Stanford Inspirit AI Experience

A two-week long coding and AI summer camp was called Inspirit AI. In this session, we studied artificial intelligence (AI) and what it is, what it does in the world today, and how coding can help further AI in the future. We learned about coding after mastering the fundamentals of AI. Python was the coding language we studied in Inspirit AI. I chose to join this program because I wanted to learn more about coding and explore my potential applications for it. The program at Inspirit AI was divided into two weeks. During the first week, we learned the fundamentals of coding and AI, and during the second and last weeks, we applied what we had learned from the prior weeks to create a presentation on how to code for our project. Each day's courses would last for two and a half hours.

The first day of the program began with the teachers discussing the fundamentals of AI and how it is applied in people's daily lives. Following this, we split up into separate breakout rooms with various professors to study the fundamentals of Python. On the second day of the course, we discovered several uses for Python, including machine learning. We used linear regression for our machine learning, essentially AI that predicts how something will turn out. We learned how to use Python for logistic regression on the third day of the program. Logistic regression is very similar to linear regression, except that it uses linear bounds to predict the prediction. The fourth day was dedicated to teaching us about NLP, or natural language processing, which is how computers translate human language. We studied computer vision and neural networks on the last day of the first week, which is how the computer detects images. Next, we used Python to enhance computer vision.

Our project was initiated during the second week. This assignment incorporated every subject we learned about the previous week. I worked on a project called disaster relief. We essentially created routines that would aid AI in tweet detection and ensure that the AI is aware of the tweet's topic. For instance, if the tweet contains the term "water," our technology would enable the AI to recognize that the message is discussing water resources. We created a presentation to describe the operation of our project to the audience once the project was completed. We were done after giving our presentation.

Overall, I thought this was a fantastic software because up until now, my experience with Python scripting had been limited to small tasks. It was interesting to see how we could use Python in practical situations; it truly helps you appreciate how far technology has come. I believed that knowing about AIs and how they work was incredibly beneficial because if you could comprehend how the AI works, then this entire summer camp was pretty simple. I didn't encounter many issues, but I felt that the program's speed was a major issue because some pupils found it challenging because they had never used Python and had only received a brief introduction. In conclusion, I suggest enrolling in this program if you wish to work in the technology sector.

Georgetown Law Academy Experience

The Georgetown Law Academy was an online summer program where you could learn a lot about the law and what a lawyer does daily. I enrolled in this program because I had to research a lawyer in middle school and I found their profession to be incredibly fascinating. I made the decision to enroll in this legal school in order to understand more about lawyers. The duration of this program was 5 days, with an average of 8 hours per day.

We discussed property and legislation on the first day's activities. We were to discuss the instances that the guest speaker offered us after explaining the property laws. He would then provide the right response and explain why. Following that, we took a two-hour lunch break, during which time we talked about holding a mock trial on the program's final day. Everyone was given a role after they had stated the scenario. They then divided us into teams, and we spent some time planning our approach to the simulated trial with our team. The mock trial's plot involved a violent cyclone that caused all of the city's people to flee to the dome. A few adolescents robbed some stores after the hurricane because there weren't enough supplies for everyone, and a police officer caught them doing it. Therefore, the question is whether the police officer performing their duty or the teens who needed to provide for their families were in the right.

On the second day, we went through the schedule and decided to do it this coming week. Following their explanation of everything, a guest speaker discussed the fundamental traffic laws and asked us whether we believed the police's response to a hypothetical event on the highway was appropriate. Following that, we took a two-hour lunch break, during which time we talked about holding a mock trial on the program's final day. After another two-hour lunch break, we practiced the fake trial. In the Mock Trial exercise, they provided us with the necessary evidence and displayed trial footage to demonstrate how we ought to conduct ourselves in court. After that, we began collaborating in groups to prepare for the mock trial.

We completed a case study on a serial killer on day three. We had to figure out the killer's identity and motivations using the many hints the guest speaker had provided. After the case study, the guest speaker provided the solution and detailed his entire experience. All the hints pointed to one individual, but it turned out to be someone different, so the guest speaker duped everyone. Day 3 was my favorite day of the story because it was so engaging. We had the entire mock trial practice period to work on our case and gather as much evidence as we could after the two-hour lunch break.

