{"id":6,"date":"2021-10-01T03:17:23","date_gmt":"2021-10-01T03:17:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/?p=6"},"modified":"2021-10-01T03:17:27","modified_gmt":"2021-10-01T03:17:27","slug":"introduction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/2021\/10\/01\/introduction\/","title":{"rendered":"Introduction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"380\" height=\"286\" src=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/headshot.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/headshot.jpg 380w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/headshot-300x226.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 380px) 100vw, 380px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\"><em>Nice to Meet You<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Hello everybody out there. If you find yourself reading this, it&#8217;s not too late to turn back. If you proceed onwards, you&#8217;ve been warned. Prepare to step into the life of a painfully average student in Oregon State&#8217;s postbacc CS program and early career professional in the aerospace industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With this first post, I wanted to set the background to my life thus far and improve my neglected writing skills past a middle school level. I do not feel as though I have an expert-level knowledge on anything worth reading about, so I thought I would speak to what I know &#8211; my experiences with software in the aerospace industry and the applications of modern software practices in the field &#8211; the good, the bad, and the ugly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\"><em>Professional Background<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/professional-picture-1024x764.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11\" width=\"-122\" height=\"-90\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/professional-picture-1024x764.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/professional-picture-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/professional-picture-768x573.jpg 768w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/professional-picture.jpg 1044w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s a quick synopsis of my background so you can pretend to know me on a personal level:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I graduated in 2018 from UA with a BS in Aerospace Engineering<\/li><li>During undergraduate years, I off-and-on worked for Airbus Helicopters<\/li><li>I attempted law school toying with the idea of being a patent attorney like my brother, dropped out because I hated it <\/li><li>I&#8217;ve since worked at Boeing in 3 different software roles on different programs &#8211; currently working on satellite simulations<\/li><li>While working, I finished a MS in Systems Engineering from MS&amp;T<\/li><li>I&#8217;m currently pursuing a postbacc BS CS from OSU, and a MS CS from Georgia tech &#8211; hoping to finish OSU this quarter<\/li><li>I would like to move into Product Management if anybody wants to hand me the keys to their kingdom<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\"><em>Personal Background<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;Would I rather be feared or loved? Easy. Both. I want people to be afraid of how much they love me.&#8221; &#8211; Michael Scott<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While I do not find my personal life interesting enough to really talk about, here is my highlight reel:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I have a 3 year-old Golden Retriever, Daisy, who I take to dog parks everyday. Here&#8217;s a picture of her in her prime because I know you&#8217;re really interested to meet her.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/Daisy-02-21-2019-576x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-7\" width=\"210\" height=\"374\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/Daisy-02-21-2019-576x1024.jpg 576w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/Daisy-02-21-2019-169x300.jpg 169w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/Daisy-02-21-2019.jpg 750w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 210px) 100vw, 210px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I picked up swimming 5-6 times\/week and haven&#8217;t looked back<\/li><li>I live in Colorado and thoroughly enjoy seeing all the natural terrain and nice weather. Here&#8217;s a view from my doorstep.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-1024x805.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10\" width=\"344\" height=\"270\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-1024x805.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-300x236.jpg 300w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-768x604.jpg 768w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-1536x1208.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-2048x1610.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/4680\/files\/2021\/09\/views-from-apt-1-1568x1233.jpg 1568w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 344px) 100vw, 344px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I read ~52 books\/year and am working on my own novel that I&#8217;m too embarrassed to share with anybody at this point<\/li><li>I get all my statistics knowledge from my 4 fantasy football leagues<\/li><li>I&#8217;m basic and enjoy finding new shows to watch and playing video games<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">Software <em>Journey<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.&#8221; &#8211; Lao Tzu<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As I prepare to brainstorm ideas to talk about in subsequent blogs, I wanted to explain my motivations for pursuing an education in CS. I actually stumbled into my first software job with limited knowledge &#8211; I had an aerospace degree and it was a mixture of guidance, navigation, and control work that only needed basic CS knowledge like how to manipulate equations in C++, create basic Python scripts, and use Linux, Agile, and Git. While I could do my job fine with some patience from mentoring coworkers, I did not always understand how the stuff worked behind the scenes and it bothered the inner overachiever in me. Before this, I had always considered software another boring desk jockey career and really had no interest in the field but my desire to do my job better inspired me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I had thought of pursuing a MS CS at this point only to feel let down when I realized I wouldn&#8217;t be accepted into a program (before I found Georgia Tech). I worked on a MS in Systems Engineering because it allowed me to take about 5 data science\/ML courses as part of it. Looking back, it&#8217;s funny how little I knew about CS basics before diving straight into some of the more advanced aspects of CS &#8211; seeing as how most of it was rooted in understanding data manipulation and statistics I was able to do adequate in the courses but there were tremendous gaps in my knowledge. While continuing to work in software, I picked up the basics, built some confidence, and this motivated me to apply to Oregon State and Georgia Tech. Although there has been some late night, coffee-fueled sessions churning out homework, I am very happy with my decision to pursue this education and feel like it has been a game changer for my career prospects I wouldn&#8217;t have thought possible even 2-3 years ago. I now have opportunities where I can work for basically any aerospace company I would like. I think in part this is because there&#8217;s some niche roles that are hard to fill where aerospace and software knowledge is badly needed. The role I work in now is more of a legitimate developer role now where it&#8217;s focused on churning out as many features as fast as possible for satellite simulations and I love the growth I&#8217;ve experienced this far in my early career. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\"><em>The Future is Now<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;m not sure what the future holds or if I will stay in the aerospace industry, but I have a strong desire to work on interesting problems. I want to bring new ideas to work and feel a certain level of fulfillment. The biggest downside to the aerospace industry is the relatively low pay compared to big tech but I enjoy the challenges presented by the technical work. It has been exciting unlocking the practical potential of CS and bringing it to work and independent projects. While I wouldn&#8217;t necessarily describe CS as my passion, I feel like it&#8217;s an extremely practical degree that is easy to branch out from into any industry really, and I only see the importance of knowing how computers\/systems work growing in the future. If I ever feel like trying to start a side-hustle, I don&#8217;t have to worry about the initial overhead from contracting out basic software work like creating a website, and just understanding how software works allows me to evaluate the feasibility of startup\/business ideas &#8211; this is a very freeing feeling to me. I&#8217;m still exploring what my best suited career path is, and in the meantime, I wanted to use these blogs as an opportunity to relate my experiences to how I see them tying into my career and growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nice to Meet You Hello everybody out there. If you find yourself reading this, it&#8217;s not too late to turn back. If you proceed onwards, you&#8217;ve been warned. Prepare to step into the life of a painfully average student in Oregon State&#8217;s postbacc CS program and early career professional in the aerospace industry. With this&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/2021\/10\/01\/introduction\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Introduction<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11531,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11531"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6\/revisions\/13"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/ramblingsofryan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}