College of Engineering: Tell us about an engineering idea you have, or about your interest in engineering. Describe how your ideas and interests may be realized by—and linked to—specific resources within the College of Engineering. Finally, explain what a Cornell Engineering education will enable you to accomplish.
I have always been interested in figuring out how things work. One of my favorite memories as a child involved crafting a makeshift bow and arrow from some school supplies, which my teacher promptly deemed a hazard and confiscated. Since then, my interest in engineering has grown and I have focused on artificial intelligence, robotics, and most prominently video game creation.
To learn more about these topics, over the past 4 years, I have taken engineering classes at my high school, programmed video games, and built machines on my own. I want to study engineering at Cornell because Cornell has revolutionary research such as the project to create self-engineering robots, courses that interest me greatly like CS 4621 - Computer Graphics Practicum at Cornell, and experienced professors such as Robert Lee Constable.
My first real experience with engineering was in 7th grade, when I entered my school’s robotics competition and won first place. Ever since then, I have been deeply interested in programming and robotics. I jumped at the chance to experiment with LEGO Mindstorms and VEX Robotics kits that I borrowed from my school. These experiences increased my passion for engineering, which along with Cornell’s engineering resources, will allow me to make an impact on the world.
At Cornell, Professor Robert Lee Constable heads research on automated reasoning, a subset of artificial intelligence focused on allowing computer programs to figure out logic on their own. This line of research has interested me ever since 8th grade, when I started to code my own video games using Java. In pursuit of more programming knowledge, I have created 3 computer games and 2 iPhone games, and some of these include rudimentary artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are topics that I am quite interested in, and I would be excited to aid research in this up and coming field at Cornell.
With my interest in graphics and 3D modeling, I would love to take courses at Cornell such as CS 4620 - Introduction to Computer Graphics, CS 5643 - Physically Based Animation for Computer Graphics, or CS 4621 - Computer Graphics Practicum at Cornell, and apply what I have learned to create amazing virtual worlds. I had a lot of fun in 10th grade using Autodesk Inventor to model some of my favorite objects from fiction, such as the Phantom Sword from the Legend of Zelda video game series, and I even modeled and 3D printed a toy train with rotating wheels. Cornell’s courses can help me refine this interest and learn a lot more about the intricacies of virtual graphics.
One Cornell project that really interests me is the quest to engineer robots that can adapt to changes. I found Hod Lipson’s article about creating robots that can mimic nature really amazing, especially since I love robotics. In 11th grade, using VEX parts and a solar panel, I built and programmed a small car that runs on solar energy, and I have completed a few more projects since then. I will definitely pursue this passion at Cornell by doing my best to help further this revolutionary research. Perhaps with enough work, I can help create a new generation of video games that learns and grows along with the player.
My dream is to create something revolutionary in the video game industry, and Cornell’s resources can help me do this. With amazing classes such as Physically Based Animation for Computer Graphics, research on artificial intelligence and 3D graphics, and experienced professors like Professor Constable, I know I will be able to flourish at Cornell. At Cornell, I plan to use my past experience and the knowledge I will gain about AI, 3D graphics, animation, and machine learning to help the next generation of video games “level up.”