1718T2 Silicon Valley/Reflection/Day2

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Day 2

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Reflections

Student Name	NASA	Stanford	Volkswagen
Adeline Jong	NASA technologies does not only just impact space but also our daily lives.The exhibition featured more aspects of our lives like improved tires from the need of creating suitable material to land on soft surface of mars, firefighter gear from adapting space suit and vacuum cleaner which was originally needed to extract sample from the moon surface. This is a reminder of how much technologies advancement can be applied beyond specialized field and leads to a greater impact than we imagine.	As mentioned during the sharing, Stanford students managed to enrol in such a prestigious school as these individuals are set apart because of their highly driven of their passion, pro-active attitude on their learning. and push themselves to the limits as supported by how the students take charge of their projects in volkswagen	We dived deeper into autonomous driving. Pathway planning was introduced. It consist of perspective where the car uses highly precised sensors to detect surroundings, control where the car decides what to do and lastly do validation.
Andrew Tay	“Space shuttle Endeavour was built using spare parts from Discovery and Atlantis”	The stanford hoover bells are only played during warm weather. So that more people can enjoy it (people will stay indoors during the cold). Furthermore, there’s only 1 person who knows how to play the bell. The bell is also played by smashing your fist onto the keys as shown in the video	Uber has served more customers than McDonalds selling Burgers. In fact, it took only uber 6 months after its’ billion customer to reach the 2 billion milestone. This visit has also been very enlightening on how autonomous driving offers not just safer roads for both drivers and pedestrians. It has also taught me what are the some of the other areas of society it is able to influence. The methodology used in their research has also been riveting such as paying for a chauffeur to represent the scenario where uber has a fleet of autonomous cars.
Benedict Wee	Kepler mission help to change our understanding of how we view planets in the galaxy which host to billions of planets which comes in astonishing diversity.	Two interesting fact I learn is that stanford hoover bells are only played during warm weather as the only person who knows how to play it only play it for the people to enjoy and “the students there are really passionate in the things they do”	“A true sustainable transportation can’t provide to 4-5% of the overall transportation but for all of it” and 2 interesting findings from their research on Uber is that “If the driver think the driver is black it is likely they will cancel on the passengers” and “Women are taken for longer trips, 1 driver in 10 will drive women for longer trips”
Claire Teo	One thing that caught my attention at NASA was the showcase of its spinoff. From bicycle helmet, to braces brackets, to smoke detectors, its shows how an innovation (NASA technologies) can be evolved in many ways. In this case, the technology benefits the humans.	Interesting how the student mentioned that everyone in Stanford has a passion. And i think this draws back to the point mentioned during facebook where it is important to grow one’s strengths/passion. Regarding this, i believe Singapore’s education system should adopt such encouragements to the students such that every individual can be developed in full capacity, in their own unique way.	Interesting to see how the company is trying to improve the systems of autonomous driving and sharing the various kind of technology that is used - e.g. how they use light to measure where are the objects and etc
Clara Chong	“The probability of success is difficult to estimate; but if we never search the chance of success is zero.” A quote from Giuseppe Cocconi and Philip Morrison’s paper ‘Searching for Interstellar Communications’ (published in September 1959) If NASA’s research was confined to what seemed practical, we probably will not have such great space advancements today!	“Everyone at Stanford is passionate about something and will be able to talk to you for hours about what they’re passionate about.” - Zhenqi, Stanford. I do think it’s important to cultivate students who truly care about something of social impact in the world, and put their learning into practice. !	“It’s hard because taking discrimination out of one area only squeezes it in another area” (in answering the question of “is VAIL working with uber to solve this discrimination issue?”) Stephen, VAIL I find this a very interesting frame to view discrimination because it’s not as clear-cut as we think, especially since discrimination come from subconscious prejudices.