The fourth day was shorter than normal because all we did was the fake trial. We spent a lot of time refining our argument and attempting to present the strongest case we could. The mock trial finally took place on the fifth and final day of the program; we went up against another group, and I presented the case. There would then be two witnesses and a person who interrogated the witnesses in an effort to support their testimony. We ended up drawing, but I thought it was a really enjoyable experience.

I had a great time at the Georgetown Law academy and discovered a lot of new information there. The simulated trial was amazing, but all the activities we performed during the program were incredibly enjoyable. We got to experience what it was like to be a lawyer thanks to Mock Trial, which was realistic. Despite being a pretend trial, the level of pressure was substantial. I felt like I learned a lot in such a short time, so I really enjoyed this course. The only drawback I could identify with this course was that it should have been spread out more equally since I occasionally became quite fatigued. Overall, this was a really wonderful course, and it will be especially helpful if you want to practice law or do something else related to it in the future.

High School Transition

I am currently a freshman at high school and I just finished my first semester. Your high school years are supposed to be one of the most important years in your life for many reasons. One reason is you meet a lot of new people and make a lot of new friends. Another reason is if you are successful academically then you have a very high chance of getting into a good college. Well since I have a lot of time still remaining in my high school career I will talk about the hardships of transitioning from middle school to high school.

Going into high school I was very confident in my ability to get all A’s, I thought it was the exact same as middle school. In middle school I found it very easy for me because all the homework assignments were just completion grades, all the tests and quizzes you could study the night before and get a very good score, and there weren’t multiple tests or quizzes on the same day. But later I realize I was very wrong. The first few weeks of high school were exactly what I envisioned, homework was completion points, there weren’t that many tests/quizzes, and I could study the day before and still get good scores. But after those weeks things got more difficult for me, the tests and quizzes got more difficult and I had to know the subject very well instead of procrastinating on the last day to study. I started to get lower scores than I usually got and I started to panic. Not only that, but finding time to do everything was difficult for me. I had a lot of clubs before or after school and that really messed up my schedule for studying and finishing up my homework. Towards the end of the semester, everything started to pile up because it was Finals week. During the last 2 weeks of the semester, I spent a lot of time studying for Finals and Finals were a lot easier in my opinion compared to the Unit tests we had in other subjects. I think the reason for this was that the Finals questions were not as specific and were more straightforward. Also, I spent more time studying for Finals than the Unit Tests. Now there were a lot of good things in high school like I met a lot of new people, our school hosted a Homecoming Dance and that was very fun in my opinion, I went to a lot of the school football games and the experience was very fun. In Middle School, there were some dances and sports games you could attend but they weren’t as fun and a lot of people didn’t anticipate it as much compared to High school.

Heading into next semester I am planning not to procrastinate as much hoping I get better scores on tests/quizzes and I am planning on managing my time a lot better since now I know when my clubs are. To incoming freshmen reading this blog, don’t be too stressed out about high school but at the same time do not procrastinate since that was a very bad habit I got into in Middle School.

History of Coding

Coding has changed human civilization forever. You see coding every day even though you might not notice it, that’s how impactful coding is. For example, when you text someone on your phone, the computer doesn’t understand when you click on the letter so coding helps the computer understand, and then the letter will appear on your screen. That is a straightforward example. Without coding, 90% of the things we use today won’t be available. But how did this invention start, and when did it start? Let’s take a deeper dive into the History of Coding.

Coding was first invented in the 60 A.D and was created by the brilliant professor Mr. Heron of Alexandria. He was an astonishing mathematician and engineer. One of his inventions was the puppet machine, in which to work you had to pull a few strings for the puppet to do something. This machine inspired the basic code. There weren’t many other inventions that altered coding history but 1800 years later, a coding genius by the name of Joseph Marie Jacquard changed Coding forever. Joseph created a machine called the Jacquard Loom, which basically made carpets, rugs, and blankets of different colors. Then the machine would copy the same thing over and over again, which invented the program called loop. 

