Category: Computer Science

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Being a Computer Science Major at Grove City College

First of all, what is Computer Science?

To put it simply, Computer Science is the study of processes that interact with data through the use of programs. It enables the use of algorithms and processes to manipulate, store, and communicate digital information. Computer Science is, essentially, how we use computers to interact with our digital world.

At Grove City College, Computer Science involves a lot of different things. It involves learning how to program, administrate a database, create mobile applications, implement proper security measures, create websites, and a whole lot more.

What’s it like being a Computer Science Major at Grove City College?

As a senior enrolled in Computer Science, I can say one thing for certain about my major; it is tough! There are a lot of late nights, hard assignments, and challenges that I have had to endure to get this far. Despite the difficulty, it is a really rewarding major. You are learning how to build apps, write logical proofs, measure algorithm performance, run parallel processes, and everything you need to join the workforce and change the digital world. In my experience, the work is tough but the technical skills learned are incredibly valuable in today’s world.

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The Courses

In the Computer Science major, there are a wide variety of required courses. There is a heavy emphasis on high level mathematics, requiring students to take Calculus I – III, as well as some logic based mathematics, such as Automata Theory and Discrete Mathematics. The processes and principles learned in these classes apply to many of the programming and development courses, and generally improve logical thought. Speaking of programming, there are lot of programming courses! Introductory courses like Programming I, Database Management, and Data Structures help build a solid foundation. Building on this foundation are higher level development courses, like Parallel Computing and Computer Security. Aside from the required courses, Computer Science students can take Computer Science electives, which are more specialized niche courses like iOS Development, Web Programming, and Big Data. Overall, there are a wide variety of courses as challenging as they are rewarding.

The Projects

Over my four years here at Grove City College, I have done a lot of projects. Nearly every class has two to three projects, or one really big one. These projects, worth a significant portion of the course grade, tend to take up a good amount of time and require you to do some independent learning. Though they are difficult, they are also very rewarding and applicable to the real world. As a senior, I have done my fair share of projects.

One of my favorites was an iOS application “Crammit,” which was an app that helped students plan out large assignments and involved timers, to-do lists, scheduling, and many other things that you would find in a productivity app. Another one of my favorite projects was in Software Engineering where students actually work together to create one giant semester-long application. Over the course of a few months, me and my team built a computer assisted tutoring application, which incorporated machine learning to help teach students Java Programming.

What’s next?

Currently, I am pursuing a job in my field applying to become a mobile applications developer. I found my love for mobile development in iOS and Android programming and I am currently working with some of my graduate friends on an independent project that should hit both iOS and Android app stores! Grove City College’s rigorous Computer Science program has certainly helped me to develop a good work ethic, learn lots, and have confidence in my abilities. I know that when it comes time to start my new job, I will be prepared and ready.

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BEST Robotics Competition 2018

On Friday, Oct. 26, Grove City College hosted the BEST Robotics competition. Dr. Bright, professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, began Wolverine BEST at Grove City College several years ago. This competition provides middle through high school students in the Western Pennsylvania area exposure to engineering, science, and technology. The Wolverine BEST challenge is one of only two BEST Hubs in the Commonwealth of PA. The event serves as an opportunity for Grove City College to showcase its nationally ranked engineering program.

This year, I participated as a Marketing Judge for the competition. Twenty-three schools participated in this year’s competition and I was to judge four of them on marketing presentations for their robots. The volunteer judges met before the competition to go over the rules and rating system we would be using that evening. The marketing presentations took place in different rooms in the Hall of Arts and Letters. There were four judges per room. The students, either middle or high schoolers, would have roughly 20 minutes to present their robot to the panel of judges. The last 10 minutes were set aside for any questions the judges may have. In my room, I was the only judge that was a student at Grove City College. The rest of the judges were faculty members at the College or local businessmen or women. It felt very much like I was on an episode of Shark Tank. After the students exited the room, the judges would converse about our thoughts on the presentation. Of the four groups of students, there was quite a wide range from students who were beyond prepared to those who were very nervous.

