Ok so first off, please excuse this very cringe-worthy border, but I couldn't be more excited to announce that I'll be starting my very own building series!!! So essentially, every week, I'm going to be filming short tutorial like videos on building cool projects (such as a digital to analog converter, robots to help with your day-to-day activities, or even programming projects..etc.) and posting them on the "#buildwithRushi" page (on the menu). The first "episode" will be out on the 25th of April, and I'll most likely be continuing to post a new tutorial every Saturday! But it'll be very very fun!! Hope y'all enjoy it and be sure to look out for updates on the page every Saturday! I'm providing a little sneak peak of what I'll be building on this post, but I'll be explaining and demo-ing it using my Arduino UNO board on the buildwithRushi page! Check it out then!! Ok anyways, lets get back to business. Lately, I have been really interested in sound systems. Not just because I have been listening to music all day lol, but because I really really want to know what is behind a speaker, and how it converts digital bits of information (like 0s and 1s) to analog waves. Its just insane to think about how some sort of electronic system can transform bits of information to the cool sounds we heard through our headphones. How does this happen tho? It is all because of a Digital to Analog converter, or a DAC. What is a Digital to Analog Converter?A digital to analog converter is a system where a digital signal is converted to an analog signal. DACs are found in sound systems such as CD players, or sound cards (to hear your computer's audio). Audio signals are stored in digital form (MP3, for example), and a DAC converts it into an analog signal for us to hear it. Now, there was a time where we actually didn't really need a DAC. This was when the analog signals were created when the needle of the record player made contact with the record grooves. It would cause an electric analog signal, which was then transmitted to the speaker, so we could hear it. How does a DAC work?
I'll get into more details about DAC functionalities next Saturday, April 25th! Lets goo! Stay safe, stay home, contribute, and wish you happiness and peace!
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HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!! If I were put in a tough situation to choose between working in the hardware engineering industry or software, I would be inclined to say that I'm more of a hardware person. That being said, I've always loved to see the connections between both the software & hardware side of things, so it is a hard decision to make. To celebrate the importance of hardware, I've been wanting to actually explain what hardware components I collect (like RAM, motherboard, circuits, resistors, capacitors..etc.) from previous labs and assignments and explain the significance and importance of some of the most intriguing pieces! RAM (Random Access Mememory)
Ethernet Adapter
I think the coolest part of collecting these pieces is the story behind them as well as learning about what actually goes into building these complex circuits. It's just so fascinating to learn so much out of just collecting random pieces of hardware!
The Computer History Museum located in Mountain View, California, aka where most of the tech giants are nearby, was an incredible experience for me since I got a glimpse of the major progressions of computers. From the biggest IBM computers, to the smallest micro chips, computers have gone through a huge transition in order to be a useful asset. Our first stop was at the IBM 1401 Processing Unit, which is essentially a computer processing unit used a loooong time ago. The IBM computer had several separate huge components, such as the processor, the printer, and memory storage. The IBM 1403 printer takes in a specific input from the memory storage and the processor, and prints out the desired message. The memory storage consists of punch cards which are essentially cards that are punched in a specific pattern to translate to a message. However, many people thought that the cards were too much of a tedious task, and plus if they make a single mistake in punching into the wrong place, they would have to repeat the whole pattern onto another card. Therefore, tapes were being used as an alternative. Each section on the tape would store many bits, which was much more convenient compared to the punch cards. In order for the information processed by the IBM 1401 to reach the printer, the processor and printer was connected by a huge, thick wire. And I am not joking. The wire was very thick. Our second stop was the software side of things, which was super interesting because it was definitely one of the things we, as individuals living in the 21st century, can relate to. One of the signs I really liked there was the 'intro to software' sign, which talked about how amazing the play between hardware and software is. We then headed off to the telephone station where they displayed the transition of phones from a while ago in the 1980s-90s time period. I even asked my parents to see whether they remembered seeing these phones, and they told me that they had a clear memory of using these phones and how different they where from our now smart phones with touch screens. Next, we went to a crash car simulator, which uses computerized technology to simulate car crashes to get to know more about the damages in the car, and how it can be prevented in the real world. I had to take a picture with one of the dummies that was used as the driver in the car. We then saw a cool connection between the tech world and medicine by learning the development of the MRI machine, and how it scans someone's body with extreme detail. We also learned a lot about the revolution of self driving cars, and how it is soon going to be implemented in the real roads. Most of the car crashes/accidents happen because of human error, so the development of self driving cars is an excellent way to combat the the increasing rate of road crashes. Our third and last stop was the best one ever. We visited one of the oldest galleries ever, with over a 1000 artifacts represented the first 2000 years of computing. Obviously, we couldn't read every single exhibit, especially since we only had an hour left till the museum closes. But it was insane. It was unbelievable to see how computing ruled the world thousands of years ago. There were 19 galleries to visit in the exhibit, and I would say we probably only read about 5-6 galleries and understood them in depth. We just walked through the rest of the galleries since we were in a time crunch and had to go through the whole museum. So a suggestion from me would be to come back another day because the pass for the museum is good for 7 days. Or come to the museum really early, like as soon as it opens. But anyways, one of the first developments was the calculator. This gallery was probably one of my favorites. I have plenty of more to write and talk about this amazing place, but I don't want to ruin it for you. Go for yourself, and visit this museum. It is soooo fun walking through the exhibits and learning about the revolutions of these tools that we continue to use today. Good luck!
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