Electronics is not my cup of tea

Many years ago when I decided that I wanted to studying engineering in uni, it was by process of elimination. I didn't like business or commerce or accounting, I am not any good at the arts subjects, I didn't take biology or chemistry for my 'A' levels which rules out medicine and many other science faculties, and lastly I did like physics and maths. So naturally I opted for engineering. Then during the first year of engineering studies, I realised that I was always struggling during the electric circuits or electronics lab sessions. What made it worse was the technicians at the electronics lab were quite mean and sarcastic. So after my first year in engineering, given the choice of civil, electrical and mechanical, I picked mechanical engineering.

Fast forward past graduating and working a couple of years as a mechanical engineer in manufacturing, I wanted to explore something more in engineering and I found sports engineering. Sports engineering basically involves using engineering tools and concepts to analyse sports movements, optimise sports equipment so as to improve performance (reduce energy loss) or prevent injuries and design instruments to aid with coaching or to enhance spectators viewing experience of sports. So my exploration of sports engineering led me to do a research program in RMIT which has a research institute focused on sports technology. The main project I am working on requires me to design and develop a wireless sensor for measuring performance of a sports wheelchair. Unfortunately at some point, it required me to work on electronics! With help from several blogs and internet forums, a kind lab technician and research fellow, I managed to come up with a working prototype of a wireless sensor. Although it is kind of working, I am not completely satisfied with it. I thought the electronics design and the custom program I wrote could be better.

A simple circuit that took me ages...

Anyway, I reckon a real electronics design engineer would take half the amount of time I took and could probably do a better job. So electronics is not my cup of tea nor my strength but by God's grace I managed to pull together a simple solution for my problem.

The interesting thing is I got a call from a recruiter several weeks ago who had a position in a sports technology company that made wireless sensors for football players. This got me quite excited because its a sports technology company looking for a manufacturing engineer which I have the right experience. The ironic part was that the position involved troubleshooting electronic problems. Dang. But I went for the job interview anyway, not feeling very confident and I even told the company directors honestly that electronics is not my cup of tea. In the end they found someone else who is more competent in electronics. Oh well, I would have struggled if I got the job plus the timing wasn't good for me anyway; I wasn't done with my research studies.

But it doesn't end here, my supervisor had a discussion with me recently and he wanted me to be involved in this other project working on another wireless sensor that is smaller and has different measurement capabilities. This means more electronics work! The positive part of this is that this being a university project, it would be more forgiving compared to working on a commercial product. Also, it will be a good challenge for me. Maybe after this I might start to like electronics or I might become an expert in wireless sensors.

Canoeing (or kayaking) can make a difference

There is this canoeing race in South Africa called the Dusi Canoe Marathon. The race lasts for 3 days with the first day covering 45km with approximately 15km of portage (running or walking on land with the canoe), the second day covering 45km and 10km of portage and it ends on the third day with 35km of paddling. So it is a total of 125km of paddling and it is not just on calm flat water but there are sections of large rapids where you wouldn't think that an ICF standard kayak could go through but they do (although I notice the rudder they use is the kind that folds up).

But it is not just the physical demand of the race that got my attention because there are a number of canoe marathons in the world that far exceeds it in terms of distance. For example there is the VicSuper Murray Marathon in Australia that lasts 5 days and covers 404km, then there is the Regata Del Rio Negro in Argentina which is divided into 6 stages, lasts 8 days and covers 653km! 

What got my attention is that people who took part in the Dusi Marathon took the effort to make a difference in the lives of people who live along the Msunduzi (or Dusi) river. Like there is this group called the Canvas Dusi who are dedicated to the environmental health of the river. They got this name because they paddle wooden canvas canoes for the race and during the race, they take note of things like soil erosion, industrial pollution, water borne diseases, etc and subsequently come up with sustainable solutions for these problems! 

Then there is this guy Martin Dreyer who started an academy called "Change a life academy" to train youngsters from the Msunduzi Local Municipality in canoeing. This academy basically transformed the young people sitting at the banks watching the race to participating in the race, having a goal and something to be excited about, and ultimately becoming successful in the sport and winning medals. Getting them involved in canoeing definitely changed their lives!

Personally, I feel that canoeing has made a difference in my life. It has taught me to be more disciplined, focused, determined. I learned about perseverance and team work. Somehow God has also taught me through years of competing, the importance of humility; and to some extent, it is a lesson that I never stop learning.

Anyway, here's a great documentary about the Dusi Marathon:

2010 Land Rover Durban Hansa 50 Miler from D4 Productions on Vimeo.