Clarissa Poedjiono	“Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you are not innovating enough” In the exhibition, we got to see the different components and tools that NASA had used in the past to complete their missions. We also got to take a look at the interior of ISS spaceship. NASA strives to continue improving their technology from time to time by learning from their past mistakes and that is what makes them a company they are today.	“In Stanford, everyone knows that they want to build something.” The staff and students in Stanford kept emphasizing that their university is focused more on research than academia; it focuses more on practical knowledge than theoretical one. This is one of the reasons why students in Stanford often can make it to be leaders in their respective industry which proves that knowledge acquired from experience is oftentimes more valuable.	“Sustainable transportation takes place when the concern about environment, society, and economy is equally valued.” In this trip, the research center introduced us to the concept of ethicality of self-driving car. The question posed here is about whether self-driving car is supposed to behave as how the human will behave or how the rule regulates it to behave given a certain situation. Another concern about the current and future trend of transportation as a service is whether it is serve everyone without discrimination to a certain group of people in the society. In order to gather information about how humans behave in a certain situation on the street, the research center has developed some interesting means to collect the information of the physical and brain activities such as using fMRI and running simulation. All in all this goes to show that the research ongoing in this field is posed to many different concerns before it can successfully produce an end product that can fulfil all the criteria that in the end will successfully deliver the full performance.
Derrick Lee Ming Yang	As an individual who is always too busy yet nonetheless seek a conduit to the cosmos, this visit to NASA was indeed eye-opening. After today’s visit to the museum, I truly understand why the universe is under no obligation to make sense to anyone.	I always wondered how life would be if I were given the opportunity to study overseas. Today’s visit to Stanford showed me a whole new world of education. I was truly impressed by the architecture and facilities of Stanford University and I hope one day, I’ll be able to do a CS programme over exchange as well.	The host., Stephen, was able to bring the universe of autonomous vehicles down to us succinctly and clearly with sparkling wit. Through this session, I was able to understand the technology behind autonomous vehicles as well as the possible challenges and future problems that the lab is actively trying to solve.
Eustace Zheng	Harnessing and advancing technology and science that are quinnessential for life on earth	Everyone here at Stanford University knows what they want/want to build Everyone is deeply passionate in what they are doing	The three Es - Economy, Equity, Environmental; always look forward when developing technologies and ensuring that it remains sustainable for everyone in society kept within these three Es.
Felix Wu	It was interesting to get a snapshot into the space exploration that mankind has embarked on thus far. Cool that we have explored the stars, planets and other solar systems.	It was interesting to talk to Stanford students and what made them different. I think us Singaporeans could be more entrepreneurial and risk taking to really grow.	The biggest takeaway from the Volkswagen visit was the perspective of looking at the future of sustainable transportation via the 3 Es. Environment, Equity, Economy.
Student Name	NASA	Stanford	Volkswagen
Goh Jia Yi Timothy	Interesting exhibit to a space discovery research centre to learn more about interplanetary formations.	Very nice campus buildings and would really want to study here in the future next time!	In depth analysis and a very informative session in how sensors can be so applicable to the automobile industry.
Goh Jin Qiang	Sharing technologies that are benefiting life on earth on a commercial product	Although academic results reflects your ability in university, experience and portfolio is equally important in today’s competitive world	It's not always about creating a perfect product but rather, optimising the resources that you have.
Jacquelyn See	“I would like to be remembered as someone who was not afraid to do what she wanted to do.” - Dr. Sally Ride Visiting NASA was an eye opening experience - it was interesting to learn that Sally Ride was the first American woman to ride on Space Shuttle Challenger.	I learnt from the Stanford University students that experience is more important than grade. As hiring managers are looking for candidates who can demonstrate the ability to perform the job at hand. Therefore, it is important to gain more exposures during school days by taking up internships, doing more large scale projects. Such skill sets will be useful in the real life scenarios.	From the trip to Volkswagen Automotive Facility, I understand that the company is currently working on research - in understanding how people and machines can work and communicate with one another. One interesting fact that i learnt is, the future of the vehicles would be more about anticipating the customers’ mobility needs and the provision of mobility services which are seamlessly integrated alongside other services like entertainment, education, or shopping.
Jamie Chew	Did you know that a space shuttle tire is not much larger than a truck tire? Despite its size, weight is of extreme importance, thus tires are actually designed to conserve weight! Main takeaway? Size doesn’t matter, it’s the quality that counts.	“Everyone here in Stanford is passionate about something.” Often, many students do not know their passion and purpose in life. It is important to find something you that enjoy doing, in order to excel in it.	Creativity is needed everywhere - even researchers have to be creative with developing studies to study their problems.