To me, I was very impressed with all of the presentations I had the chance to witness. These students clearly had ambition and drive, and at such a young age. I was thankful to have had this opportunity to meet new faculty members and the determined middle school and high school students.

A question one of the judges in my panel asked every group that presented was, “What would you like to do in the future?”

The answers varied from “I would like to be a mechanical engineer,” to “I want to graduate high school.”

My favorite answer was actually said by five of the students that went through our room that evening, and that was, “I am hoping to get accepted to Grove City College.”

Hearing this from such impressive and inspiring young men and women reminded me of how appreciative and thankful I am to attend an institution like Grove City College.

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Major/ Minor Mix-Up: Biblical & Religious Studies, Communication Double Major with Computer Science Minor

Grove City College makes it really simple to pursue countless majors and minors. What is interesting is some of the major and minor combinations students choose. Some may be a little out of the ordinary, but they spark an interesting conversation. Rachel Kohnerger ’20 is one of those students with an interesting major/minor combination.

Rachel is a Biblical and Religious Studies and Communications double major with a minor in Computer Science (that’s a mouthful). When I reached out to students to see who has an interesting combination of a major and minor, Rachel caught my eye, so I decided to have a little chat with her and here is how it went:

Why did you choose Biblical and Religious Studies and Communication Studies as a double major?

Like a bunch of kids, I went to youth camps. One day they asked for anyone going into ministry to come up. At that point I decided that is something I want to do. Because of this, I looked into Christian colleges. I knew I wanted to get involved in spreading the gospel whether it was working with a mission agency or with Christian media.

A lot of BARS (Biblical and Religious Studies) major professors recommended a double major as the two compliment each other. The Communication Studies major is a support to the BARS major and it opened up opportunities with both majors.

What was the moment you knew your major was the right choice?

The very first assignment: A 15-page research paper in Contemporary American religion. We had to go to different churches and research the ways they worship and how it had an effect on age-group attendance… [after the project] it showed me that is was something I could do and something I enjoyed doing.

Computer Science and Biblical and Religious Studies? Why Computer Science?

Last year I took programming 1 for my math requirement with no expectations but I really ended up loving programming. There was room in my schedule to add it as a minor. With the direction I want to take it [academic career], I’ll take web design classes that compliment my Communications major.

What moment made you decide you loved Computer Science?

I had professor Al Moakar who is a very hands on teacher. It was the first time I created a program and ran it. It was so satisfying to see the program run and to see and understand how it worked.

Any advice for incoming freshmen that are debating what majors and minors they will pursue?

Don’t limit yourself! Its okay to get in and realize that you aren’t doing what you want to do for the rest of your life. Explore classes in other departments, not just your Gen Ed’s or HUMAs (General Education and Humanities courses). You never know. You may actually love it and decide to minor in it, like me.

 

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Independent Research: The Ant Robot

It is no secret that the engineers at Grove City are incredibly talented and innovative. One project that stood out to Dr. Mohr, an engineering professor here, was designed and built by sophomore Theo Stangebye. Instead of reading me go on and on about the complexities, Dr. Mohr thought it best Theo explain the process himself. Theo and his sister, Sophie, were even kind enough to put together a short video showcasing the technology – enjoy!

Hi, my name is Theo Stangebye and I’m a sophomore electrical/computer engineering major at Grove City College. This past semester, I’ve had the privilege of working in the control systems lab with Dr. Mohr through the independent study program. During that time, we’ve been working on developing a robot with the ability to track ants and other small insects as they move across a field in order to study their behavioral patterns.

The development of this robot has been a collaborative effort: the project was suggested by professors in the Biology department, the chassis was designed and 3D printed by a mechanical engineering student, and the robot’s motherboard was designed by Dr. Mohr.

The robot utilizes a tail-dragger design and measures about one foot in length from front to back. We’ve equipped the robot with many instruments and sensors which will eventually help it navigate in the wild, including a movable lidar sensor, an inertial measurement unit, quadrature encoded wheel, and a GPS receiver. Currently, however, the robots computes distance and direction solely based on the movement of its two front wheels. The whole system is controlled with a myRIO by National Instruments and is programmed by LabVIEW.

