Hey All,
This semester is really starting to pick up and classes are definitely a-rolling. I must say that I even in this short amount of time I have come to really enjoy two specific, and very different classes. On my engineering side, I am so excited for my Senior design project in which we are looking at rapid free-space optical data transmission to a mobile receiver. Essentially I am looking at transmitting data via fiber optics without the fiber optic cables. The cables are replaced by a pulsed laser. Inherently, this communication is more secure and transmits at the speed of light. The test apparatus we designed has two parts, the Tracking and Control, and the FSO data transmission. I have already begun working on the Tracking/Control algorithm and we just ordered the RC Truck that will be used to hold the receiver! This course runs one semester so our time is very limited! While I am able to dive into a subject that I am genuinely interested in, this will be one of the tougher and more time consuming courses this year.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, I am taking MOR 469: Negotiations and Persuasion. This is a non-technical course and just a topic that I have always gravitated to and enjoyed learning more about. The course is structured around in-class negotiations and really using what you learn to see how it works in a real-life scenario. The techniques learned can translate into all aspects of my life and are generally a good skill to develop. So far I have negotiated deals with 2 x 2 and 1 x 1 scenarios, both of which I think I came out ahead. This is a great course to make you think on your feet and excellent at promoting participation. I would recommend this course to anyone who has a slight interest in persuasion or is just interested in the topic.
Fight on!
Markus
