Preamble

I did mean to blog the previous semester. I literally had a January 2023 blog post ready to go, but then I never got into it. While debating whether to code for a work project, I opened up VS Code and came back to this blog. I did miss updating this website. I was originally going to do a recap of 2022 back in 2023, but then I left this blog alone. Yikes. Anyways, I want to blog on a weekly basis for 2024. Especially since I’m almost out of the classes phase of the PhD. And also since I do creative projects on the side and tiny progress > no progress. But let me recap the past 3 semesters real quick especially before the new semester ramps up.

Apologies for no photos. I’ll add photos in the future but honestly I have not blogged in so long, I just to get SOMETHING out the door. But wow, I’ve had an amazing time so far with my graduate studies:

First Semester

  • Moved from North Carolina to Atlanta!

After completing a middle school camp counselor job and a brief vacation in Charleston, me and my family packed all of our stuff (I realized how much random stuff I have) and headed off to Atlanta! Despite the sweltering heat, I enjoyed my time with my new cohort and quickly made some friends on the basis of complaining about orientation.

  • Try for Algebra comp, didn’t pass

Eh, it was worth a shot, especially with GT’s policy.

  • Take Algebra and Analysis I.

Algebra helped me solidify concepts that my quarantined brain didn’t get as well the first time. I dreaded Analysis after a horrid experience with Baby Rudin, but I really enjoyed taking Real Analysis I with Shahaf Nitzan - her take on Lebesgue measurability was easy to follow and I learned a lot!

  • Join way too many clubs.

While I don’t remember too much from first semester in 2024, yeah, I jumped into a bunch of different academic institutions at Georgia Tech, including Humans vs Zombies, the Musician’s Network, and the CHEFS Culinary Club. I also participated in a bunch of social events courtesy of the Graduate Office.

Second Semester

  • Try for Algebra comp again and Analysis comp, didn’t pass

This time we established our semester-long tradition of going to Hattie B’s at the beginning of the semester. My spice tolerance is terrible for a Korean, but I still had a good time despite feeling uneasy about comps.

  • Do a bunch of classes.

Yeah, I got buried in coursework from Commutative Algebra, Complex Analysis, and Algebraic Topology, the latter being intensive for a student that did not know any topology outside of metric topology prior to entering GT. I’d say that class alone took half of my study time, but it was still worth it for the depth of knowledge. I still shudder when looking at anything homology or functor related.

  • Begin to attend conferences.

Attended Tech Topology Conference 2022 at GT, Joint Mathematics Meetings 2023 at Boston (I even met 3Blue1Brown!), AMS Sectional Southeastern 2023 at GT, ANYSRGMC 2023 at Syracuse, and Meeting on Applied Algebraic Geometry 2023 at GT. I still need to visit UGA (I’ve skipped out on 3 opportunities to go…)

  • Begin to learn Korean?

Since I had plans to visit Korea (at the cost of a fat 2500$ plane ticket), I spent some time practicing Korean via Korean Conversation Club and lessons at home, lessons I hope to continue in 2024, since I am nowhere near fluent yet.

Summer

Most traveling I’ve ever done this summer:

  • Visited my family and various spots across Korea, primarily Daegu. Also Seoul, Andong, Busan, Gyeongju. Ate way too much food and got my first real introduction to Korean drinking culture.
  • Traveled to Los Alamos for an internship after taking 5 days to recover from jetlag.
  • In Los Alamos, I watched Barbenheimer, visited my New Mexico friends I met at Syracuse in Albuquerque, visited my intern friend’s place of worship, camped in Colorado (3 days without a shower, never again), enjoyed some decent fireworks, found a math museum, found a board game shop, visited nearby Santa Fe, lost brutually in a tennis tournament, played some good volleyball, attended some cool local concerts, and cooked/ate some amazing food with my roommates. Oh yeah, and learned about Los Alamos’ history at the Bradbury Museum. There’s a rumor the Starbucks in Los Alamos is built on top of some nuclear ruins.

Third Semester

  • Barely make it in time to Atlanta to try for Algebra and Topology comps. Passed Algebra, failed topology.

Hattie B’s Round 2. Also met the new first-years.

  • Wane down on extracurriculars.

Given that I took on an organizational position, I had to cut down on the activities I could do this semester. I hope to rebounce now that the organizational position is over. I did go to DragonCon this year as Zenitsu from Demon Slayer!

  • Start an affair with topology.

I took knot theory and differential topology in hopes of learning if topology was for me. It’s not, but I learned a lot. Gave a new talk on the Conway knot, based off Jen Hom’s article on the same subject.

  • Travel even more!

Went to AMS Sectional Southeastern 2023 in Mobile, Alabama and CLSAC 2023 in Annapolis, Maryland. Along with local travel back to North Carolina, where I am writing this post.

Hopes for 2024

I do have a lot of different goals and dreams, but they largely take on 5 categories:

  • Math: I hope to finalize a research advisor and narrow down my research interests. This will obviously take the most time, but I hope to make enough time for the other 4 categories on this list.
  • Self-Care: Given I’m still recovering from pandemic-induced anxiety, I hope to take more time to relax so I can be more present for my friends and family.
  • Social Events: I hope to continue hosting and attending events with my friends.
  • Exercise: I hope to continue weightlifting, tennis, and running, probably more on tennis.
  • Comedy: I hope to perform more local sets. I have an ambitious goal to compile enough for an half hour at the end of the year, but I don’t want to jinx that.
  • Miscellaneous Hobbies: Not sure how I’ll fit these in, but learning Korean, practicing Java game development (I need to just program something, anything, even if it’s not directly job-applicable), and playing the piano. Not sure if I can do these, but they’d be great if I could.

Here’s to 2024.