Towards the end of the 1800s a mathematician in London, UK named Charles Babbage created the first computer called the Analytical Engine. He dreamed of creating a machine that could calculate numbers quickly, but he gave up midway and wanted to make a better machine. That became the Analytical Engine. He didn’t have enough money to build the Analytical machine so he couldn’t finish it. Another mathematician saw this idea and was intrigued by it. Her name was Ada Lovelace. She came up with a theory called a program that didn’t exist then. But again coding went quiet again for some time until World War 2 started. Another mathematician by name of Alan Turing was on the allies side in World War 2 and his job was to break the Axis side code. He and his coding team broke the code by creating a machine. Now the Allies knew Germany’s naval movements. In the later stages of World War 2, a man named Tommy Flowers, who worked with telegraphs made a programmable computer using those telegraphs. That machine was known as the colossal l. It helped during important wars. People didn’t know about this computer since 1950 since it was top secret.

In the 1950s, computer programming languages started to take off. The first programming language was called the short code, which was created by IBM. Then a few years later, they built a faster version of the short code called the speed code. Ever since computer programming languages started to take off, the job was in high demand. There were more languages added to coding over the years and computers have also advanced, which made coding a lot easier for a lot of people.

Coding has been essential for human civilization for a very long time. It started out very simple, like a lot of great inventions but over time people realized coding could be revolutionary and made it more complicated. This was when coding really started to take off and thanks to coding the world in terms of technology have advanced at a very high rate. Coding is still evolving, which will result in technology advancing even more.

Hiking Blog

 The Great Smokies is a great place to visit and has a lot of entertainment and there is hiking opportunities.

I have gone to the Smokies 3-4 times before this year but we never went hiking on those days. But for the first time, my dad and I went hiking. We went to this waterfall in the Smokies called the Rainbow Fall which is one of the most favored destinations among hikers. It takes 2.7 miles to get there so we knew we had to be prepared.

Before we started hiking we ate grapes and omelets. During the hike, we brought 3 water bottles and 3 granola bars. The funny thing was we didn’t even need the granola bars during the hike. During the hike, the animal we saw was a deer. But we saw many small waterfalls and streams which looked very beautiful. Also, it was so calming because there weren’t any cars and we could only hear nature which sounded beautiful.

Once we reached 3 hours later it felt like the Rainbows Fall was waiting for us. This was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. It was really calming, fun, and exciting. I recommend all of you should at least try going hiking once because it feels like you’re in a completely new world that is more peaceful and less stressful.

NBA 2020 Season Review

 

2019-2020 NBA Season: Season for the ages

By: Aahan Kar

 

Beginning:

The 19-20 NBA free agency was bizarre. The most prolific players in the league were switching to new teams and for the first time in a while the league was balanced. This season was one of the most anticipated seasons in NBA history.  The two teams that changed the most were the two teams in LA, Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers. Both added superstars to their teams. The Laker acquired Anthony Davis and the Clippers acquired Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. Both were ranked as the best two teams in the NBA. This season had so many different storylines, Lakers, Bucks, and Clippers contending for a ring, how Steph Curry would do without a super team, Raptors looking to defend their championship, etc. Opening day Clippers cruised against the Lakers. But after that game Lakers were so dominant with LeBron and Anthony Davis leading the way. In the first five games, Stephen Curry was playing horrendously but he got a severe hand injury and was out for most of the year. 

MVP Race:

On the Eastern Conference, the Milwaukee Bucks were dominating as usual with Giannis Antetnkoumpo leading the way. The MVP race at the beginning of the season was really close but later LeBron James and Giannis would be the clear top 2 for MVP. Giannis being number 1. The Lakers once again faced the Clippers on Christmas Day but lost once again in a close matchup. It seemed at the time Clippers were much better than the Lakers. There were a lot of surprising teams though, the Miami Heat, Nuggets, Celtics, Mavericks, and the Raptors. The Nuggets young superstar Nikola Jokic was getting better and was considered a top 10 player, the Miami Heat were making a run as the best Eastern Conference team with Veteran superstar Jimmy Butler and young star Bam Adebayo leading the way, Luka Doncic growing so fast and making himself one of the best players in the league and it’s his second year in the NBA, the Raptors lost superstar Kawhi Leonard but are playing well without him, and the Jayson Tatum who was a disappointment last year but now is growing into one of the best players in the league.

