For today, you have one activity to complete: Add a comment to this post that introduces yourself to me and the class, and answers the following questions:
- Give us some basic facts about yourself—who are you, what’s your major/minor, what do you want to be when you grow up, where are you from, etc.
- What experience do you have with technical writing? You might talk about reading or writing or collaborating on documents.
- Tell us something cool, neat, or interesting about you or your past. Give us something memorable to help get to know you.
Before you post, a couple of warnings: (1) Your classmates will see what you write, so don’t include anything intended just for me. (2) This website is public, so use your first name (or a pseudonym) only. Also, please be sure to use your vt.edu email address every time you post to the class website. Once I “approve” your first comment on the site, you will be able to post comments for the rest of the semester without waiting for me to approve them.
My name is Alpha Diallo. I am originally from Guinea, West Africa. Currently, I am attempting to receive a BS degree in Computer Science. After I graduate I hope to work as an Engineering Consultant in California.
I have little background in technical writing. My first and last time working on a technical document was fall semester of my sophomore year.
At one point I spoke three languages fluently: French, Fulani, and English.
My name is Zack Shiner, I am a Senior in Sustainable Biomaterials with a focus on Packaging science. When I “grow up” I don’t know exactly what I would like to do, however I would like to be in a position to enact positive change and have the ability to lead others to do so. In the near future I intend to go to graduate school to study environmental impacts of global supply chains. Something interesting about myself is that I once tried to qualify for jeopardy, but unfortunately I did not make it.
My name is Steven and I am a senior in Electrical Engineering. I have lived in Italy and Japan because my dad was in the navy. I do not have too much experience with technical writing other than what I have learned in English classes. I am mostly familiar with resumes and job application formats. I love playing guitar and singing. I have also taken four years of Japanese.
As it says my name is Zachery C or as we decided in class I am the Zach with an ‘h’ instead of a ‘k’. I am currently a Junior Computer Engineering student. I currently have a job at LSA Autonomy, a robotics development firm, and intend to continue working there for the foreseeable future. This company is based in Maryland which is also where I was born and raised.
As far as technical writing experience I have a fair amount of experience reading poorly written technical specs for chips and devices due to my job. Being the lowly college student they ussually task me with reading through all the documents any time we get a new toy to play with.
Well for clarification I am the Zach that was on the left side of the room. Due to my job I have been able to work on lots of cool projects over the years, from autonomous ATV’s to Pack controlled Quad copters. Thats about it, otherwise my life has been spectacularly average.
Hi, I’m Rebecca. I’m an Environmental Policy and Planning major, and when I leave Virginia Tech I hope to get a job in environmental policy and work in resource conservation efforts.
I don’t have much experience in actually producing technical writing, but have the usual experience following recipes and instructions for things.
If I had to talk about something interesting about my past it would have to be that I have lived in Germany, Russia, Armenia, and the Netherlands and only just moved back to the US for college.
my name is Keith and I am going for an Electrical Engineering Degree with a CS Minor. I grew up in Virginia Beach but currently live in Memphis. I believe I have some basic experience with technical with i gained during my coop the past 2 rotations with DuPont where i was responsible for reading and writing instructions for operators. while i am an eagle scout the most memorable thing about me is my writing disorder, dysgraphia, which runs in my family. i will try my best as i normally do to hide it in my writing but coupled with my dyslexia it is hard to do at times.
I grew up in Chesapeake, Virginia, which is about twenty-five minutes from the ocean front. I have always been fascinated by marine life so I am now studying Environmental Science with plans to pursue Marine Science after graduation. Currently I am hoping to work as an environmental consultant. My experience with technical writing includes lab reports or recipes, with the occasional scientific research article for an assignment. Throughout high school I played the piano, violin, and soccer; all of which I wish I had more time for now.
My name is Caitlin and I’m from Silver Spring, MD. I’m an Environmental Science major with a focus in Water Science and Quality. In the future I hope to work researching water remediation techniques and sustainability practices.
The most technical writing experience I’ve had would probably be with writing up lab reports or final papers from research projects. I really like to cook and bake so I’ve also read a lot of recipes, but I don’t always follow them verbatim. It’s fun to improvise sometimes.
Last semester I studied abroad in Switzerland and was able to travel to eleven different countries in the four and a half months I was in Europe. It was an amazing experience. My favorite city was probably Dublin because of the fun, boisterous, happy people. However, it’s a close call because cultures change so much across borders and nice people were everywhere.