Jared Sim	the Kepler spacecraft has two of its four reactions wheels fail four years into its mission -- preventing it from achieving the required precision. However, engineers figured out how to use the remaining two wheels and pressure from sunlight to achieve the precise pointing required.	the bells on top of Hoover tower are played only by one guy using only his hands. He plays them in only warmer weather for the simple reason that in the cold nobody is around to listen to his playing.	sustainable transportation encompasses not only environmental concerns but also economic and equity — transportation should be for everyone
Jeremy Bachtiar	Push yourself beyond your comfort zone and the boundaries in order for you to achieve greater heights. Just like how NASA Apollo Mission landed on the moon	Have a clear goal on what you want to do in life and find your true passion. Passion may not be a specific job title. For example who the Computer Science undergrad from Stanford mentioned that he knows that he likes to build things, thats why he decided to do Computer Science as his major.	3 things to consider when making a decision. Consider how your action affect the economy, the environment and equity.
Jolyn Yio	I was very enlightened when I went to NASA, even though the exhibition area was small, I got to see a REAL Moon Rock and learned about how space research led to the inventions of many common tech that we use today like LED.	Stanford University was very eye-opening as well. The school is very grand, with a huge chapel and very spacious. Students could study and relax comfortably. There is a stark difference compared to SMU in the areas of research and autonomy.	Lastly, the volkswagen innovation facility taught me alot about Sustainable Transport where the question, “What can I do now?” Is used very frequently, and I can even apply it to my own research and problems.
Jonathan Chew	“With SOFIA’s ability to travel almost anywhere since its a plane attached with a telescope, its versatility will ensure its value in the astronomical community”	“Depending on where your interests lie, you want to decide to go for Masters studies if you want to work in the industry or PhD if you are really passionate about a particular field”	“The problem with research is that it delves very deeply into one particular area, and not others, so this lab (Volkswagen Automotive Innovation Lab) provides a platform to combine different areas of expertise”
Moses Fam	Having visited NASA’s museum today, i find out new things about the space mission of the independent branch of the United States federal government responsible for civilian space programs. Pushing man’s limit to achieve something great is what NASA have done! They have launched the Apollo Mission landing to the moon in 1969. I guess NASA’s constant efforts to break new barriers led them to achieving greater heights.	I guess with people from a different country, we see how they are driven by different goals in life to their approach, something different from the perspective seen back home. The people from Stanford are driven by their passion and goals in life, to make a larger difference in the world, something seen within the experiences given during the short sharing. That’s what continues the drive of these people, something that is seldom seen back home. Certainly it is an important trait that entrepreneurs should possess before starting off with their ideas.	“Humans in one country behave differently from another” We cannot deny the fact that people from different parts of the world are different. Someone in the United States may behave in a certain way but not seen in another country. As such clear studies have to be conducted to make sure that the claims are true as in seen from the trends. The research that were conducted to improving the driving experience over here has been really different from what impression i had in the past.
Remy Ng	It takes a lot of gigabytes of RAM to compute calculations necessary for space travel	Studying at Stanford is not really stressful	When thinking about transport, think along the lines of equity, economy and environment and sustainability.
Student Name	NASA	Stanford	Volkswagen
Rizudin Bin Jalar	Quite impressed that NASA actually innovated a few existing health devices to help increase the percentages of survival	Am enlightened that employers only keen to see what type of projects you have completed, even though you are fresh graduate or still undergraduate student.	Quite surprised to know that for every innovative products that we make has both societal, environmental and environmental impact.
Shilpa Suresh	The experience at the Ames Research Center was very interesting and we got to take a look at a basalt rock from the moon. Contrasting it with those found on earth shows how interconnected the cosmos is. The transferability of technology can be observed in the NASA tech that was used to build devices ranging from heart decongestants to vacuum Cleaners to space shuttles.	Stanford’s sprawling campus and relaxed atmosphere juxtaposed with the highly regarded academic programmes tells us a lot about how a society’s culture can impact the way people work regardless of where they came from. The West Coast’s relaxed culture has seeped into the way students at Stanford - who come from diverse cultures - work and think about problems. Something that one of the students said provides some insight as to why Stanford has come to be one of the centers for innovation around the world - “Every little idea matters”	This experience was incredibly educational and provided a rare peek into the workings of a top-notch research lab working on autonomous vehicles. The host successfully articulated the state of research - an immensely challenging task considering the fast pace in which the field is growing with new breakthroughs coming in almost monthly. It was a great opportunity to learn about how a large research problem - “How to build an autonomous vehicle” - comes to be broken down into very small problems and are solved from the ground up. The lab’s focus on the repercussions of such disruption on society and the economy as a whole is also a very interesting way to look about any new innovation. The interesting thing to note on this topic is that the lab focuses on an empirical way of measuring projected impact and does not partake in conjecture. Seeing interesting ideas in action was very inspiring as well.
