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RESPONSIBILITIES
Provide input and feedback on the editorial content of
IEEE Potentials.
If you would like to discuss the roles and responsibilities of an associate editor before applying for a position on the editorial board, please contact IEEE
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Potentials Editor-in-Chief David Tian, at david.tian@
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Student Resources
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10
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Raymond E. Floyd
Sachin Seth
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DEPARTMENTS
& COLUMNS
3
4
42
48
editorial
the way ahead
my first job
gamesman problems
36
FEATURE
39
Lovesh Grover
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EDITORIAL
The burro
and the carrot
by Davis George Moye
t is Friday at 5:30 p.m., and I am blowing off studying for a licensure exam next week because of distractions from my part-time job that consumes
more time than it merits. My calendar says I am
approaching the deadline for this editorial, which I
have not yet begun. Why am I behind schedule in writing it? Exams and thesis, part-time job, family, my dog
ate my watch, and many other valid excuses about
which you probably do not care.
Then I introspect about why I am doing all of this: I need
to work my part-time job to pay for the opportunity to take
my exams. I need to actually pass the exams to pass my
classes. I need to pass my classes to graduate. I also need
to write my thesis to graduate. I need to graduate to get a
job that is better than the one I have. I need to get a job that
is better than the one I have to pay for my familybut I am
not even married! (No, the dog does not substitute for a real
family.) Perhaps I have become the proverbial burro yoked
to a cart of academic and economic effort with a carrot of
success perpetually dangling in front of his face and eluding
every attempt at a solid bite? My struggle is not unique: At
some point we all feel like a diminutive beast of burden with
a derogative name. Seriously, in all of the cart pulling and
vegetable chasing, how can we plan our careers to ensure
we eventually get that carrot we want?
Let me tell a story: Once upon a time, I worked hard
on my license as a professional scuba divemaster (also
known as a glorified tour guide). After months of training, lots of money, and expensive insurance premiums,
I learned the supply of scuba divemasters exceeds the
demand. The profit margins are slim in that business.
But, there are perks when grateful tourists invite you to
party with them afterward! By contrast, the demand exceeds the supply of commercial diversthose who dive
at industrial sites like oil rigs. The pay is great, but at
the days end, your night life is constrained by the 50 m
# 50 m of the oil rig. Indeed, salary is not everything.
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Loading up on
career silver bullets
By Pablo Herrero
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GAMESMAN SOLUTIONS
The probability of the driver encountering a yellow light and the light turning red before the car
IEEE Access... a multidisciplinary open access journal thats worthy of the IEEE.
14-PUB-246 12/14
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Take an
active approach to
getting interviews
Robert Hellmann
AM PUBLISHING
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nameLastname@gmail.com
__________________
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The importance
of communication
in the workplace
Alexander Choren
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Group.
(2013). 2013 Talent shortage survey
research results. [Online]. Available:
http://www.manpowergroup.us/
campaigns/talent-shortage-2013/pdf/
_________________________
2013_Talent_Shortage_Survey_Results_
_________________________
US_lo_0510.pdf
__________
t National Association of Colleges
and Employers. (2013, April). Top 10
skills for job candidates. [Online].
Available: __________________
https://www.naceweb.org/
s04032013/top-10-job-skills.aspx
______________________
t ABET. (2012). Criteria for accrediting engineering programs. [Online].
Available: http://www.abet.org/
uploadedFiles/Accreditation/Accredita_________________________
tion_Step_by_Step/Accreditation_
_________________________
Documents/Current/2013_-_2014/
________________________
eac-criteria-2013-2014.pdf
_________________
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Working abroad:
What is your
vantage point?
Scott Donaldson
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Culture clash
What I believe to be most important is understanding who you are
as an individual and how your culture impacts how you think and
how you are perceived. Even when
we work in our countries of origin
culture plays a role, but it is minimized due to common beliefs and
understandings. Culture plays a
more significant role for a foreigner
in another country.
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What is your
work ethic?
Raymond E. Floyd
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Navigating the
engineering career fair
with speed dating style!
Sachin Seth
cl a s s t o le a r n, f i n i sh i n g l a b
reports, or just being out throwing
a ball around, is a rather unappealing option. Do not despair!
Having toiled on both sidesfrom
selling myself to employers, to selling my employers on prospective
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Pre-gaming
Im not the first person to say this,
but it bears repeatingthe parallels
between career fairs and speed dating events are uncanny. You have a
very small window of time to make
an impression while gathering
enough information yourself to
decide whether you want to see
that company again or reject it.
