My name is Cen Zhang and I was born in Wuhan, China. I moved to the States when I was almost six years old. After moving around quite a bit, my family and I settled in Doylestown, PA (Yes, the site in which “Signs” was filmed!)
I am currently a sophomore at Duke University and am interested in biomedical engineering and linguistics. I enjoy playing tennis, biking, the piano and also love to read and travel. My friends usually call me Cenny but I've been called Censter, Cenequa, Zen (and other equally embarrassing names).In addition to Computer Science 6, I am auditing a Chinese Politics class to gain a better perspective of my cultural background.
My earliest memory of the computer was formed by the hours I spent on it playing Tetris. I loved how universal the game was; whether it be Apple, Macintosh, Windows, or Sega and Supernintendo systems, I was guaranteed to find Tetris and ways to improve my mad block build-and-destroy skills.
Aside from researching on the Internet and using the word processor, I continue to see the computer as a main source of entertainment. With instant messengers and Kazaa, the computer has become a popular substitute for television. The increasing dependency on computers, and not just in the entertainment industry, has made me question its role in the future. Perhaps it was the AI discussions in philosophy last year. Maybe I had seen the Matrix too many times or read too many Orwellian novels. The increasing role of robotics in the medical field must also have been a contributing factor. In any case, understanding the way computers work and how they can be used to solve difficult problems will be instrumental in tackling the most challenging issues, such as how our brains work and what consciousness is. Also, a thorough understanding of how computers are programmed may prevent us from becoming completely reliant on technology. As computer scientists come up with more and more ways to solve problems using problems, we also run into the problem of creating a society weaned on technological solutions. Thus, computer science is not only important to science and technological innovation, but also to the preservation of the humanities.
The ability of computers to model the way the human body works is primarily why I am interested in programming. I am particularly interested in recent efforts to model the behavior of the brain and the implications this research has for the treatment of long-term mental diseases. I have not had programming experience but would like to learn to use computers to create accurate models of the body's vital organs and processes, which will enable us to achieve more in-depth and clearer analyses.
At the rate that computers are shrinking, it won't be long before the need for a physical processor will disappear. Already there are laptops equipped with laser keyboards and it will only be a matter of time before we become the next Tom Cruises in Minority Report, accessing computers and carrying out daily activities simply through the touch of our fingertips.
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