REAL Graduation

I just realized that I completely forgot to post graduation pictures. I guess it really has been a flurry since April.

Last year, even though I walked at graduation with the rest of my class, I wasn't actually graduating. My BS wasn't going to be awarded to me until I earned my MS, and until all the paperwork was in, the highest form of education I could check off on a background information survey was "High School Diploma."

This time, I graduated for real!

Shiway flew into town, which was a ton of fun! These photos are nearly all courtesy of her.

My lovely and talented siblings...in another four years, Shiway and I will join Sam and dad in the ranks of "Dr. Wang"! :)

The parents! Notice the video camera, attached to mom's hand...
The bi-plane dress I bought back in January. Despite the looming snow and cold, I was determined to wear it to graduation.
I won an award from the College of Engineering! Very exciting stuff...it was for my volunteer work I've done since starting here.


My Fairview crew, Phil and Nick!! The three of us all graduated Fairview IB together back in 2005. Now we're all graduating CU Aerospace in 2010. :) The only one missing is Michael, who graduated in December 2009, and is now a traditional graduate student, slotted for 2011. To think, it wasn't that long ago that Phil and I were in Mr. Harig's drafting class, or Nick and I were at prom together.


My ASTORM boys: Byron, Travis, Scott, Matt, and Dan. Leah, I missed you all year...in 2008-9, we were the dynamic duo of women on a team of all men. This year, I had to brave it myself. I may behave even less lady-like now, and my humor may have taken a more severe turn for the darker... but other than that, I think I'm unscathed. :) Missing is Eric H., who booked it after the ceremony. Also missing are Daan, Marek, Michael, and Eric B...since they are continuing on, and not graduating this term.


Long-graduated from Cornell (in 3-years, I may add), Angie visited the next day for the Aerospace reception and a family lunch. She has been hopping from graduation ceremony to ceremony, celebrating with her CU friends. :) I've known her since we were about 5 or 6, and she is definitely my honorary-little-sister. We're about the same height, but I'm standing on a concrete platform in heels..


Oh, Engineering Center. I'm not sure if I'll miss you or not.
One final obligatory family photo, minus Dave.

The End of an (Undergraduate) Era

The past two days have been filled with smiles, photographs, and celebrations.  I did not attend the University-wide commencement, but instead, the College of Engineering Recognition Ceremony and the Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences Ceremony.

Me and Leah at the Engineering Recognition Ceremony

The Counties Trip Gang (minus Ryan)!

The department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences...represent!

Me with mom and dad.  :)  DEFINITELY couldn't have done it without them!

At the Aerospace ceremony, we had cake and drinks with our families and friends...it was an awkwardly-organized event, and people had nowhere to sit, and no direction as to what to do...but it was still nice to have one last huzzah with the gang.  They had a photo slideshow playing the entire time with photos from the teams, and it was fun to revisit some of the photos.

The most exciting part of the morning was when we absolutely cleaned up at the awards ceremony!!  There are 7 teams, and 8 possible awards...the ones in bold are the ones we won!

-Best Data Gathering and Analysis Methodology

-Most Complex Build

-Most Technically Innovative Project

-Best Fabrication Lead

-Best Software Lead

-Best Electronics Lead

-Best Project Manager

-Northrop Grumman Award for Best Project Overall

Really exciting to be formally acknowledged by the department and professors for our hard work.  Nothing better than bragging rights. ;)

After the ceremony, Mom, Dad, Sam, Ryan and I went to get lunch at Sakura Sushi in Longmont.  It was delicious, and we followed the lunch with a nice walk around the Baseline Reservoir Trail with Porter.  

It's been a fun few days, but I think I'm ready to get a good night's sleep and watch some movies!

Graduation is close!

6 more days until my undergraduate career is officially conferred,

5 more days until the College of Engineering graduation ceremony,

4 more days until I have no more final exams...

In an effort to spare you from the usual graduation monologue, I'm going to be honest and say I'm downright speechless.  

With a BS/MS track, it's easy to forget what graduation is supposed to be like.  I kept telling myself, friends, and family that the big day won't come until May 2010, and that May 2009 is just another spring semester.  However, as friends begin to pack their belongings to move across the country and as I have farewell lunches and dinners with those who will be getting their diplomas this time around, things are starting to hit closer to home.

Finally!

A few weekends ago, we did our deployment flight test. After 7 months, 4000+ man hours, and countless internet meme jokes....it all paid off!

The Miniature Aircraft Deployment System works. It works!