Sure, its an informal chat, but at
its core it is a delicate dance in
which both the students and company representatives engage, without the students even realizing it.
Keeping that in mind, and discarding the slipshod image of a t-shirt
and jeans engineer as presented
by HBOs Silicon Valley for just one
day, pick an outfit that lets you
present your best self to potential
employers. Dressing smart involves
just a little effort, with a tremendous payoff!
Pro tip: Since youll be on your
feet the entire day, wear comfortable shoes!
Be a STAR
Once the representative deep dives
into your resume and behavioral
questions such as, Tell me about a
challenging design project you did?
start flying, remember to structure
your answers by describing the situation/task, action, and result
(STAR). Go ahead, commit that to
memory until it is indelibly etched!
Start answering such questions by
concisely describing the situation/
task at hand (e.g., a class project
about designing a voltage-controlled
oscillator or writing a critical software patch for the next product
release). Avoid being long-winded
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Conclusion
Finally, to mention the glaringly
obvious, there are freebies to sweeten the entire career fair ordeal. After
being exhausted from repeated
forced social interactions, who
wouldnt want to stock up on a gym
t-shirt (or five) with company logos?
At the end of the day, students
desire a great place to work to put
their education to good use. Companies are hungry for good talent.
While pairing great talent with good
employers using a process that mimics speed dating hardly seems the
most efficient way, knowing what
transpires behind the scenes in that
delicate dance will help you find solid footing and emerge ahead of your
competitors. Use the tested hacks in
this article and this will hopefully be
the last time you visit the blighted
semi-annual event that is the engineering career fair.
Relationships
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Five reasons
why you should attend
conferences as a student
Eva Cosoroaba
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good news! The financial and research issues are easy to overcome:
volunteer. Conferences need volunteers, and organizers usually reward you for your services with a
free conference registration and
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Time to network
This is a tricky one. Engineers are
not very famous for their communication skills. Oh, you are an exception? Wonderful. Use your skills to
their full extent: meet researchers
that work on similar topics as you
and exchange ideas, reach out to
professors for a possible future
research position at the university of
which you always dreamed, and
approach industry representatives
for potential job opportunities.
If you dont have those skills
pretend that you do. I learned it the
hard way; I was sent off to a conference alone. It took me a while to
adjust, but I am satisfied with my
progress. At the first breakfast during the conference, I was thinking,
What am I supposed to do? What
am I supposed to do? over and over
and was close to not eating at all
that day. By my last breakfast, I was
sitting and having conversations
about the weather with a stranger
like a pro. From my experience, everyone I talked to was very amiable
and happy to be in the conversation. Most of the participants travel
alone and have poor social skills, so
do everyone a favor and initiate conversation. You never know what kind
of interesting characters you will
stumble upon until you are forced
to share a table at lunch (due to the
small tables-to-participant ratio).
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Its inspiring
I admit that this sounds clich, but
the conference back in my junior
year was truly a formative experience for me. It pushed me to the
decision to pursue a Ph.D. degree,
and it got me to where I am now.
Another great role was played my
adviser, who asked me to volunteer,
and I am deeply grateful for the
opportunity he gave me. So now I
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If you understand the differences between these three degree programs, you will be better prepared to
face the ups and downs of a Ph.D.
program. Getting admitted to a Ph.D.
program without understanding its
nature may lead to adjustment issues and mismatched expectations.
You may soon find that it is not what
you expected.
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Conclusion
The nature and philosophy of scientific research is a discipline in itself.
The four to five years of Ph.D.
research is just a glimpse into the
world of scientific research that is
available for students to explore.
Therefore, it is essential to spend
this time with relative ease and calm
in learning as much as possible not
only about research but also about
people who conduct research. Most
of this learning happens in the first
few years into the program. Thereafter, students begin to develop skills
to navigate this fascinating world.
Clearly, with a good understanding
of the requirements of a Ph.D. program, an advisors style of supervision, and ones own character, students will be in a better position to
manage their expectations.
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Finding a research
problem: Tips for new
Ph.D. students
Kundan Kandhway
Inception to conclusion
From the beginning to the end of the
program, a Ph.D. student goes
through the following steps:
1) Decide on the broad area on
which to work (e.g., complex net-
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Various scenarios
Depending upon the university and
research culture of the group you
join, you may face the following scenarios with respect to the expectation
of finding your research problem.
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Logistics issues
Identify the resources that will be
needed and that are at your disposal
for solving the problem as soon as
possible. Examples include computational servers, software licenses,
components and instruments
required for experimentation (e.g.,
solar panels, certain integrated circuits, human volunteers for behavioral experiments, and the funds
available for this purpose and the
time required to procure the equipment. Specialty items may take longer to procure in certain regions of
the world. Being proactive and planning ahead may save some time.
