Meet Our International Engineering Ambassador – Yuhang Hu

Why did you choose your course?

Hello everyone, my name is Yuhang and I’m a master student studying Data Analytics in the computer science department. I chose this program because I love analysing data and deriving information from them using various exciting techniques, including machine learning. For me, analysing data is like unboxing gifts, you never know what story the data will tell you in the next step. I personally became interested in data science when I learned that you can use different machine learning algorithms to predict the survival rate in the Titanic tragedy. What drew me most to the course is the broad skills you’ll be able to develop in the program. You get the chance to learn the theories behind those data mining models, you also get the chance to team up with other people to solve real world challenges. Plus if you have a large amount of data at hand that are too difficult to handle by your PC, don’t worry, the university will provide you with high performance computing clusters which you can access anytime!

What have you enjoyed most about your course so far?

The thing I like most about my course is that ethics is also included as a module. While massive amount of data become available as technology evolves, the privacy of personal and sensitive data is at stake. For people who’re aspiring to become data scientists and work in the computer science industry, it’s necessary to understand the importance of private information and always be careful with the data we’re going to deal with.

What do you think about Sheffield as a city?

For me Sheffield is a great place to live. It provides you both the feeling of a bustling city and peaceful town, as there are many green places around the city centre. It has been named as the greenest city in the UK. When I feel tired or need a break from study, nothing’s better than a stroll in the Weston Park or Botanical Garden, or just hopping on a 15-minute train ride to enjoy the breath-taking views of nature in the Peak District!

Have you got any particular academic achievements or extra-curricular achievements you’d like to highlight?

I joined the university walking club where I completed miles of hiking which I thought impossible before, with people sharing the same passion for hiking and walking. It’s a refreshing and rewarding experience.

What are your ambitions after completing your degree?

Data science is virtually applied in every sector of our society and is a very vibrant community. I decide to pursue my career in data science with the aim of providing solutions to contribute to better-informed decision making. I’ll also write blog posts of my learning path to help others and help the community to grow.

Meet Our International Engineering Ambassador – Mian Kou

Why did you choose your course?

Among all the stem disciplines, computer science is undoubtedly the most humane one. When I look into how computers work, how emails are sent to my friend oversea and even just how a simple program works as instructed, I always have a sense of familiarity, because their work logic is so similar to how we deal with everyday tasks in our life. I think that’s a very unique charm of computer science, where you take inspiration from reality and use it to solve complicated real-life problem. Because of such characteristics, computer science is developing into a basic discipline with many branches just as mathematics and physics. It is not only evolving itself rapidly, but also becoming an important tool for many other disciplines. The computer science program of the University of Sheffield provides many modules to choose from, and I have enough freedom to select what I am interested in. And that’s why I came to Sheffield.

What have you enjoyed most about your course so far?

What makes me happiest about studying in the university of Sheffield is that it makes me realized that learning is not a lonely pursuit. You can get a lot of resources and help in the uni: assignments with detailed instructions, professors who will answer all your questions patiently, libraries with abundant books, laboratories with advanced devices and all kinds of workshops that will help you improve your skills. I found that I not only acquire professional knowledge here, but also the ability to make use of the resources around me.

What do you think about Sheffield as a city?

Sheffield does not have a large bustling commercial district, but instead has parks and green spaces everywhere. It is a city that makes it easy for people to calm down and study. But at the same time, it is located in the geographical centre of the UK, where the transportation is convenient and you can easily reach every city in the UK. If you are a train travel fan like me, then living in Sheffield is undoubtedly the best for you.

Have you got any particular academic achievements or extra-curricular achievements you’d like to highlight?

I don’t have any outstanding academic achievement so far, but it brings me a great sense of achievement to understand each new concept and finish each assignment as required.

What are your ambitions after completing your degree?

I hope to be a qualified engineer and make some interesting and meaningful products.

Miro Robots

Most of the Engineering students that walk around the second floor of Diamond, must have seen Miro being advertised, but definitely my Computer Scientist fellows must have had the honour to work with Miro and have faced the challenges, this seemingly innocent and harmless creature, hides. To be fair, Miro is an astonishing robot, with a lot of capabilities, but when your mark depends on him and he decides to throw a tantrum and not co-operate, you start having second thoughts of his amazingness. Okay, let’s put things in order before we start criticizing his eccentric behaviour. There are a lot of questions coming to mind when hearing the word Miro. What was Miro made for? What are Miro’s motors and sensors? What abilities does Miro have? Well be patient we are going to answer them all. First things first, what is Miro-E Robot? Miro is a unique creature, that required the skills of mechanical engineering and software engineering combined to produce this result. In fact, a great contribution for its creation has been paid from the University of Sheffield. Miro-E, the natural successor of Miro-B (the original prototype), with its huge variety of sensors, motors and brain-based control system, is a robot capable of bringing the principles of robotics in life, as well as acting as an engaging companion for all researchers, developers, educators and healthcare professionals. Miro is a smart fella, popular in many universities around the world. He is well suited for performing researches on Machine Learning, to Human Robot Interaction (HRI), to Robot Assisted Therapy (RAT), to Biomimetics and Swarm Robotics.

