasm but with no background in computer science or fluid dynamics, it was a bit difficult for me to actually assist and to comprehend the research itself. Luckily I had a very good faculty member and a graduate student that guided me towards learning the necessary tools for this research project.

One of the tools that I learned was the computer program called MATLAB, and learning this program on my own was very difficult because it was like having to learn a new language on your own. I took advantage of my winter break to read a book given to me by Dr. Pohlman that would teach me the essentials to MATLAB. The book really helped me understand the program.

I realized that I should’ve thought about asking Dr. Pohlman for a MATLAB book earlier in my first semester and I should have been more smart and proactive because it would have allowed me to learn the material sooner: it would have helped taking into consideration the very few data that we collected due to technical difficulties. I feel that having been exposed to this research project has emphasized the importance of intellectual endurance: applying knowledge, accepting errors, learning, and willing to run several experiments in order to receive useful data.

Research Rookie Reception

The Research Rookie Reception to me was great. I was able to see the other members in the program and what they are researching. I was nervous at first because I did not want my part to come because I knew that I did not practice my speech but that what I was going to say was important. It turned out that I looked okay but it was a bit funny to see me speak.

I have moved on from that, for the reception turned out to be great. Receptions are usually lengthy but this one was short and to the point. I got to see my sister there and the professor that I was working with. I would have to say that my favorite part is when my peers received awards because it made me feel as if more and more of my peers were gaining more opportunities.  All and all it was a great reception.

Update 11/16/2013

I have worked on my proposal for Research Rookies and I am finally finished. With the assistance of my professor I have been able to understand the endeavor and proper set up for a research proposal. There were many drafts that I made, but I was able to make the adjustments need to complete the assignment.  I have carried out a progressive relationship with my mentor. We communicate about any challenges that I may have, and he helps me overcome them. He is also very supportive and open towards me and the rest of my peers.

10/8/13 Blog Post

I have found my research mentor and he is Professor Pohlman. I will work with him and a teaching assistant/graduate student Mohammad Athar. We will be using a conveyor belt to study the transient behavior of granular flow. I have been working with Mohammad most of my time and it has been an interesting experience. I say this because even though we are working on the same project, we come form different backgrounds, customs, majors, and life experiences. So far I have been taking notes and trying to assist him on the project.

The Initial Research Rookie Impression

When people ask me what programs I am in I am proud to say that I am a Research Rookie because I am part of a team that is dedicated to research. I have met with all of my three faculty members. They were all kind to me. I think that it was a great experience meeting them. There was one faculty member that really stood out to me and that was professor Pohlman. I was able to really connect with him on a scientific and social level where as with the other members I was not. Other faculty members were conducting research on a academic level in which I was comfortable with. I look forward to working with professor Pohlman because I have heard very good things about him and we have spoken about the upcoming projects. I find his research very interesting and I would be honored to work with him.