Risk assessment
Working in a new area (in which
your advisor and other group members are also new) may seem a bit
risky, but it is also rewarding. If the
area is immature, there may be an
opportunity to pluck some low-lying
fruits. It is better to try and perhaps
fail, than to not try at all. First,
attempt to solve the simplest version
of the problem, and gradually work
your way toward the final goal. That
being said, problems that are too
risky should be avoided. It is important to make steady progress, and if
that is not happening, you should
seek help.
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Conclusion
It is worth spending some time in
finalizing your initial problem
because it lays down the foundation
of the entire dissertation. Time spent
on it may depend on the maturity of
the area, effort spent, prior experience in research (on the same or
other areas), and a bit of luck. Starting early is always useful. Current
work should always be finished to
the best of ones ability before moving on to the next problem.
Acknowledgment
I would like to thank my Ph.D. advisor Prof. Joy Kuri and the anonymous reviewers for their comments
on this article.
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any well-intentioned
students fa i l to
t hr ive in a
u n i ver sit y
environment,
not due to lack of
effort, but because
of a deficient mindset and/or methodology. While a wide
variety of problems
can result in subopt i ma l lea r n i ng
performance, there
are seven main categories of learning impediments that hinder student
learning with alarming regularity. You may be facing one, or
more, of these impediments. Not to
fret though; each of these debilitating impediments can be surmounted with self-awareness and some
effort, paving the way for enjoyable,
and productive, learning experiences. In this article, I will identify the
offending learning impediments and
propose plausible remedial policies
to counter each.
Is there anyone so wise as
to learn by the experience of
others?
Voltaire
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First impediment:
Having a fixed mind-set
Psychologists have highlighted the
self-enforcing propensity of the
human mind-set in that human optimism and pessimism are both selffulfilling. As Henry Ford said, Whether you think you can or think you
cantyou are right. A fixed mindset, a mind-set model proposed by
researcher Carol Dweck, takes the
pessimistic approach to the concept
of intelligence and skill development.
It characterizes a belief that intelligence or talent are fixed human traits
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Remedy 1: Have a
growth mind-set
A growth mind-set student believes that hard work, grit, and
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Remedy 3: Using
intrinsic motivation
Students motivation determines,
directs, and sustains what they do
to learn. Student motivation is
boosted when they have self-efficacyi.e., a belief that they can attain
success. Student motivation is also
based on the perception of the value
of a particular goal (in terms of its
relevance, utility, and importance). It
is not only important for a student
to be motivated but also to have the
right kind of motivation.
Extrinsic motivation refers to
the motivation for external rewards
such as grades, grade-point average,
and the approval of others (mostly,
parents and teachers). Intrinsic
Remedy 2: Study
more actively
According to our current under standing of learning, learning is at
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Most of what we study in universities can accommodate diverse interpretations, and no single model or
narrative can completely capture
the real phenomenon. The problem of learning monogamy stems
from being marriedi.e., singlemindedly devotedto any one method, technique, or knowledge source.
This can lead to an incomplete, inflexibly dogmatic, and unsound understanding.
What can be done: The antidote
to this problem is to 1) avoid the illusions of learning, 2) seek diverse
knowledge sources, and 3) adopt diversity in study techniques.
Catch phrase for the solutions: Encourage learning polygamy.
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Seventh impediment:
Not learning how to learn
It is said that the art of teaching
involves the teacher making himself
or herself gradually redundant by
imparting the skills of how to
learn to the students. While students do spend a lot of effort in
learning various subjects, they
unfortunately fail to focus on, and
learn, the art of learning. A student
who learns how to learn, knows
enoughfor he or she is empowered
to be a lifelong learner.
What can be done: The antidote to
this problem is to 1) develop metacognitive skills, 2) learn critical thinking, and 3) become a lifelong learner.
Catch phrase for the solutions:
Dont be an A-grade sheep.
Remedy 1: Develop
metacognitive skills
Metacognition refers to students
understanding and monitoring of
their own thinking process.
Improved metacognition has been
shown to be corr elated with
improved student learning. Better
metacognition is helpful in myriad
ways: it provides better self-awareness, it allows better decisions, and
it allows us to get better by reflecting
on how we might improve. With better metacognition, students can
monitor and control their learning,
thus making metacognition an
essential skill for lifelong learning.
