This is it, everyone: my last official update as a Research Rookie. Actually, this is my last effort as a Research Rookie, period. The presentations are done, the receptions are attended, and the goodbyes have been said. So now I have an opportunity to look back and see where I’ve been and what I’ve done. […]

Read more "Final Update"

Here we go again: Undergraduate Research and Artistry Day. The culmination of my efforts as a Research Rookie, if not necessarily my research itself. I have fond memories of my experience last year, and I’ve already seen some pretty great stuff that will be presented this year, so I’m pretty excited! My project isn’t exactly “wrapped […]

Read more "April Update (The One about URAD)"

Hello again everyone! Looks like another month of research is behind us already. I’ve spent the time tweaking setups, fixing Bowden tubes, and familiarizing myself with the HoloLens. We also got a new batch of print filament (including some water soluble PVA!), so I’m looking forward to printing with that. But URAD draws near, which […]

Read more "March Update"

Alright, we’re officially locked and loaded for a spring semester of research! I’ve got a lot to look forward to this semester, and it seems like there’s never enough time for everything! I’ve already jumped into three different fronts of my research in the past few weeks, and I’m excited to start bringing them together in […]

Read more "February Update"

Hello Everyone! Just a quick update about what I’ve been up to and where I’m headed next: I’ve started actually conducting 3D prints, trying to get a feel for the settings and calibration I’ll need to achieve a durable model that doesn’t take too long to print. So far, I’ve focused mostly on printing cylinders […]

Read more "November Update"

Hello again! Since my last update, I’ve been attending weekly Research Meetings in the DDI lab with Dr. Papka, and I’ve started the preliminary work for an exciting new research project! For those of you who don’t know, Dr. Michael Papka is a research professor here at NIU and a computer scientist over at Argonne National Laboratory in […]

Read more "October Update"

Hello again! Turns out I’m back for a second year of Research Rookies, this time around as a Peer Mentor! To reintroduce myself, my name is Ryan Lewis, and I’m a sophomore Computer Science and Computational Mathematics major here at Northern Illinois University. I’m a tech-lover, a saxophonist, Honors student, and Presidential Scholar from Oswego, […]

Read more "Re-introductions (September Update)"

With URAD done and this last blog post, I’ve officially completed my time with Research Rookies! And I have to admit URAD was pretty awesome, even though it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. For some reason, I was anticipating a much more stressful and high-intensity environment, when it was actually fairly low-key and actually […]

Read more "Final Update"

Well, the project’s done, I’ve put the finishing touches on the poster, and I’m prepping my presentation: I’m as ready as I’ll ever be for URAD. The poster took a while to put together, but after all the time and effort, I’m actually really proud of the results. And I’m really excited for the whole […]

Read more "April Update"

Looks like everything’s coming together just in time! Initial experimentation with 3d printing test objects in the lab has been difficult but promising, so once I get those finalized, printed, and scanned with each program, I should be able to compose my final documentation and complete the poster. If everything goes as planned, the project should […]

Read more "March Update"