Hi, my name is Ezra, and I am a Computer Science major with minors in Math and Geography. I am from Franklin County, Virginia, which is located near Roanoke. When I graduate, I hope to find a job in software engineering and/or systems administration. I have had some experience writing technical documents in a couple of my engineering classes, including a group report on the design, fabrication, and testing of a fully functioning model catapult. A couple of unique things about me are that I was homeschooled, and I also happen to be the oldest of eight children.
My name is Michael P, and I am from Midlothian. I am a junior studying Computer Science, and plan to go into software development.
I have some experience with Technical Writing in school by exposure to programming documentation and writing reports for engineering classes. I also work for Bon Secours Hospitals in their IS department. My position deals with coordinating and collecting Disaster Recovery Documentation. Employees send me technical write-ups of the process to recover their systems in the event of a loss of service, and I must break them down, check them for completeness, and enter them accordingly into our database. While I do not get to create much myself, I am constantly reading technical writing.
I suppose something neat about myself would be the job I held through high school. During my freshman year, one of my friends got me a job as a dishwasher at a nice Spanish (Spain, not Mexico) restaurant in my area. I liked the environment and worked pretty often, so they started giving me more responsibility bit by bit. I moved up through positions relatively quick. Before I knew it, I had a become a full-fledged chef sometime towards the end of my sophomore year. I held this job until the summer after my first year of college, when I decided it was time to branch out and look for positions in my field.
My name is Medhin Adam. I am pursuing Civil Engineering as a major and a minoring in Math. When I grow up I want to be a professional structural/environmental engineer. My experience with technical writing is more so from the observational side of reading blogs, sports journals, magazines and different types of brochures. Though I have some minor experiences writing technical papers throughout college, I look forward to learning more about this form of writing. An interesting fact about me, I was born in Ethiopia and moved to the United States at the age of ten.
Hello, my name is Nadeem. I’m a transfer student from J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College and I am studying Civil Engineering. I want to design structures and attempt to create my own engineering firm some time in the future. I’m from Richmond, but my parents are from India. Since I was growing up in a household that spoke English and Hindi, I was capable of speaking both languages. I have not really been exposed to technical writing, but I have written a paper on the Panama Canal. I also have a dog named Loki, he is a two year old Labrador/Boxer mix.
I am currently a civil engineering student. I am not sure exactly what area of civil engineering to focus on but I am leaning towards water resources. I would like to work in the areas that deal with finding newer and better technologies to clean and purify water; however environmental engineering also interests me.
I do not think I have a lot of experience with technical writing. The main thing that comes to mind is writing a lot of lab reports for previous physics and chemistry classes. I have skimmed a couple of manuals for cellphones and computers but not too in depth.
I am Peruvian, I lived in Peru until I was sixteen, so I could probably be remembered as the only Hispanic in the class. I actually didn’t notice if there were more Hispanics but based on statistics I would not be surprised if I am the only one. I am also vegetarian, and I have been so since I was 14. And as my friends say I must be a flaw in the system because apparently Hispanics are carnivores. Hopefully that is memorable enough to remember me and get to know me.
Hey ya’ll I’m Lauren! I’m a junior Chemical Engineering major, Chemistry minor, from Charleston, SC. My concentration here at Virginia Tech is in Polymer Science and my plan is to (hopefully) be hired right after graduation in some chemistry field. I have had a little bit of experience when it comes to technical writing. I was away from Blacksburg this past fall semester co-oping with Toyota in their Plastics and Computer Aided Engineering divisions. During my co-op term, I read and wrote a number of technical documents explaining my work and thought process. My main job at Toyota was determining how to most efficiently create bumpers, and instrument panels in new cars using injection molding machines and computer software. I’ve also had some exposure to technical documents in the architectural field as my dad is a builder.
When it comes to some interesting facts about myself, I would probably have to mention that during last summer, I had surgery to realign my left tibia and replace my left knee. Another fun fact, especially since it was brought up during class, is that I was a Girl Scout! Even though I was a Girl Scout for only a few years, I always make sure to buy a lot of cookies (and I’m talking about A LOT of cookies).
My name is Kayla and I am from Ashland Va. My major is Food Science and Technology. After I graduate next spring I hope to go into either food product development or sensory evaluation. The only technical writing I have done was earlier this year for a product development group. I had to write a proposal about our new product and also give a detail explanation on how to process the product. I have always loved science but before I got into Tech I considered majoring in vocal performance.
Hello! My name is Mary and I am from the Eastern Shore of Virginia! I am a Junior this year and my major is Food Science and Technology. I am a transfer student so this is my first year at Virginia Tech; however, don’t think that I am not a Hokie fan – I have been a huge Virginia Tech fan since I was about ten years old.