Sadly, many students are unskilled
Remedy 3: Become a
lifelong learner
With the focus on learning various
subjects, the more important skill of
learning how to learn is sometimes
undermined. Learning in life does
not stop when we get our university
degrees and diplomas. It becomes
essential, therefore, to develop a toolbox of techniques, and an inclined
mind, for lifelong learning so that
you are able to acquire whatever
skills as and when they are needed.
Conclusion
To make no mistakes is not
in the power of man; but from
their errors and mistakes; the
wise and good learn wisdom
for the future.
Plutarch
Youve always been in the driving
seat and the director of your learning. And with a better awareness
of common learning impediments,
along with a knowledge of their remedies, it is hoped that you will get
higher returns on your efforts.
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earning money, and having a pleasant life. They begin to question their
decision to enroll in a Ph.D. program,
the worthiness of the problem that
they are trying to solve, and whether it would have any impact on the
world. To many outside its domain,
research is expected to produce visible results and tangible outcomes.
Speaking to such people further
complicates the lives of students.
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Fixing a goal
Speaking of goals, an important factor that may cause dissatisfaction is
the very absence of a goal. Defining
a clear objective before starting a
task should be a high priority, and,
when it comes to your Ph.D., it is
the highest one. This is particularly
true as you need to spend a considerable amount of time on your studies, and, without a convincing objective, you may just give up. Moreover,
it is your motivation that keeps you
going through all the challenges
that you face during your Ph.D.
When it comes to defining your
objective, you need to think about
what you would like to do after
graduation. You may think that this
might not be practical, especially in
the early stages of your program, but
it is necessary to have a picture in
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your mind. Usually there are two options for Ph.D. graduates: industry
and academia. You should ask yourself: Which sector would I like to enter? Start by listing your capabilities, and carefully focus on how you
can improve them during your Ph.D.
For example, if you picture yourself
as a faculty member in a university,
you may decide to work more on your
publications, teaching experience,
and supervision experience. However, many companies require their
applicants to have acquired mostly
practical skills, such as being able
to work and design with computeraided design (CAD) tools or possess
device fabrication experience, rather
than having a satisfactory number
of qualified publications.
Thinking about your abilities and
what you can acquire through your
Ph.D. program is a good way of fixing
a goal. Sometimes Ph.D. research is
so theoretical or blue sky that it may
not add much value to your resume
when applying for industry positions; so it is better to figure that out
as soon as possible and look for ways
to make your resume look more interesting. Another good way is to go
back and re-examine what motivated you to get your Ph.D. in the first
place. Be guided by such motivations
when fixing goals for yourself. Finally, if you havent focused on a goal
yet, late is always better than never.
Look at your peers and learn where
they ended up after their graduation,
and decide for yourself.
Getting inspired
In addition to a well-defined objective, inspiration can further help you
get through your program. Ph.D.
research is a challenge for which
you are responsible. You need to go
through all the possible solutions
that exist and propose one that outperforms the others. Sometimes,
there is no known solution, and you
need to create one. During this process, however, you need to bear in
mind that you are not the only one
who has been tackling such difficulties. There are many others facing
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Seeking support
In the end, you need to make an
effort to have a happy Ph.D. experience. Ph.D. work requires a lot of
focus, often requiring long hours of
work inside the lab. Besides, failure
is what students usually face until
they step into something useful. As
a result, they usually feel disappointed, lost, and stressed. Dont let
that happen to you. While Ph.D.
work has a high priority, dont
entirely devote to it unless you are
the type who likes regularly spending long hours investigating a
research problem.
Always make some time to spend
with loved ones and friends. Discuss the situation you are facing
with senior colleagues and friends,
and ask them if they have any suggestions. Try not to spend too much
Conclusion
It is human nature to seek happiness and satisfaction, and how one
achieves these goals depends a lot
on oneself. The time you spend pursuing a Ph.D. program can help you
learn many things besides scientific
research. Academic life provides the
freedom to pursue different ideas.
You can use it not only to do good
research but also to build your
character. With a steady mind and
awareness of many aspects of life,
including research, happiness and
satisfaction will come to you.
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Introduction
Gray code was developed by Frank
Gray. It was originally designed to prevent bogus output from electromechanical switches. Today, Gray codes
are widely used for error correction in
digital communications such as digital
terrestrial television and some cable
TV systems. In this code a decimal
number is represented in reflected
binary code. Here the preceding and
succeeding number differ by a single
bit. For example, the Gray code for
decimal number 35 is 110010, and
Applications
A major application of Gray code is
in angle measurement and absolute
position sensing. Other applications
of Gray code include:
1) It is widely used for error correction in digital communication such as digital-terrestrial
television.
