My 2014 REU Experience

There's no way 10 weeks have passed by this summer already. This research just flew by! My experience has been truly great at the University of MN - Twin Cities for many reasons. First off, the faculty and fellow REU students are great people, both helpful and nice.

Then comes the research... both challenging and exciting! The freedom and demand of determination both drew me in. My advisors were helpful when I needed it, but really let me work my way through projects and tasks I was given. When task were successful, it was a great feeling. Probably the best part of my research was developing heat transfer calculations (code in MatLab) for a quick moving open/ closed system (combustion chamber). The completion of this really gave me a great feeling as it showed positive influences on heat release calculations and analysis after working very hard on it. In terms of how successful my whole summer research was, I think it was moderately successful. I think this is because the project is at somewhat of a standstill as the group is trying to optimize the engine's combustion through test that take a good amount of time. Unfortunately, my advisors will have to start moving the research to a new location to make room for renovation in the current building. Anyways, I think this slow down caused me to spend more time behind my computer than I thought I would too. I'm more of a hands on guy, but I actually didn't mind all the complexity and technology that lies with this project.

How did this research affect my future plans? A lot. I really think I will be striving to attend grad school and participate in some amount of research. I believe the much larger amount of involvement with and knowledge of my future project will draw me in significantly more. I'll really be able to control a lot more of the project's success and direction.

Finally, I want to thank some people. Prof. Sun allowed me the great opportunity and gave me an experience I won't forget. My graduate advisors, Ke Li and Chen Zhang, welcomingly helped me and guided me to a successful experience. Alyssa, you're the best. Jose, Hannah, Faith and Alec.. I know I wasn't around as much as most of you but it's always nice seeing you guys and thanks for the help at times! Thank you all and I will be seeing soon to knock this poster presentation out of the park!

Good luck to everyone as you wrap up your research!

Best Regards,

Brad