Working on the project this semester has been a blast. I’ve developed low level control algorithms which allow the robot to be controlled with series of simple, high level commands, such as “drive 30 inches at an angle of 45 degrees.” To enable this form of control, I utilized a PID loop, which constantly checks the direct the wheels to correct for errors in the robot’s heading. PID loops are standard in industry applications, so getting to write my own algorithm was an excellent learning experience.

There were challenges along the way, but getting to see the finished product has been very rewarding. The robot can perform complex maneuvers, like tracing a star pattern, with great amounts of precision. If you’d like to see the robot in action, please check out the video on this page. I’m excited to see we will accomplish in the future, especially as we interface cameras into the robot next semester.

 

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Reel Life at Grove City College: A Chat with Ben

Ben is a junior computer science major who is involved in a ton on campus. He is the head of the robotics club, the director of media for and a dedicated player on Grove City College’s Ultimate Frisbee team, and a member of the Alpha Sigma housing group. He is also a devoted student. Ben is a classic “Grove-er achiever,” as we say here at Grove City College.

I wanted to get this interview of Ben out to you, because I think Ben is a great example of how to strike a balance between extracurricular and academic life. He also has a unique attentiveness to and memory of funny class stories. Besides that though, Ben is a great guy and friend to many. He is fully integrated here at Grove City College, to say the least. Before he got here though, he had to make the choice between The Grove and Penn State. I ask him a bit about that decision in this video, so you can understand the reasoning that ultimately led him to decide on Grove City College.

If you are on the fence in your college search, I hope this video will give you some added insight into what campus life can be like here. I also want it to show you a look into the type of student you could be here if you want to. Ben is taking full advantage of his college years, and it is certainly worth listening to his perspective. Enjoy, and if you are interested, feel free to check out other episodes of Reel Life for videos similar to this.

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Student Spotlight: Ryan Brothers, Computer Science and the Humanities

As of May 2015, Ryan Brothers joined the same housing group as 14212074_10210027004769686_237257880145741396_nI did. We had talked maybe twice from when he joined to May 2016. On a whim, we decided to be roommates for our senior year. Now, I can call him one of my best friends.

“I applied to bigger schools, but at the same time, they couldn’t offer me what Grove City does. The humanities core offered here has made me far more well-rounded than any other school I applied to could have.”

Ryan is an Electrical Engineer with a concentration in Computer Science, one of five in the senior class. Ryan’s passion for Computer Science brought him to Grove City, but he wanted to major in something different with the hope of giving himself a challenge.

“Computer Science was something I always got. Once I learned about the EE with CompSci, I knew it was the program for me. Get it? Program?”

Currently, Ryan is working with a professor on an independent study that end goal is to convert images into vectors. The program will be used at a local forge in imprinting steel.

“It sounds a little confusing, but it’s applications are incredibly practical. It’s been a lot of fun.”

Grove City offers these type of opportunities in a variety of its departments. It’s been neat to see how Ryan’s been taking advantage of it.

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A Virtual Way Through the Crowd

Crowds are curious things. As I have navigated many in airports, train stations, and other public places in France this semester, I’ve been surprised at how a path through the crowd that my friend took ahead of me, a few seconds ago, is not necessarily the path I should take. People are moving constantly and I need to keep moving as well if I do not want to lose my guide.

Dr. Cory Boatright, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Grove City College, has done research on crowd simulation since 2011. Crowd simulations are usually of pedestrians, and are defined by giving hundreds or thousands of virtual agents a starting position and a destination. When the simulation starts, individuals begin to make their way through the ever-changing crowd. While visualization is not required, it is helpful for understanding. Below is a screenshot from Dr. Boatright’s work:

From Dr. Boatright's research

While working on his Ph.D., Dr. Boatright’s research focused on using a data-driven approach to crowd simulation, instead of a procedural or geometrical take, with the intent of making the simulation faster. This past summer, two Grove City students worked on updating the framework used for the simulation. When that project is completed, it will be easier to set up simulations to research other things.

