/dev/blog

Just got back from the FBLA California SLC (State Leadership Conference).

It was a fun experience. I really only went for the competition aspect, but it was the mingling with the people that was the best part. After we arrived at the Hyatt Regency in Irvine, we sat down to begin studying Economics for both the upcoming AP test and my FBLA event. It was fun, and thanks to Sam for clarifying what crowding out is, it got me an extra question right on the test.

Then we went to Souplantation for lunch, which was horrid, but good for the price compared to what the hotel’s cafe offered. The spit balls (we didn’t really use spit, it was just water) were fun though. Sorry Felby.

Next, the two tests I had (first Econ then Tech Concepts) were alright. Econ was easier for me though. Then we all went to our Advisor’s room for some pizza, and then we each went to our own rooms for some movies. Or we were supposed to. Turns out no coverups were needed, and the whole thing was mostly eventless. Other than a sweet piggyback ride, and finding out that a MINI has the potential of fitting 5 people. Anyways, later we attended a dance after we finished Stewie Griffin - The Untold Story.

Then, we went to my room, and the girls and Jeff from next door came in to watch Tomorrow Never Dies. A half hour before the movie ended (where the action actually starts) they began their post-curfew spot check. Well, let’s just say that it didn’t turn out too pretty. When our advisor came, there were 5 misplaced people in our room, Jeff and the four girls. All our lights were off, so since Jeff sat by the laptop, and was in a dark spot, he wasn’t spotted. The girls were also hiding behind the bed and wall. After the check, Jeff easily slipped into his room, but the girls were a problem. Their room was all the way at the other end of the hall way, and people were actually patrolling. So, after a couple of rounds of coming back to our room to check if we have “found” the girls yet, they finally decided to make a dash for the elevator, so that it appears they were just taking a walk/drink/etc. Well, I heard it didn’t turn out too well. Anyways, that mostly completes our day. We watched Constantine on HBO, and later finished Armageddon. Then, we went to sleep at around 3:30 or so.

Next day, we went to Downtown Disney. We got food at Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen. I ordered a oyster po boy. It was awesome, especially the oyster. It was breaded and fried to the most perfect condition. The outside was very crispy, and the oysters were still very soft. The only complaint I have of the sandwich was that the sauce was a little too spicy. I would highly recommend this restaurant, and wouldn’t hesitate to go again. Then, three girls went shopping, and the rest of us saw either Silent Hill or Sentinel. I saw Sentinel, and it was mediocre. The acting is no doubt good, but the plot was plain boring. The ending had no “wow” factor, as they gave it away slowly. There was no epiphany. After a bit more of walking around, including visiting the World of Disney (the store), and playing with the various toys they had (the “pincher” was the best ), we went back to the Hyatt, and got ready for the awards ceremony. Not many surprises here, other than Sam, I guess. He got 3rd in Networking Concepts, and 2nd in Technology Concepts. I got 3rd in Economics, and 9th in Technology Concepts. Benson also got something, I think 6th in business procedures. Then, unexpectedly, Ashley gave me two pecks to the cheek. The drive home after that was nice and smooth, making it home in 30 min or so.

Well, it was a fun experience, and if I had the chance, I would’ve done it again. Now, time for homework and lost sleep.

Update: Pictures are up. Thanks Benson!

I just attended the Admitted Student Program of Harvey Mudd College this past weekend (April 9-10) and, wow, even with my high expectations of what HMC is like and of the students, it still exceeded my expectations. I went even though I am sure of going, just to get a feel for what it is like.

First of all, the students are awesome. Everyone that I’ve met there has been friendly. They answer your questions, give you tips for the future, tell you what they’ve been through, and help you with everything that you might need help on.

The faculty is also one that I look forward to working with in the near future. I’ve attended a couple of classes (Intro to Astrophysics, General Chemistry, and some class on digital circuits I think) and a lecture on string theory by Vatche Sahakian. I’ve fallen in love (no, not literally) with the physics department at HMC. The lecture was very interesting, and the astrophysics class was just as good. Now I’m also giving some thought about doing physics instead of engineering.

The food was amazingly good. Much better than what I’d expect for food at a college. Sunday night was prime rib night. And I don’t think that was done just to get us to pay $40k a year; Diego, my host’s suite-mate, said that it is normal, and many students from the other 4Cs come over for sunday dinner.

The other surprising thing was that the I didn’t actually see any Mudders do homework at all over the weekend. All were watching movies, TV shows, playing games, or just chillin’. From what everyone hears about the workload, I was expecting everyone to work their butt off, but no, they just sat around and seemed quite relaxed about everything.

After this whole experience, I am glad that I chose HMC and that I’ll be going next year. And hopefully it really isn’t as bad as they say and that they are just trying to scare us prefroshs. But I doubt it.

First of all, here’s the article.

I’m surprised that an HMC graduate had a hand in the Zeitgeist at Google.

From what the guy said about his HMC experience, I think I’ll be having a great time at HMC.

Also, I found an article/interview done by a WHS alum, Felicia Nan. You can find it here.

Another thing that kind of relates to this post, I’ve noticed that the people that started Dreamhost were also undergrads at HMC. It seems that at least some HMC grads have ended up in good spots.

Well, I just took the ACT with Writing in September, and the SAT Reasoning test yesterday, Oct. 8.

The ACT was definitely easier overall. All the four multiple choice sections, which are English, Reading, Math, and Science, were all a piece of cake compared to the SAT stuff. But, the writing was very similar to what the SAT has. They give you a prompt, then you take a stand and talk about it. I don’t know how hard/easy they grade on that, but I hope I do good on that, since I usually score low on essays.

And now, the SAT. This is my second time taking the new SAT Reasoning test; the first time was in March, 2005. For some reason, it felt easier this time. I didn’t really stress about it that much this time. No intense study sessions day/night before the test. I just read some tips online, and some documentaries (for something to write on for the essay). Oh, and I gave my MINI a nice wash. Yeah, that must’ve been it.

Well, hope I did better this time.

Oh, and anyone interested in going to a performance driving school in December? If you or anyone you know is or might be, then post a comment, and I’ll give you more details on it.

Cheers.

Ah, back in California, the nice dry warm weather.

Well, folks, I just got back from the Dell-Winston School Solar Car Challenge and, man, it was FUN(What else could this mean?!)!

We raced from Round Rock, TX to JPL(Jet Propulsion Laboratory) in Pasadena, CA in 8 days, and our team made second place in the classic division.

Well, that’s all for now. I gotta get ready for some sleep, so I can take care of some business tomorrow.

Perhaps I’ll talk about it more when I get some of my pictures and some other stuff in.

In CompSci class, we’ve just got an assignment where we have to work on a program in Java. It can be on anything and can do anything, but has to be worth about 4-5 weeks of work.

Well, I’ve decided to do something with Cocoa, just to start getting familiar with it. But, I need some ideas for the project. Someone in our group proposed a stock simulation. I think it may be too easy if we just pull stock information off the internet, and too complex if we simulate stocks by making our own class.

Well, any ideas on how/what to do with the stocks? Or maybe some other project we can work on?

And, no, it cannot be in Objective C. The class is *Java* orientated.

*Update*: Well, the group has decided to do a Chess game instead.