Ritisha Jhamb
Tell us about yourself!
I’m in my third year studying cognitive systems, the cognition and brain stream. This is my very first hackathon! Some of my hobbies are acting, singing, and dancing outside of school time.
How did you get into tech?
In high school, I never really did that much tech. Coming into university, I tried doing CPSC 110, and even though the course was a lot of struggle, I found it really rewarding to code. Even after hours of hard work, I still feel the progress because at least I get something out of it. So that’s how I got into COGS; I wanted to do something both biological and tech-related.
What inspired you to participate at nwHacks this year?
Every year, I say that I’ll do a hackathon but then I never actually get to do it because I feel like I’m never ready. This time, one of my friends convinced me to do it and to challenge myself.
Even though I didn’t know anything, you’re never going to feel ready until you try it.
I ended up learning more throughout the hackathon versus trying to prepare skills on my own.
What are some technologies or resources that you found useful this weekend?
Google, Stack Overflow, and Discord were really helpful. I found that the announcements [on Discord] helped keep track of everything, and I liked how much communication there was between the [organizers] and the people at the event. Having so many updates, workshops, and activities really helps people take a break. It also helped me get off my feet and take a break instead of sitting all day.
What’s a tip you might have for fellow hackers?
It’s only going to get better from here. Don’t be scared to try something new, but also be realistic about what you can do in such a limited amount of time. I’ve learned the importance of that because I felt myself getting too ahead of myself sometimes. I had to start from the basics, but also try to focus on growing skills you already have instead of always trying to learn something completely new.
Qazi Omair Ahmed
Tell us about yourself.
I’m Omair, a second year student here at UBC and I’m studying computer science and statistics. When I was in grade six, I was introduced to this popular game called Angry Birds. I was so amazed by the fact that I could just use my fingers to launch a bird in the air that I wanted to get into the development side of computer science.
Exploring that interest slowly made me realize that I want to develop solutions that solve challenges in society and are accessible to all.
What’s the biggest challenge or obstacle that you faced during nwHacks this weekend and how did you overcome it?
We found this new framework, Taipy, and we’re using it since we want to deploy a web application online, so you can access it from any device. We also want to implement React and Typescript, so Taipy was something that we were looking forward to. However, Taipy doesn’t have a lot of resources — the community is small and there isn’t much documentation. We were ahead in the first six hours, but then we started encountering issues with Taipy, such as some errors with mobile and desktop screens. We spent a lot of time on that, but we figured it out and we’re really proud. It’s a wonderful framework, and I would see myself using it in the future for other projects.
What do you think sets nwHacks apart from other hackathons that you’ve attended before?
For the first hour, I did feel very overwhelmed because it’s such a big hackathon, and there’s people from outside of Canada too — I met people from Michigan, Washington, and all parts of North America. But I would say that it was very engaging. The organizers are really friendly, there’s a lot of resources, and it’s very accessible.
Even if you don’t win, I feel like you do learn a lot.
Benny Li
Tell us about yourself!
I’m Benny, a third-year computer science student interning at SAP. This is my second degree; my first degree was in engineering. As far as hackathons go, I’ve attended nwHacks in the past and I’ve also mentored at HackCamp for the past couple of years.
How did you get into tech and computer science?
During the COVID lockdown, I discovered CS50, an introductory computer science course offered by Harvard. The challenge of coding and solving problems intrigues me, and that’s what made me switch my career to computer science.
How does your past hackathon experience contribute to your current project that you’re working on now?
Our current project is a full-stack MERN app aimed to help seniors with their requested needs. So in terms of complexity, I’ve really scaled up from the past hackathons. I feel like I’ve improved because of the hackathons I’ve attended in the past, and all of that has led to what I’m doing today. It wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t learned from my mistakes and built up my skills from past hackathons.
What drew you to nwHacks 2024?
The whole atmosphere is super nice. Seeing all the hackers out here, it creates a tech-y environment — and this is always the biggest one that UBC offers. Every year is kind of different, and I also get to learn a lot as a hacker in this atmosphere.
What’s a tip that you have for fellow hackers?