2) Binary-reflected Gray code is
used as a solution for the towers
of Hanoi problem and the classical Chinese rings puzzle.
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BINARY
GRAY CODE
Ordinary method
0000
0000
0001
0001
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0010
0011
0100
0101
0110
0111
1000
1001
0011
0010
0110
0111
0101
0100
1100
1101
Binary code- 1 0 0 1 0 0
.
b5 b4 b3 b2 b1 b0
Here, the MSB of binary code is 1, so
the Gray code MSB will also be 1, i.e.,
G5 = b5 .
31 15 7 3 1.
2) Look for the appropriate combination in the weighted code.
3) Alternatively perform subtraction
and addition in the weighted code
to get a decimal number for which
Gray code is to be generated. We
always initiate the process by
subtraction.
7 - 3 = 4.
So 1 is placed on the respective
weighted code position and the rest
of the positions will become 0. The
generated Gray code will be 00110.
2) To generate Gray code for the
decimal number 5,
31 15 7 3 1.
Hence,
Proposed method
A weighted code was created to
directly convert decimal to Gray code
or vice versa. The method for conversion follows.
1) Write weighted code in a 2 n - 1
manner. Here, n is the number of
bits.
Suppose n = 5, then the weighted code is
2 -1 2 -1 2 -1 2 -1 2 -1
5
7 - 3 + 1 = 5.
So, 1 is placed in positions 7, 3, 1,
and the rest of the positions will
be filled with 0. The generated
Gray code will become 00111.
3) To generate Gray code for decimal
number 10,
31 15 7 3 1.
Hence,
15 - 7 + 3 - 1 = 10 .
i.e.,
40
Q
May/June 2015
Hence,
31 - 7 + 1 = 25 .
So, 1 is placed in positions 31, 7,
3, 1, and the rest position will be
filled with 0. The generated Gray
code will be 10101.
Conclusion
In the traditional method, we used to
convert the decimal number to binary and then to Gray code. In this proposed method, the decimal number
can be converted directly into Gray
code without the two-step process
contained in the traditional method.
It is more effective and less time-consuming for conversion, as we can
directly use the weighted code.
Acknowledgments
This article would not have been possible without the cooperation of Dr.
R. Gowri, director, Graphic Era Hill
University. A special thanks to Radhika Prabhakar Panwar, whose rich
experience, encouragement, and
guidance helped me in this work.
The constant support of Sidhanshu
Raghuvanshi, Bhaskar Sharma,
and Ankit Rai is also appreciated.
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31 15 7 3 1.
Example
Hence,
Now start from left to right and perform X-OR between each adjacent
pair of bits in the following way:
5 5 5 5 5 5
1"0"0"0"1"0"0
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
1 1 0 0 1 1 0.
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MY FIRST JOB
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My current job
After completing my NRC Fellowship, I
accepted a position in the Department of
Electrical and Computer Engineering at
Florida State University (FSU). My experiences at WPAFB have served me well at
FSU. Working at WPAFB gave me an
opportunity to develop more breadth in
my research before moving into an academic position. I also found that going into a tenure
track position with a better understanding of how government agencies such as the U.S. Air Force operate
was certainly beneficial, particularly when it came to
writing research proposals. Working
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as I was able to relate my experiences from my first job to the classroom.
Working at WPAFB
Dr. Repperger and I developed control algorithms for
the DES to simulate supermaneuver flight, and we
established protocols for using these algorithms in
actual test runs. Interacting with the pilots who participated in these simulations was interesting too. We also
presented results to high-level Air Force personnel. The
style of these presentations were different from the conference presentations that I was accustomed to at the
time. I had to learn to refrain from having slides with
lots of equations and to focus more on highlighting a
takeaway message for a program manager. At these
meetings, I came to realize that I needed to clearly identify the metrics of success by which I would be judged.
In school, the metric of success had been very straightforward: do well on the exams or, in the case of doing a
dissertation, come up with a novel, publishable idea of
interest to a relatively large research community. The
goal now was to develop ideas and solutions that are
mission relevant. At the Air Force laboratory, a new
46
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May/June 2015
Overall, my first job was a very positive experience. Looking back on it, I
do think I could have taken better
advantage of my time as an NRC Fellow. I once heard a successful
researcher give the following advice in
a presentation directed to young faculty members. He said being successful requires three types of work: hard
work, teamwork, and network. I
wished I would have done more networking during my first job, but, then
again, if you cant look back and see
ways that you could have done better, maybe you didnt
learn very much. I would certainly recommend the NRC
Research Associateship Program. It was a valuable experience and a wonderful first job.
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