Everything is interconnected.  Hence, research that is to have real impact can no longer safely reside inside of a single scientific discipline.  Just as computer science was an outgrowth of mathematics and engineering, I believe the future of exciting research lies in the co-mingling of disparate ideas in new ways to both improve our quality of life and help us continue to conduct even better research.  This philosophy is one that has evolved over the eight years I have been conducting research.  I began in High School by participating in a three-year “Science Research” program, in which high school students worked with outside experts to conduct authentic scientific research.  This program resulted in competition at events such as the Intel Science and Engineering Fair.  My research at ISEF 2002 was recognized with a US Army award and 4th place in overall computer science. I quickly discovered that I loved participating in research.  However, it soon became evident to me that the best research, and the research that had the most impact, was that which focused on problems of real people and combined multiple disciplines and outlooks. 

During my undergraduate tenure at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), I explored many aspects of computer science from abstract algorithms to system and network design.  I also investigated courses in other areas, such as music performance and history, game/virtual-reality design, music-technology, graphic design, art, and information warfare.  What excited me most was investigating ideas that were positioned in the “white space” between these traditional areas of study.  One specific example was a virtual reality course in which I created new VR worlds every 2 weeks using computer programming skills, graphic design, sound design, and user psychology.

I conducted research as a summer intern at IBM (both Research and Development labs) as well as with CMU professors during both the summer and academic year.  Specifically, I spent one summer working with Dr. Roger Dannenberg on Computer Music software, combining software visualizations and musical input.

Enjoying participation in the research of others, I elected to conduct my own research with Dr. Benoit Morel and write a senior thesis.  My thesis, entitled “Distributed Detection of New Virus Threats in Large Scale Networks”, combined the areas of mathematics, biology, and computer security to create a new approach to anti-virus detection, based on a model of the human nervous system originally proposed by Jon Von Neauman. This thesis led to my graduation with honors from CMU.

Currently, I am excited by my research with my advisor, Prof. Brian Bailey, on a tool design to facilitate and foster collaborative creativity, and by my ongoing research on accessibility for older adults (65+ years of age).  This accessibility research began in the Fall of 2005 as a final project in a CMU Human Computer Interaction (HCI) course.  I began working on WISE, a new interface for selected computer applications targeted at novice older adults, to help them overcome cognitive age-related challenges, physical age-related challenges, and general trepidation about new technology.   This new tool was based upon cognitive research literature, good interface/graphic design practice, and good coding techniques.  In the Fall of 2006, a paper based on my first year of research on WISE was accepted to the ACM SIGACCESS’s ASSETS conference, where I was awarded first place in the ACM Student Research Competition.  However, more important to me was obtaining the positive feedback from the other accessibility researchers at the conference.  Many clearly believed that aspects of WISE could help improve the quality of life of our aging population.

WISE was an exemplar of what I view research to be and how I wish to conduct my future research.  I combined most of my eclectic skills together to create a new tool that will help older adults to use the computer and will help improve their quality of life.  It was gratifying to see the potential to make such a difference in people’s lives!  That is what I wish to spend my life working on:  bringing together art, psychology, computers, graphic design, and music in new and creative ways to help people enjoy life better, work better, and stay in-touch longer in more meaningful ways. 

I strongly believe that superior work results from collaborations between many people, each having their own approach and skill-set.  Through my experiences with student organizations (directing a improvisational comedy troupe for a year and sitting on the board of two student organizations) and having played in a number of bands, I understand that working together, though at times difficult, can produce amazing results.  Unfortunately, different fields each have their own “language”, which makes both cross-discipline understanding and cooperation difficult.  In the worst case, people from different fields even use the same words to describe very different things.  Because my experience comes from many different areas, I believe I am well positioned to help work with and bring together a variety of people with different talents and skills.

I am intrigued with the problems inherent in the interfaces to applications and systems, in terms of graphics, sound, and ease of use. More specifically, I would like to research new ways of interacting with computer systems for average users, those who work comfortably with advanced technology, and those who have a disability or age-based challenges.  I expect that this research will entail studying potential alternative input technologies, portable device design (both hardware and software), new GUI design, as well as alternative output media.