I would say to do some preparation ahead of time. Even just narrowing down a topic or the type of stack early on is super useful. Also, reach out to mentors. We all tend to be a little bit stubborn in that we always try to fix bugs ourselves, but a fresh set of eyes could help.
Why do you think it’s important to be involved within your local tech scene?
Especially with the evolution of AI and machine learning, we’re now using technology in basically everything. So I think it’s good to be updated on tech, even if you’re not a computer science student. Since I really love learning, I always want to be updated on the latest technology and to keep track of things.
Aaryan Rampal
Could you introduce yourself?
I’m a second year at UBC studying CS and Math. I’ve always been a tech person who liked computers and math, so computer science is a nice combination of those two and technology.
What brought you to nwHacks today?
I like going to hackathons because you don’t realize how much of a functioning product you can make in such a small time frame. I went to Hack the North last year, and I was happy because I’ve never made an actual app before then. So I felt that nwHacks was a great chance for me to make another project.
How did you come up with your project idea?
We wanted to make a web application where people can use their camera to scan an item, like Sony headphones, and they would find out how sustainable that product is. It would use a library to identify the product and then search how sustainable the manufacturing process is. We wanted to do something with a bit of data processing because it seems fun to try and handle that.
Adi Arora
Tell us about yourself!
I’m Adi, a third-year computer science student just interested in building stuff, and this is my first hackathon! I figured I’d attend, collaborate with other students, and explore some new technologies with other people.
How did you get into tech?
I’ve always liked building. It started with making art and legos, and as I got older, I started building through digital means. So I came to university and decided computer science was the way to go.
What’s a tip you have for your fellow hackers?
Don’t be afraid to ask your peers for help. It’s much better to get going rather than trying to keep your ego up by solving something.
You’ll learn that everyone’s super nice and willing to help.
Tell us about your team and project so far.
Our team came together because nwHacks has this great Discord page for team formation. We’re focusing on the accessibility track, trying to use one of the sponsors’ tools — Mappedin — and we’re creating a tool that allows people with disabilities to navigate the insides of buildings better. Using Mappedin, we’re creating an app to create navigation routes within buildings so someone with a wheelchair can find a route with the most ramps and elevators available. For visually impaired people, they can get text-to-speech directions.
Do you see yourself doing another hackathon in the future?
For sure. This has been a good first experience and I’m only halfway in, but I’m definitely going to do another one.
Stuart Chen
Tell us about yourself.
I’m Stuart, and I’m from Calgary, but I study here at UBC Vancouver. This is my second hackathon, and I’m here to just enjoy it. I would consider myself more of a beginner in coding projects, so I’m just trying to build something fun and interesting.
Do you have a project idea yet?
We’re working on a project where we’re trying to generate Spotify playlists based on key attributes of a League of Legends character. We’re going to implement some ChatGPT to generate playlist suggestions, making sure that it gives you something good that you would listen to.
How did you come up with the project idea?
My friend recently hit Masters in League, which is quite a big achievement. I’m pretty into music myself, and I dabble in music creation with Logic Pro and playing the piano. I thought it was just a fun idea — everyone posts things like their Spotify Wrapped on their Instagram stories, so this is something that I bet people would be interested in trying.
What’s a tip you have for your fellow hackers?
Last year, I put too much pressure on myself to make something serious, and it ended up imploding and we lost all motivation by the end of the first day. Make use of the resources that are here, like workshops and activities, and have a good time because that’s when you’ll have more motivation to do what you want to do.
Joshua Wu
Instagram: @j_wu7
Github: https://github.com/JoshuaWu7
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wu-joshua/
Tell us about yourself!
I’m Joshua, a third-year computer engineering student at UBC. This is my first hackathon in person, and I’m really excited about it.
What made you want to participate in nwHacks?
It’s at my home university, so I had to support that. nwHacks also gives people a lot of opportunities to pursue some of their projects that they want to work on and the skills that they want to develop. It’s an amazing opportunity for everyone to meet each other, and find similarly-minded people to work together on amazing projects.