“The nifty thing about crowd simulation,” Dr. Boatright noted, “is that it crosses a lot of fields — everything from massively parallel computing to law enforcement.” One interesting application explored in a paper [1] is using software to process a video feed of a crowd, update a live model of the crowd, and predict destinations of pedestrians. The software could then flag unusual behavior, like someone in a lobby who has been wondering about and is not taking a direct path anywhere.

A second research interest for Dr. Boatright is vectorizing raster graphics. A raster image is essentially defined by a grid of pixels, where every pixel has a defined color. Photos, for instance, are raster images. A vector image, on the other hand, uses shapes or paths to define what is seen. Thus a vector image has infinite resolution. Vector graphics are generally used in design, while raster graphics are used for photos.

So when might one want to vectorize a raster image? Boatright referenced Wendell August Forge, which often makes ornaments based on photos provided by customers. This requires an artist to take the photo and trace the important paths in a vector format. If this task could be completed with software, it would save a lot of time.

Boatright has always been interested in large-scale problems and squeezing as much performance as possible out of a computer. Although crowd simulations and IBM’s Watson do very different things, Boatright’s simulation can handle thousands of virtual agents on his personal PC, while Watson fills a room.

Anyone interested in computer science will find that GCC professors, like Dr. Boatright, have a wealth of interesting research to draw on — and some of the research areas present opportunities for students to get involved.

1. Boatright, Cory D.; Kapadia, Mubbasir; Shapira, Jennie M.; Badler, Norman I. (2012). Pedestrian Anomaly Detection using Context-Sensitive Crowd Simulation. In First International Workshop on Pattern Recognition and Crowd Analysis.

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A More Specific and Relevant Education

GCC Offers New Majors and Minors

In a recent press release, Grove City College announced that they are offering new majors and minors in the 2016-2017 academic year.

In the Hopeman School of Science, Engineering, Mathematics, the Department of Biology will be offering three new majors including: Health, Molecular Biology and Conservation Biology. Counting for 10% of the student body, the study of biology attracts numerous prospective students annually. The three distinct majors are a repackaging of courses that already exist but are tailored toward careers in medicine, research and conservation application.

Dr. Jenkins, professor of Biology, states, “As a department we looked where our students were going after college and wanted to highlight certain programs that would better prepare them for graduate school or future occupations.” Out of the current 160 biology students, 10 have made a switch to the three new majors.

The Departments of Computer Science and Communications and Visual Arts are introducing a new minor in Computer Game Design and Development. Students who obtain this minor will be educated on the fundamentals of game design, development and critique. The Computer Science Department in conjunction with the Entrepreneurship Department will also be presenting a minor in High-Tech Entrepreneurship. This minor is geared towards students who have an interest in the technological division of high-tech spaces within companies.

Dr. Birmingham, chair of the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering Departments, proclaims, “Both of these minors are multidisciplinary, allowing students of all majors to use there general elective hours purposefully and accessibly.” According to Birmingham, the departments initially collaborated in November of 2015 and both minors were successfully approved in December.

Under the provision of the Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering, GCC is proud to present a Robotics minor to students interested in hands-on learning as well as practical design and programming. The Robotics minor equates to a capstone project for seniors. Those obtaining this minor will be educated on the integration of robotics in light of an ethical and Christian worldview.

Students also have the opportunity to achieve a minor in Medical Physics. The Physics Department is making a conscious effort to provide students with a minor that correlates with job interest in radiology, nuclear medicine and nuclear engineering.

Dave Tarnish, chemistry major of 2017, states, “The new Medical Chemistry minor helps prepare students who want to pursue the medical field get a more specific and relevant education.”

The Department of Political Science has recently added a Pre-Law minor. According to Dr. Stanton, associate professor of the Political Science Department, the Pre-Law minor will aid students seeking identifiable skills that the American Bar Association requires for those attending law school.

