Algorithms to solve real life issues
When we started this course, I didn’t know what to expect. To me algorithms was some term for something that goes behind computing and gives an output, but I never really bothered exploring what it was. As class started, I feel I was quite lost. We were discussing about transistors, how they work, diagrams for logic gates, etc. and I just didn’t know any of that, and all the Science students in class seemed like they understood all of it. I thought that I wouldn’t be able to cope up with the class, but now to think of it, I think I managed pretty well.
Once our assignment was given, I think I immediately knew I wanted to work on the topic that we picked. I think the best part about a project is when the topic is a real-time issue, instead of a theoretical problem just handed to you. Having an issue that actually exists, acts as a kind of motivation for me to at least work harder. Seeing the problem before you, experiencing it and understand how many people get affected by the same often, makes you strive harder to improve the scenario, and fix the problem at hand. At the end of the day, don’t we all say, when asked about what designers do, that we solve problems? Then, what better than solve actually existing problems? I know, design is something where you can be so used to solving problems, that you find issues with solved problems and keep solving too. That is what keeps design going, and for some it’s a way of earning. Make something fancier and complex, or fancier but simpler, call it design and cash it.
But to me I think when you see a problem and the magnitude of it, how many it affects, as designers we must empathize. We must want to solve, not so that we earn or get recognition but because design isn’t a job, it’s a lifestyle, and we solve problems to ease everyone’s lives.
I think I liked working on the assignment more than I liked the theoretical bits, again because I was keen on working at the issue at hand. But as the classes progressed I realized what we were doing in class, was important to the assignment too. It broadened my view on how to go about the problem at hand, and thus helped in narrowing to a kind of conclusion that would cater to all the problems I had in mind and solve them, directly or indirectly. Through the process, we came up with wrong ideas, long ideas, ideas that maybe wouldn’t fit the best. We also took into consideration different algorithms such as Job Shop Scheduling, sorting and searching algorithms, etc. but nothing really seemed to fit. Towards the end of the class, I think we have come up with something now, but it’s still just a concept and not a mathematical expression as of yet. I think when this happened, I realized, that sometimes, depending on your problem it’s not an algorithm per say that you’re looking for that will solve the issue. Maybe what you’re looking for is to be inspired from an already existing method/process/algorithm of sorts, modify it to fit into the needs of the problem, add another few processes if required and what you have at hand, will probably work well with the problem you began with.
Collecting quantitative data has been quite a headache. Companies aren’t willing to really talk to you unless you have someone on the inside who can help you out, and as much as I do understand that they don’t want their data compromised it can be extremely annoying, if you’re doing something that you think makes for a good solution for a moderately large-scale problem, and the contributing stakeholders aren’t responsive. To some extent, I wonder if working on the traffic scenario caused by these companies itself, is corporate social responsibility? In this time and age, companies are more and more aware of the ill-effects they cause to the society, environment, etc. We hear often about how they take measures to curb all of the issues they cause, yet when someone else wants to work on something, they do not trust it, even when their data isn’t jeopardized. Makes me wonder if all the CSR activities are nothing but a sort of publicity stunt they do. Keep a day where you cycle, then go around claiming you did the environment a favour, and then use your car for the rest of the month.
I think to some extent there are still some things that I do not understand that were covered in class, but I have made attempts to understand them, and I know once I go through them another time or two, it’ll be clear to me. Mathematics hasn’t been touched since 12th got over, that’s why I probably feel a little lost and slow with certain equations and graphs that are explored in class.
I particularly enjoyed working on noting the computing speed of Linear and Binary search algorithms. It was intriguing to see how two different algorithms can give different lists when asked for a list of n number of random numbers. Even more interesting to see the difference between the computing speeds of these data sets, by different algorithms.
It was a little disappointing knowing that our final submission isn’t a fully worked upon paper, but I’m glad we can continue working on it after too. I think there have been points where I have pestered my group about something, and was adamant they see my point, and I think I owe them an apology for dealing with me. But honestly, I’m just not the kind of person who likes to leave something that I have taken up incomplete, so maybe I was being a pest regarding the same. Yet, at the end now, I’m glad we are going to be continuing to work on algorithms and our papers, and like Gaurav said, there will be conferences coming up even in the future, that we can look forward to.