Miro’s History/Biological Tree:

Miro, has an animal-like shape, but it is really hard to identify what kind of animal he represents. Some say it’s a rabbit, others say it’s a dog, but the truth is, Miro is the combination of 6 animal species: cat, dog, mouse, rabbit, bats and dolphins.

1. Stereo eyesight, inspired from cats: MIRO’s eyes are colour sensors similar to those used in mobile phone cameras
2. Touch sensitivity as observed in dogs: stroking MIRO’s back is one way you can engage with and alter MIRO’s emotional state
3. Light sensitivity of a mouse: MIRO can sense the difference between light and dark
4. As it is obvious from his ears, a rabbit’s sharp hearing: MIRO’s stereo microphones, can rotate 90 degrees using sound localization to detect the source of noises
5. Echolocation, making an example of animals like bats and dolphins: Miro’s nose has an effective sonar sensor that helps him navigate and pinpoint his position.
6. Cliff sensor that prevents him fall down the stairs and having him to seek medical attention.

A fun fact about Miro is that he identifies as a non-binary and he had a fiery Valentine’s dinner a couple of years ago.

CV Application of Miro:

• Works well with universities, primary schools, secondary schools, hospitals, developers, nursing homes, research labs
• Qualifications: Raspberry Pi 3B+ running a Quad-core 1.4 GHz, 1 GB RAM, and Raspbian, ROS ready, 2 720p HD cameras, 28 capacitive touch sensors, position sensors, detection sensors, 4 microphones, Mobile robot connected through BlueTooth and WiFi with an accompanying MiRoAPP, USB expansion ports
• Programming languages: Python, C++, Blocky
• Skills: 11 degrees of freedom, produce sound (i.e. scream when throwing a tantrum), lift head, pitch head, yaw head, show emotions using the LEDs on back, wag tail, turn ears, sleep, move eyelids, drive with speed 0.4m/s (that’s pretty fast dude, don’t race me), sonar in nose (so don’t come near), dance and be cool

With those kind of skills how can you not hire Miro? But yeah, jokes aside, Miro with his qualifications can move around the place and make eye contact, he even has a cliff sensor, preventing him from falling down the stairs (he learned that the hard way), he can obtain an understanding of his surroundings and interact with them, he can have a feeling of the environment and adapt a biomimetic behaviour by using his observing and thinking abilities. Finally, Miro can steal the show with his incredible hearing and speaking abilities on his attempt to communicate and express his emotions with the world.

MiroCloud: The Distance Learning Tool:

Miro is such an amazing robot to represent the field of robotics, that he was transformed into a learning tool. Consequential Robotics came together and created MiroCLOUD, a tool that enables the teaching of robotics using the MiroCODE and simulation environment. Essentially, through MiroCLOUD, you get to program and interact in Miro either in person or online from the comfort of your home through the simulation interface. This way, everyone gets to experience the joys of Miro and if you really fall in love with him, you can buy your own for a couple of thousand pounds.

Meet Our International Engineering Ambassador – Khalid Hassan

Why did you choose your course?

Ever since I was introduced to the field of sciences and engineering I was fascinated with data science and software development. I automatically knew that this is what I wanted to do when I grow up. The more I got deeper into the field the more feel more passionate about such an industry.

What have you enjoyed most about your course so far?

In my course I got introduced to many different fields in computer science and worked with several programming languages. Having experience in different fields is very important. For example, in the first semester of my third year, I did a 3d computer graphics module. I was amazed that I had a chance to explore the theory behind video games and even got to design a scene graph myself.

What do you think about Sheffield as a city?

Since I came to Sheffield I always said that it is the perfect city for a student. The university of Sheffield’s campus is just out of this world, and as an engineering student, the diamond in particular is what makes it even more special. There are various activities in the city that makes the experience really worth it. No matter what your hobbies are, or what is the thing that you spend most of the day doing, you will find it here in Sheffield.

Have you got any particular academic achievements or extra-curricular achievements you’d like to highlight?

I was a publicity officer for the Arab society in my second year and treasurer for the same society in my third year.

What are your ambitions after completing your degree?

My number one aim is to get the opportunity to work as a software engineer in a big tech company, as this goal was very far before I started my course, I feel I am getting closer to my goal.