NBA All-Star Weekend: 

The regular season was good but then came All-Star weekend. One of the most anticipated weekends in the NBA season. The NBA decided to change up the All-Star Game. The viewership was going down since the All-Stars were giving no effort. Also, the NBA wanted to honor Kobe since he passed away. They completely changed the rules and people were wondering how it would be. This All-Star game was rated one of the best all-star games in NBA history. 

COVID-19:

After the All-Star Game, it seemed as if Giannis would win unanimous MVP which has happened only once in NBA history (2015-16 Stephen Curry) but the Lakers were playing the Clippers and the Bucks The Lakers already lost to the Clippers twice and lost to the Bucks once. The Lakers beat both of them and the MVP race became a lot closer. But it still seemed like Giannis was going to win the MVP. After a couple of weeks, an NBA player tested positive for COVID-19. Then more and more players started getting positive results and the league had to shut down. After a couple of months, the NBA was back but they had to play in a bubble in Orlando, FL. No team could travel and if players went out of the bubble they had to pay fines. Only a few teams were invited to the bubble and the teams that made the bubble were in the playoffs. Each team played 8 games before the playoffs officially started. 

NBA Playoffs: 

The Los Angeles Lakers were playing the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round and won in 5 games. The Utah Jazz vs the Denver Nuggets was one of the best series in the entire playoffs. The Nuggets were down 3-1 against the Jazz but came back and won. The Clippers were struggling against the Dallas Mavericks but ended up beating them in 6 games. The Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder went to a game 7 but the Houston Rockets ended up beating them.  In the Eastern Conference, the Bucks beat the Orlando Magic in 5 games, the Miami Heat beat the Indiana Pacers in 4 games, the Toronto Raptors beat the Brooklyn Nets in 4 games, and the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers in 4 games. Some surprising series were the Clippers/Mavericks, Rockets/Thunder, and Bucks/Magic. These games were surprising because most people predicted it wouldn’t be a close series but the weaker team fought really hard but they ended up losing. Even though the Bucks beat the Magic in 5 games mostly everyone predicted the Bucks to beat them in 4. Nevertheless, the stronger team ended up winning and advanced to the next round.

2nd Round: 

The Lakers were playing the Rockets and won in 5 games, but the Denver Nuggets vs the Clippers was the most surprising series in the playoffs. The Clippers were up 3-1 and in one of the games they were up more than 16 points but Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray put up historic numbers and came back 3-1 upsetting the Clippers. At the time Clippers were considered the best team in the NBA but a young Denver Nuggets team with a bright future beat them. In the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat upset the Milwaukee Bucks in 5 games. Jimmy Butler led this young Heat team to the Eastern Conference finals and he put up great numbers throughout the playoffs at this point. Young superstar Jayson Tatum led the Boston Celtics to victory defeating the defending champions the Toronto Raptors in 7 games. 

Conference Championship: 

The remaining teams were the Los Angles Lakers, the Denver Nuggets, the Miami Heat, and the Boston Celtics. LeBron James and Anthony Davis led the Lakers to the NBA Finals winning in 5 games. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo led the Miami Heat to the NBA Finals beating the Celtics in 6 games. 

NBA Finals/Conclusion of the season:

The Finals were set, Los Angeles Lakers vs the Miami Heat. Both teams fought hard but in the end, the Lakers ended up victorious winning their 17th franchise Finals. Tied with the most Finals win with the Boston Celtics. LeBron James won Finals MVP once again. This season was unique, odd, and exciting. No year in NBA history was this different and we got to witness history.