We hit some snafus, and weren't able to deploy all four, including our autopilot-enabled plane. However, we think we know where the problem lies, and it is great to see this project a success. The project received lots of attention from within and outside of the university, and it feels good to get recognized for our hard work. It's not over, though, and it's back to work after Spring Break!

Makin' PLANES!

Most of my weekend was consumed by a build day in Senior Projects. The people we know at Arvada Associated Modelers were hosting an RC Airplane Show at Westminster Mall, so they agreed to set up a table for us so that we could build with the help of some experts.

The Sig Rascal is a BIG plane...110 inch wing span, and we had two of them! They may look complete, but we have to assemble all of the controls, engine stuff, switches, gears, wings, and tails. I brought my camera on a tripod and took pictures frequently to create a time lapse video of our progress. Hope you enjoy!

Dr. G's Holiday Party and Team Bonding

Dr. G, my Aircraft Design professor, hosts an annual holiday party for her students. She is an awesome teacher! She also serves on the Advisory Board for Senior Projects. The main motivation behind her holiday party is to showcase her airplane Christmas ornament collection. This year, the collection peaked at 344 ornaments...she and her husband put up three trees every year to house them all.

Her house was filled with edible treats and airplanes!! What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

A close-up to give you an idea how detailed some of these ornaments are: a B-2 Spirit Bomber



Tree #1


Tree #2 with the three girls that are in Aircraft Design (me, Shivali, and Leah)


Tree #3 with all of the students at the party, plus Dr. G


After Dr. G's holiday party, my senior projects team and I had a celebratory dinner at Mom and Dad's to celebrate a CDR well-done. It was the usual feast, and I think some people were a little overwhelmed.

The dinner



Round two



The team (minus Scott who couldn't make it), absolutely stuffed...

Senior Projects

If you can't tell from my lack of updates, school has started...

It's been a flurry of getting things organized and starting my final undergraduate studies. I've also been trying to catch people who are quickly fleeting since I missed summer in Boulder (like Elsbeth, who is going to Lisbon, Portugal for a year! Linked her blog on the right).

The main focus of next two semester will be my Senior Design Capstone project. Meet dMAV (Deployable Miniature Aerial Vehicles)! The goal is to create a deployment system for a large RC plane so that it can store and deploy 2-4 autonomous daughterships. We will be blogging our progress weekly beginning next week. For more info, our website is:

www.cu-dmav.com

Right now, it is a very very sparse template, but expect it to be fleshed out in the following weeks!

Sperlonga and Final Rites

We had one day off in the two weeks, which we spent at the beach! Since Sperlonga is over a 2 hour drive away, we stopped halfway through at Monte Casino to visit the WWII memorial.



The rest of the day was for soaking up the rays and enjoying the ocean.





The final day found us back in Rome. We completed a final exam at a cafe (complete with complimentary cappuccinos), and spent the rest of the day walking, shopping, and soaking up the last bit of the city that we could. The lovely ladies...



In front of the Trevi Fountain was a church, and these locks were on the gates. A nearby vendor said that couples in love would write their names and the date on these locks before placing them on the fence. Cute, but also kind of a twisted and unfortunate symbol for a relationship, in my opinion! :)



There is a belief that by throwing coins into the Trevi Fountain, you guarantee a return trip to Rome. So, on our final night, the 28 of us took a group trip to the Trevi.




A phenomenal three weeks...it is insane to look back and think we did so much. A wonderful class, a great trip with Rose and Elsbeth, and I could not have asked for more.

Castelgandolfo

Castelgandolfo is also a train ride away, and is the former residence of our professor and his family. He lived there for 10 years before coming back to the states. Castelgandolfo is also the summer residence of the pope, as well as the location for the pope's observatory.

Our first stop was at La Gardenia, a restaurant owned by our professor's friends. The restaurant featured an underground grotto, as well as a patio that overlooks the lake.






We then made our way to the pope's observatory, to speak with the pope's astronomer...WAY cool!! I didn't even know the pope had an astronomer. He talked a lot about the history of science and religion.





These books are from the 16th and 17th century....



Here is the pope's astronomer with a 3rd edition copy of Newton's Principia.



Tektites!



Delicious dinner with the class! My table with the gals. Marqui (roomie), Chelsea, me, and the two sisters, Sarah and Rachel.



Our meal was three courses, + focaccia bread. First course was assorted antipasto, second course was ravioli, and third course was pizza!!

Ostia Antica

Ostia Antica is a bit of a train ride away, and used to serve as a port city to Rome. It is a city full of beautiful ruins with a lot of history.



It is also full of dogs, which is weird.



Sarah, having some fun.



Some more pictures....red poppies are everywhere in Italy!