I was born in the not-so-small town of Naperville, Illinois - about an hour commute from Chicago. Growing up in Naperville gave me a lot of opportunity to pursue my dreams, which eventually brought me to exactly where you would expect: Lincoln, Nebraska. As an undergraduate student at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, I was able to explore many opportunities and passions that I held. The great thing about living in the Midwest is the silence - literally and figuratively. With large cities being few and far between and the nearest cornfield being a short walk away, there’s not much to do. This disconnection from a flashy lifestyle breeds a certain work ethic that Mid-westerners have, a work ethic that has been imparted on me. Lincoln opened my eyes to how different life was from growing up in a large city. It made me realize that there was a lot of different struggles - and lots of opportunity to make the world a better place.
Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence was not always my passion. Before I chose to study Computer Science, I was convinced I would go down the astrophysics path. It was only after I took an introductory Computer Science class in high school that I set my mind on something new. My passion for math brought everything full circle, and made me realize the beauty and interconnectedness of science, math, and AI.
After getting the opportunity to conduct research in the field of Machine Learning, I realized that it wasn’t enough for me to just go out into the workforce. I wanted to learn every aspect, every quirk, and ultimately, every problem within the field. I wanted to make a small - but significant - contribution to the history of human knowledge, and make the world a better place in doing so.