LeBron James Biography

 

LeBron Raymone James is a renowned NBA superstar and widely considered the greatest of all time. Born in Akron, Ohio, on December 30, 1984, to a single mother, LeBron never knew his father. Born into a poor family, LeBron considered sports as the only way out of their penury. He worked hard every single day, honing his skills at basketball and football, playing both sports at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School for four years before dropping out early to play in the NBA.

 

LeBron made it to the NBA but was drafted by a bad franchise – the Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron was enormously successful on an individual level within the first eight years of his NBA career, winning two MVP Awards and making five All-Star teams; however, he had no team success. He then had to decide between staying loyal to his home team or moving on to a better one. In 2010, his decision to leave the Cavaliers and join Miami Heat fostered an immense amount of hatred toward him in his hometown: his jerseys were burnt and everyone prayed for his downfall. LeBron was motivated to win his first title, but performed poorly in the Finals. He played dreadfully throughout the series and the team ended up losing. His critics enjoyed his downfall.

 

However, during the next season, LeBron was more motivated than ever, reaching the NBA Finals again and dominating. This led to his first Finals MVP Award. The critics had been silenced, but LeBron was not done. In the next season, LeBron won the MVP Award and another Finals MVP Award. However, he failed to achieve a three-peat. LeBron then returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers and promised them a championship. In the first season of his return, LeBron played worse than usual. In spite of that, he reached the NBA Finals again. Even though LeBron put in an all-time performance in the Finals series, he couldn’t lead his team to a win, and the critics started talking about his many losses in the Finals.

 

In the 2016 NBA season, the defending champions, the Golden State Warriors, were enjoying one of the most dominant seasons of all time, having won 73 games out of 82, with Stephen Curry leading the way. There was talk of Curry being the best player in the league. Meanwhile, LeBron led the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals to face the Golden State Warriors. In the first four games, the Warriors were up 3-1, dominating LeBron and the Cavaliers. No team in the history of the NBA had lost a series in the NBA Finals after being up 3-1. LeBron changed that, as his incredible performances in the next three games resulted in the Cleveland Cavaliers becoming the NBA champions, with LeBron being awarded his third NBA ring and his third Finals MVP Award. Over the next two years, most players but LeBron had left, resulting in the Cavaliers becoming one of the weakest teams. Although LeBron would lead the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in the next two years, they were unable to win more championships.

 

In 2018, LeBron decided to join the Los Angeles Lakers. The move was questionable, as the Lakers were rebuilding and not contending, and although he was a fantastic player, LeBron had aged over 16 seasons. Unfortunately, he suffered a groin strain mid-season and sat out for most of the season. Critics resumed claiming that LeBron was not the best player in the world. The Lakers made several trades during the off-season, including signing one of the best players in the league. LeBron’s motivation had never been higher, and he performed very well, placing second in the MVP Awards that season and winning the Finals and the Finals MVP Award, becoming the first player in NBA history to win the Finals MVP Award with three different teams.

 

LeBron boasts one of the greatest, if not the greatest, basketball careers of all time, with four NBA championships, four Finals MVP Awards, four regular-season MVP awards, and 16 times All-Star, amongst other accomplishments.   

 

LeBron is more than a basketball player – he is also a kind and caring man. He founded a school for children unable to afford tuition. He also donates to numerous charities such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, After-School All-Stars, the Children’s Defense Fund, Gabriel’s Angle Foundation, and ONEXONE. LeBron has always cared for his mother and credited her. “My mom and I have always been there for each other. We had some tough times, but she was always there for me.” LeBron met his future wife, Savannah James, at a basketball game between his and Savannah’s high schools. They got married in 2013 and now have three children – LeBron Jr. (15), Bryce (13), and Zhuri (5). Both LeBron Jr. and Bryce play basketball while Zhuri does gymnastics.

He is my favorite athlete and a major inspiration. He worked hard and get where he is today, working his way up from nothing. He is also one of the most criticized athletes in the world and his ability to ignore these criticisms is a great quality. He taught me that anything is possible because he was down 3-1 to one of the greatest teams of all time and still won that series, demonstrating his grit and determination to achieve the impossible.