How did you come up with your project idea?
I looked at the nwHacks webpage and found that I resonated more with the healthcare track of the hackathon. My team and I decided to build a prescription tracker that keeps track of drug prescriptions, the quantity of the drug, and instructions on how to use it and then sends information back to the user. The user will get push notifications to notify them when they should take the drug and how to use it. We’re using 1Password to authenticate our users, and I found that the tools they have are very seamless and easy to learn.
What has been the best part of this hackathon so far?
Getting to meet new people, and seeing familiar faces and their projects makes me super excited.
Also, the aspect of helping each other — everyone is very kind and open to sharing their information and knowledge on their skill sets and tools.
William Ko
Instagram: @lordofsabres
Tell us about yourself.
I’m William, a second year studying cognitive systems in the cognition and brain stream. I’ve been doing tech for quite a bit, since my sophomore year of high school. My dad’s really into it, and I’ve been trying to follow in his footsteps. He does a lot more technical stuff, but I’ve just been embracing the creative side of project-making.
The main reason I got into tech was to create projects that would make people happy.
I used to make mini-games for my friends and I always enjoyed it when they played it and sent me feedback.
What would you recommend to beginners who are trying to get into tech?
It depends on what they’re interested in the first place. For me, code.org was a really good start. I also started with Scratch and block coding, and W3Schools has also been very helpful with their documentation and demos.
What’s a tip for a fellow hacker who might be going to their first hackathon?
Don’t give up. If you get stuck on something, take a breath and just cool off.
Try to think about it from a different angle, even if you’re struggling with it and worried you won’t finish the project. This is meant to be fun — a place for you to not only push yourself but also meet new people.
Kevin Thomas
Instagram: @kevinjosethomas
Github: https://github.com/kevinjosethomas
Tell us about yourself.
I’m a student at Burnaby South Secondary. I started coding about 4 years ago, and I do a lot of development. It’s been a long journey since I started coding in grade seven. When I was in grade nine, I did my first online hackathon at the University of Windsor, which I surprisingly won. This is my first in-person hackathon.
How has your first in-person hackathon experience differed from online?
This is amazing because here I can meet new people and network. It goes a lot beyond the actual hacking process, versus the first few online hackathons I did where I worked by myself in my room for 24 hours straight. There are 700 people here — seeing so many people in university smarter than me bouncing ideas off each other and coding is inspiring. There’s a lot to learn and I think it’s way better than any online hackathon I’ve ever done.
Do you prefer working alone or in a team at a hackathon?
I prefer working in a team because I usually like to prove that something can be done — like a proof of concept. If I’m doing a long-term project, I need to establish a team because it’s not possible for me to cover everything by myself. In a hackathon like this, with 700 people, it’s impossible to compete by yourself because you’re competing with other teams of four that can do so much more than just yourself. At the same time, working alone gives you more control over what you make, so it’s up to you.
What is your favourite part of a hackathon?
The fact that you have to power through. The best part is when you reach your end, and then you push and keep going until you do more than you thought you could.
It’s about pushing your boundaries to do more than you thought was possible, and once the hackathon ends, you get that sense of relief.
Any tips for fellow hackers?
Just do it. You don’t lose anything if you go there and do something. Just go to the first one, and spend the entire 24 hours hacking giving your 100% effort. Take the first opportunity you get and then make sure you do the best you can.
Special thanks to these participants for sharing their hackathon experiences. We love hearing from everyone involved in making nwHacks a huge success — we couldn’t do it without you! Although we are proud to celebrate all the hackers that attend our events, we recognize that the individuals reflected in this compilation of spotlights are not an accurate representation of the gender diversity that attends our hackathons. We are actively working towards reshaping the way we conduct hacker spotlights (as previously they were conducted on an opt-in volunteer basis) to better reflect the diversity of hackers that participate in our events.
Don’t forget to check out the other Community Spotlight from nwHacks 2023: Mentors & Sponsors!
Stay tuned to hear more from the nwPlus Community 👋
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Written by Jennifer Shui, Content Writer
Edited by Victoria Lim, Marketing Director
