This would be the part .. where I’d tell you meh long story
I’ll use .. speaking language for god sake ;) it’s a blog anyway, let’s not be so dramatic
Pardon me if my line of thought might be a bit unstructured.
so.. where should we even begin
let’s rewind a bit.. once upon a time..
when i was young, as a kid, I felt.. kinda blessed .. to be born as a son of an engineer and a lecturer in computer science.
I remember me having these science books for kids, then just running up-and-down the house, sitting on the terrace at noon, with the scorching heat from the sun.. okay that was a bit over-exaggerated.. anywho, with a magnifying glass, i was so excited burning all the dry leaves, and box.. no, boxes of matches
Gotta say, those days, i was not so much of an environment-friendly kid.. i enjoyed watching things being burned :)
A strong, yet.. naïve belief, which I used to have, that a kind of mathematics and physics blood running in my vein.. has long been the perfect justification for me, why all the principles and patterns of how the world works always fill my mind with wonders.. and that.. the whole world will soon in the grasp of my tiny hands.
well, with that in mind, addition to the surrounding assistance, I have stayed persistently curious and diligent when it comes to studying mathematics and science subjects.
However.. there is always a however
Without a forehand warning, reality gradually, but.. unhesitantly enlightens me with all the limitations, and of course, challenges, from not only within myself, but from the world that I used to view with my ingenuous eyes.
On the other hand, I like Art
okay who doesn’t -.-
to me, almost everything, that is artistic, aesthetic, appeals me immensely. I’d say that I enjoy so many fields of art, not just the basics like drawing, music, photography, dancing, but also architecture, cooking, writing, carving sculpture ..
but I don’t want to always be just one among the crowd.. a spectator, an audience from far distance.
I want to be the one MAKING things.. and yeah all the showing and bragging about them :P
Through all these times, coming out of blindsight, initially as a simple.. distraction.. from daily tensions, it brought me peaceful joy.
There were times I found myself spending days drawing stupid stuffs, folding origami. I used to have a 3-drawer cabinet sitting by my studying desk. One of the drawer was just full of my origami, and it was not like that piece of cake paper crane, no no no, that was child’s play, mine was full with.. intricate works my dear friends, I’m talking about mammals, dinosaurs, dragons..
but yeah then on a sunny bright day, who would have expected his parents deciding to throw them all away :(
At later stage, I still find myself drafting mini paper robot designs, folding, gluing, and even later, as I practice with the piano until my fingers are too numb to continue.
The.. love.. I have for art.. is not by social preference, actually against parents hope, as you can see above.
To me, it is purely for the sake of art itself, and nothing more. Regardless of the excuses, the more time and effort I spend, not only the better the outcomes, but also the greater the influence they have on me.
This might sounds a bit stupid .. but uhm..
Practicing piano teaches me to be more patient and perseverant
I always have to go from one hand to another, section by section. There were songs that I have to practice in months, half a year.. yet I finished them all.
Origami teaches me to be extremely detail-oriented
The mistakes you make on the earlier folds, they will keep stacking up to your shitty final results :)
These traits, I always bring them to other disciplines
it’s just pretty much the same while you coding, debugging that you need to be patient, systematic, to pay attention to details..
also drawing helps my imagination, 3D perception, but let’s just skip that for now
okay.. quite long already, and a bit all over the place!! so what is the point here??
For the majority, it is not straight-forward to see.. much, if any relevance between doing engineering and doing art
An engineer would be someone who keeps his feet on the ground, spends his/her day working in factory or office, dealing, operating with electrical, mechanical stuffs, coding, supervising, being stiff, but reliable, accountable..
While an artist seems like someone who would let his mind on the clouds.. spontaneous, peculiar, sensitive, speak and hear in colour..
Well, despite that thin line of connection, I wish to choose not one, but both to pursue, as the intersection between the two is my forte, where geometry, physics, and of course, ROBOTICS lay.
With everything I got from both sides, this field is where I could, believe and truly want to excel in.
Iron Man’s suits are not made of paper and glue.
What had been child’s toys, has became my topic for graduation thesis
Now, the focus of my higher study. And soon, hopefully, my future career path!!
I strongly believe, ROBOTICS, along side Reinforcement Learning and Computer Visions, is the key to the future. Thus they are what I have been and going to focusing on.
gotta say .. for you to reach this end .. either having some serious patience and determination or you’re having an absolutely lazy-ass unproductive day my friend, shame on you!!