I have not really had to write too many technical writings in my school career so far, unless lab reports count. My technical writing experience ends with reading journal articles for reports and papers, and as mentioned in class, instruction manuals. For journal articles, some have been entirely too wordy and lengthy for me to even begin looking at and others have held my attention while keeping their professionalism.
Now, a fun fact to remember me by, I took a year off from college last school year to join a program that allowed me to travel to the beautiful country of Costa Rica and live there for eight months and learn some Spanish, but I am not nearly as fluent as I should be in the language.
Hi. yes, you creepers.
My name is Michael Choi. I’m from Yorktown, VA. I major in Computer Science and major in Leadership. I am a member of Corps of Cadet. I want to join Air Force to work for Cyber Space.
I may have read or written documents or manuals or things that are considered as technical writing or collaborating on documents.
I moved to U.S. when I was 13 and I remember I started in 6th grade. I didn’t talk to anybody until I was almost done with 7th grade. I realized that learning a language is very important and useful. So, now I am working on my 4th language.
Questions?
I’m a senior student from Korea majoring in computer science. I haven’t decided yet on what to do after I finish undergraduate. I may continue my study in graduate school or just find myself a job.
I don’t really have much experience in technical writing except writing up cover letters and my own resume. At least I can’t think of any at this time.
I don’t watch TV at all. And I hate travelling.
Hello! My name is Chylsea. I’m from the 757, but I was born in San Diego. I actually was a girl scout when I was younger. I made it to a Brownie and then I stopped because my troop leader moved ): I am majoring in Food Science & Technology. Right now, I’m interested in doing sensory work with any major food company or working for the FDA. I actually love to write so I’m hoping I enjoy this class!
My name is Wiktor, but it’s simply pronounced Victor. I’m a Electrical Engineering major primarily because I hope to one day study power and improve the power grid.
I don’t have substantial experience with technical writing, but I have wrote a few reports and personal statements.
I have lived in Virginia nearly all my life, but as my name suggests I’m not originally from the US. I was born in Poland and all my relatives live there.
Hello everyone! My name is Monica Higgins, and I am from West Chester, PA (right outside Philadelphia). I am a Consumer Studies major. I love sports, so any career, marketing, event planning, etc, with a professional sports team I would really enjoy. Also, I would really enjoy any career in event planning.
I have some experience with technical writing. I have experience with writing lab reports, cover letters, resume. Just basically any technical writing I have done in college, and later years in high school.
My favorite sport is hockey. I was able to meet Rob McClanahan, who played on the 1980 USA Olympic Hockey team. This is the game where USA beat the Soviet Union team. I got to see a private viewing of the movie “Miracle,” and wear the gold medal that the team won in 1980!
Hi, I’m Kyle Bentley. I lived in Northern VA for 5 years before moving to southern Virginia where there was absolutely nothing to do. I’m trying to get a degree in Computer Science here at VT. I’m not sure exactly what I want to do after school but I’ve always been interested in reverse engineering and cyber security stuff.
I really don’t have any experience writing technical documents, but of course I’ve read tons of them.
Couldn’t really think of anything interesting to write about myself but I have two cats that look like leopards. They are Bengals and they are bred from the Asian Leopard cat.
Hello everyone!
My name is Pat, and am currently seeking my BS in Civil Engineering. This is my second semester at Virginia Tech and am happy with my decision to transfer from Florida State University. I hope for employment opportunities in the structural field directly following my graduation, which should be in the spring of 2015.
Unfortunately, my exposure to technical writing has been limited to reading lego instructions as a child, and putting IKEA furniture together for my mom. I have not held a professional position where I have been required to complete technical writing, aside from a few required assignments in collegiate courses.
As for something personal that could spark your interest, here are a few facts about my history. My first language was Spanish. I have lived in 5 different countries and have traveled to many more. My mom is from Paraguay and my dad from Boston. As you can maybe tell, we have a cultured family history.
Hi, my name is Michelle Lee and I’m from Midlothian, VA. I am a junior in Environmental Science with a focus in Land Remediation. I enjoy everything there is to do outdoors. Some of my favorite hobbies are hiking, camping, frisbee golf, and recently I picked up snowboarding. Because I am a science major, I feel I have a good background in Technical Writing due to the chemistry and biology lab reports and following instructions to the T. Recently, I have been involved with the VT Soil Judging Team, providing a fun, educational experience outside the classroom, but it has also improved my technical writing skills. There are specific guidelines and instructions on how to correctly examine a soil profile, which is a format consistently used in my field of study. I look forward to learning more about Technical Writing and improving on current skills!