JOURNAL

Kate S. Boxer

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Week Ten

This is the final week. We are almost finished with our paper and the user testing. In addition, we have to make a poster for two poster presentations/ competions that we are participating in. Seeing all the REUs work for the summer is going to be super interesting. Everyone was working on such interesting things. In addition, I am extremely excited to present our work, although I am also nervous. In addition, it is going to be nice to get out of the lab and socialize. Everyone in the program is extremely friendly. Soon I will be seeing my family and friends!

Week Nine

I am having a great time at work. I feel very comfortable with the lab, and really do enjoy the people I am working with. We do a lot of fun stuff when we are not working, like going to store for candy breaks, and making forts out of old cardboard boxes. In addition, the work is exciting, because we are doing user testing on our product that is having results. The problem with user testing is that it take a lot of time, and does not always result in what is expected. With that said, once when the user testing has good results and it is very rewarding. After a lot of user testing, we have gotten some really good data that we can use in our final report!

Week Eight

This week was a lot of fun. We are working on the paper, and as usual, continuing to user test. I am getting a little sick of user testing, because it is very time consuming. Even though I do not enjoy user testing, I like having real data that goes along with HaptiGo. In addition, writing the paper is not as bad as I thought it would be. Overall, I am really enjoying it. Reflecting on all the work we have done makes me happy about the effort I put in. Although I am having fun, I cannot wait to get home and see my friends and family.

Week Seven

This is week seven, and we are getting closer to the end. The good part of this is that I can actually see the projects loose ends coming together, which is exciting. We are user testing, and the code is working very well which is great. We are experiencing problems with the bluetooth, so currently we are solder a new piece. User testing is time consuming but rewarding when things go well. I am really getting home sick, but it is a matter of days until I am home, and I know that I am achieving something this summer that I will proud of.

Week Six

Currently we are still working on perfecting the program. We are trying to find bugs, and also do functionality testing. This is challenging. It is amazing to see the crazy things that we programmed, and how easily a small mistake can cause the HaptiGo not to work. With that said, every bug that we fix is one step closer to a completed product which is awesome. Having the product work in general is super exciting. Haptigo is able to direct people, but after we are finished debugging it will be much more clear. On our free we do a lot of fun stuff, the lab went to go see the new Harry Potter movie together. I am glad that I got to see the final movie on opening night, even though I am not home.

Midway Point

This is the midway point of my time here at Texas A&M. Overall, I feel really great about the experience. July 4th just passed and the whole weekend was a lot of fun. Some friends and I rented a car and traveled to Houston on Sunday, and Austin on Monday. It was so much fun. We saw the Space Center, which was really cool. Austin definitely has a different feel compared to other parts of Texas. Now I am back in the lab, and ready to finish and wrap up all the research we have been doing. Although, I will miss Texas, I am looking forward to going to home.

Week Three and Beginning of Four

We have a semi working shirt, which is exciting! We are currently testing the shirt, and experiencing problems with keeping a bluetooth connection. This is definitely progress compared to where we were a week and a half ago. Will be working to make the bluetooth more reliable I am excited about this. The time goes by really fast and I am enjoying the research

Beginning of Week 3!

So, I finished week two. I am glad to say that I feel a lot more comfortable in the lab now. The second week was a lot of fun. Now that we are more familiar with the code, we are able to actually start writing our own programs. The weekend was a lot of fun. I spent a lot of time by the pool. In addition, I went out to eat with some friends. I am having a lot fun, balancing my time between work and play!

Week One and a Half

My first week was a nice introduction to the lab. I learned how to work with circuit boards, and the Arduino code. This was completely new to me, but still interesting. This was a great way to start my research experience. The beginning of week two was more challenging. We had to start coding an Android App that communicates with Amarino, and the Arduino. It hard to understand how to integrate them together. In addition, this my first time making Android Apps, so it was a lot of new material. Although, it is taking time, I am starting to feel more comfortable with the code, and am excited to continue my research!

First Entry

So I just got to Texas. It is really different here. My dorm is super nice, with a pool, and lots of study area. My lab is awesome, filled with really interesting, diverse people. Getting introduced to all the new programs and setting up our computers is a little overwhelming. I know that is going to be a lot of work to come, but it is going to be a great experience. In addition, my lab is doing a lot to make us feel at home, such as having lab outings to local places around College Station. The area isn't that exciting, compared to my hometown, but there is a lot of people around. In addition, there are a lot of restaurants that I would like to try. I am just excited to start working!