Tan Jian Hua	The trip to NASA was memorable as it showcased many different interesting exhibits.	Stanford was a really nice place to visit and I discovered a strong contrast between the universities in Singapore and in US	The visit to Volkswagen taught me more about autonomous vehicles and sustainable transportation.
Tan Ming Sheng	It all begins with a dream, many new invention such as telephone was inspire with the need of space communication.	Does grades really matter or having to experience different projects more important	What have you done if a popular demand - service offering doesn't exists yet.
Tay Wei Xuan	Thoughts/Quote: Memory foam mattresses are the result of an incredible foam developed by NASA in the 1970s to help make airline pilots’ seats more comfortable.	Thoughts/Quote: “Stanford students don’t even know how they got accepted into Stanford.”	Thoughts/Quote: It is important to consider the ethics behind autonomous vehicles as we need to know who (driver/programmer) will be responsible in the event of an accident.
Terence Yeo	NASA technology has benefited mankind in areas such as health, transportation, public safety, household, and environment.	“Skills are more valued than grades” hence we should spend more time honing skills as opposed to pursuing grades.	Transportation sustainability isn’t just about the environment. We have to consider social and economic factors.
Wong Zhe Yin, Treasa	Our visit to NASA was eye opening. The exhibits showcased various high tech innovations used by NASA for various of their missions. For example, NASA has the largest InfinitiBand network in the world. Team 1 also prepared questionnaires for all the teams to complete in order to make the visit more engaging and interesting.	The walk around Stanford University allowed us to experience how large of an area the university actually covers. The sharing session by the Stanford students also gave us an insight on how the culture works in the campus. The key takeaway that the students shared was that employers usually look at what projects students have done rather than their GPA. And how stressful campus lift can be depends on the activities taken up by the student.	The Volkswagen lab was located within Stanford and was a 20 minutes walk away from the main university campus. The sharing session about automatic cars was insightful because I leant that students have to raise their own funds to work on their projects. The conclusions made about the impacts of private car charging services on the economy was also eye opening.
Xavier See	Having visited NASA today, we saw many of the exhibits that they put up, showing how humans can push the boundaries of their imaginations to achieve the impossible. It is inspiring to see how NASA reached into the moon and other planets, to discover things that are not found on earth.	Every student at Stanford need to be well rounded and have many strengths. While studying in Singapore since primary school, we have been taught that grades and GPA means everything. However, at Stanford, the facilitators told us how students who got in were not due purely to their grades but because they are all rounded students. In face, they mentioned that once they are in, they determine how much they want to work to improve their gpa as employees look at other factors and not just gpa.	Uber does not currently have a solution to tackle racism problem, but if it does, the issue of racism can still be covered in other ways. It is interesting to see how volkswagen is working on projects such as driverless race cars. While self driving cars have often be an imagination of the past, it is cool too see how Volkswagen is in the midst of improving the driverless cars scene. The ethical issue such as trolley problem raised is also an interesting area to explore.
Zhuo Yunying (Kaelyn)	Part of Mars Exploration Programme by NASA is on the study of Marsian Surface and it is meaningful to understand how such study could give rise to other insights on the planet history, presence of water and life forms and so on.	“Everyone is really very passionate about something” differentiates Stanford students from the rest due to their sheer drive, curiosity and motivation and coming from a more conforming asian society, this particular value is what we should really reflect on.	The research on simulation driving, autonomous driving for commercial cars, race cars, solar cars and etc is mindblowing and they led to a bigger question on sustainability in the transportation and to me, the world should move towards equity and environment instead of economy in the long run.