Stanton explains, “The minor involves courses in several departments that develop reasoning and logic skills, communication skills and some basic understanding of the U.S. Constitution, ethics and philosophy of law.” Dr. Caleb Verbois, assistant professor of Political Science, is the new Pre-Law advisor. In order to further assist students pursuing law school, Verbois is in current communication with lawyers of Grove City College’s administration, including President McNulty.

Students can learn more about these wonderful opportunities through flyers and postcards as well as digital marketing outlets including emails, phone calls and the College’s webpage.

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Student Research Spotlight: Sophia Gebert

Sophia GebertCan you do research at a small, undergraduate, liberal arts college? Yes! Grove City College has a flourishing research program spread among various programs in both technical and non-technical majors. Dr. William Birmingham, the department chair of Computer Science, is one of many professors at GCC passionate about engaging undergraduate students in research. Using distributed artificial intelligent, Dr. Birmingham creates next generation computer games for mobile platforms. Sophia Gebert, a senior Computer Science student, is one of four students working in Dr. Birmingham’s lab.

 

How did you become involved in research at Grove City College?

Last year while studying, one of my computer science friends began talking about the research project he had just become involved in with Dr. Birmingham. I was intrigued by the work he was describing, which led me to talk to Dr. Birmingham about joining the project. A team of four students, including myself, was formed to develop a mobile game. At the end of last year, we completed the game and have moved forward to begin working on this current project.

What is the research you are conducting?

Our project is to explore the types of games that fit naturally on an Apple TV. We believe that “ported” smartphone, console or PC/Mac games to the Apple TV do not provide an engaging game experience. We are currently developing “Screamin’ Tators,” which is the game of hot potato adapted to a video game. The game involves players connected to each other via the Internet trying to keep potatoes—Screamin’ Tators—off their screen. The game uses simple swipe gestures to move the potato and asks the player or the audience to shout phrases during the game.

My role in the project right now is to develop in-app purchases for the game. Specifically, I am designing power-ups which players can use to sabotage other players, such as adding fog to the opponents screen, as well as defensive power-ups, such as adding grease to the screen to assist the player to move the potato faster.

A screenshot of the "Screamin' Taters" game.
A screenshot of the “Screamin’ Taters” game.

Do you receive any form of compensation for your work, such as class credit or monetary compensation?

Grove City College awards computer science elective credit by considering the class as an independent study. Generally, research counts as one to two credits per semester. In order to receive class credit, you are required to develop a syllabus with your professor outlining what your goals are for the semester. Additionally, you must give an end of the year presentation to faculty and students to communicate your results.

Grove City College also allows students to obtain the IP rights to their game, which they can then use to further develop or sell their game.

What has been the hardest part of your research?

The hardest part of my research was learning how to program on a new platform. It is especially hard because the platform is relatively new, so there has been little previous programming done on it. I was also unfamiliar with the programming language that we are using prior to beginning the project, so there was a large learning curve initially.

What has been the most rewarding part of your research?

The most rewarding part of my research is working with the team to develop a vision for the game and discuss design ideas, then see them come together each week. Being able to transform a creative idea into an actual product makes the work worth it.

What non-technical skill have you found yourself using frequently?

The non-technical skill that I have used frequently is communication. I have learned how to express my ideas effectively and share my opinions with my team members. Communication has been a key component of working as a successful, efficient team.

Since you and two of your team members are all graduating this year, what is the future of this research project?

As I mentioned earlier, the school allows you to obtain the IP rights to any games that you have developed while working as a student researcher at Grove City College. Our team hopes to get the rights to this game so we can continue to work on it, and hopefully sell it, after we graduate. If that doesn’t happen, this project will be handed off to underclassmen to continue to develop it.

Has your research experience shaped your plans for graduation?

My research experience has had a tremendous impact in shaping my plans for after graduation. The project confirmed my interest in mobile development, and led me to pursue a career with a company working in their mobile development sector.

Do you have any final thoughts?

Do an independent study. It is a relaxing learning environment that allows you to work closely with faculty members and build professional relationships. It also looks good on resumes and gives you something to talk about on job interviews. I was able to find my passion through undergraduate research, and all student at Grove City College have that opportunity as well.

To learn more, check out Grove City College’s computer science department page.