Interests and Hobbies
Energy
There’s a direct positive correlation between energy consumption and standard of living. Access to energy like electricity is critical for basic human needs like heating, lighting, cooling, electronics, transportation, and telecommunications. Yet, astonishingly, 759 million people in the world still don’t have access to electricity with more than half in Sub-Saharan Africa. This disparity is stark: an average American (80,000 kWh) uses 2.58 times more than the average Chinese (31,051 kWh) and 194.6 times more than the average Congolese (411 kWh).
How can we provide Americans’ standard of living and energy needs to all 7.8 billion people? The world’s current energy infrastructure cannot scale to support 7 billion people without major consequences such as accelerating climate change, depleting of non-renewable resources, and overloading global energy infrastructure.
This is one of the most important problems in the world. I’m particularly interested in the research, development, and adoption of fusion energy, fission energy, solar photovoltaic (PV), next-generation batteries (solid-state, lithium-sulfur), and large-scale energy storage solutions.
Robotics
Many jobs are not suitable for humans and should not be done by humans. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that 2.3 million people die from work accidents or diseases every year. That’s over 6000 deaths every day!
There are many fatalities in high risk industries such as logging, fishing, mining, deep sea diving, and manufacturing that are preventable with the help of robotics.I want to help create a world where people look back and say: “wow, those jobs were done by people!”
I believe robots will soon become more and more like our companions that help us “get things done” in the physical world like software in the virtual world today. I’m particularly interested in modular robots, soft robots, and general autonomous robots that would allow physical manipulation of our world at scale.
Towards this vision, I’ve worked on making industrial robotics simple to use for businesses, robotic manipulator controllers and planners, swarm robotics research, autonomous vehicles and other fun robotics projects.
(Self-)Education
I have ADHD and probably mild dyslexia. I’ve had a lot of difficulties growing up in the traditional education framework. Since grade 10, I’ve been skipping classes and self-learning using techniques such as mind map (https://heptabase.com), spaced repetition (https://ankiweb.net/decks), and YouTube.
I believe education systems imposed by most governments are misaligned with individual interests (health, wealth, happiness, and freedom) and are incentivized to create obedient citizens. The SAT, Gaokao, and other entrance exams that determine many peoples’ lives are probably better measurements of how much one can take bullshit and be obedient than the capabilities of the individual. Many university programs are full of fluff and stretched out to fill in 4 years of expensive tuition. Education should be liberation, not torture.
I’m constantly learning how to learn, and I’m interested in engineering, computer science, history, physics, and psychology. I’m also researching ways to create and adopt an education system/framework teaching people to be curious, healthy, happy, and wealthy. I have some thoughts on this topic and am experimenting with ideas on how to align education systems with the interests of individuals.
Rationality
Rationality is about forming true beliefs and making better decisions. I’m grateful for Eliezer Yudkowsky’s writings on Lesswrong and his book Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality for introducing me to thinking scientifically and rationally. I’m actively learning to improve my epistemic and instrumental rationality to have a better model and understanding of the world.
Endurance/Extreme Sports
Endurance sports help me think and figure out who I am. Extreme sports help me overcome fears. I’ve run a full marathon and multiple half marathons, skydived from 13,000ft, skied through forests, and dived in oceans.
Community Building
“If You want to Walk Fast, Walk alone. But if you want to Walk far, walk together” — Ratan Tata
I’ve been building various online and in-person communities for meeting people interested in software, robotics, chess, and traveling. The few major communities I created have a combined 1200+ people.
Backpacking
I wasn’t all that interested in traveling until COVID-19 hit and I was stuck at home for 2 years. I realized my deathbed regret would be dying without visiting many places. I’ve been fortunate to have been to Canada (I’m Canadian!), China, the USA, Japan, the UK, France, the Netherlands, Korea, Italy, and Singapore. During my backpacking trip around the world in 2023, I was touched by the kindness, passion, and troubles of people of every race, nationality, and social status around the world. Humanity is truly amazing and beautiful. This year (2024), I plan to visit Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
Photography
When I was backpacking through Japan, I accidentally came across Mr. Kai Fusayoshi’s bar and photos archive called Hachimonjiya. He is in his late 70s and we had many chats about photography and his life. He’s taught me the difference between “taking pictures” and photography. Photography, as I’ve come to understand, is an evaluation of my own judgment of beauty. These days, I bring my parents’ old DSLR everywhere when I’m travelling to capture beautiful moments I see.
Talking to People
I love talking to people and hearing their thoughts and stories! If you’re interested in any of the topics above, have some objections/ideas, or want to share something with me, please don’t hesitate to comment below or send me an email! I would love to discuss with you more in more detail with my experiences.