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University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Computer

Science

Engineering

Create the world of tomorrow… TODAY

Tavleen Kaur 11/17/2013

There are only 10 different

kinds of people in the world:

those who know binary and

those who don't.

D i s c i p l i n a r y L i t e r a c y R e p o r t

Page 1

Contents: .................................................................................................... 1

Acknowledgement ..................................................................................... 1

Computer Science: An Overview .............................................................. 1

Dr. Nitin Agarwal: ..................................................................................... 1

Associate Professor (UALR) ................................................................ 1

Samer Al-Khateeb ..................................................................................... 1

Graduate Student (UALR) ................................................................... 1

Srinikhil Gupta Gourisetti ......................................................................... 1

Professional (WELSPUN).................................................................... 1

Reflection................................................................................................... 1

Citations: .................................................................................................... 1

Contents:

When people think about computer

science, they imagine people with pocket

protectors and thick glasses who code all

night.

-Marissa Mayer

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I express my deep sense of sincere gratitude to Mrs. Jessica Jacobs,

Composition Instructor, Dept. of Rhetoric and Writing, for her valuable

guidance and persistent help in the completion of this report.

I am also thankful to Dr. Nitin Agarwal, Associate professor, Dept.

of Information Science, to Mr. Samer Al-Khateeb, student, University of

Arkansas at Little Rock and Mr. Srinikhil Gupta Gourisetti, employee at

Welspun. It is their contribution that made the content of this report

possible.

To my classmates, I extend my appreciation for their constructive

criticism and emotional support.

At last, my thanks to the institution, friends and family, without

their support this report would have been a distant reality.

Acknowledgement

Computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about

telescopes.

-Edsger Dijkstra

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Computer Science Engineering is the

discipline that integrates several fields of

electrical, electronics and computer science

required to develop computer software and

hardware. This branch of engineering is the

key for interfacing, the basis for

programming in embedded circuits. In layman terms, Computer Science

Engineering is the control unit for all electronic devices. Programming

has become the backbone in this hi-tech society, so is computer science

an integral part in day to day life.

A Computer programmer generally tries to update and develop

new software which plays an important role in the development of

systems in other field of engineering. They have training in electronic

engineering, software design, hardware-software integration.

Computer science engineers have their windows open for further

research and development in the field of face recognition, human-speech

recognition and of course, communication systems and artificial

intelligence.

According to the recent scenario and survey, Computer Engineers

are highly paid. Graduates of this field get recruited with a starting

salary of around $60,000 and mid-career pay of $100,000 per annum.

Computer Science: An Overview

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The field is very demanding as it supports almost all other fields

which include not only engineering field but also accounting, business,

fashion and even movies.

Failures are the stepping stones to success.

“Be patient, and keep trying. There will be more

failures than success, don’t be deterred. Failures

bring you closer to success,” said Dr. Nitin

Agarwal, B.Tech, PhD, from Arizona State

University, Associate Professor at University of

Arkansas at Little Rock.

His thirst for knowledge and personal growth brought him to the

USA from India. “As an undergraduate I wanted to learn more; but the

lack of resources, and faculty, hindered my passion for knowledge. I was

interested in data mining, and data bases, basic

computer science and data oriented concepts, USA

had better opportunities, so I came here.”

Recognized as one of “The New Influentials:

20 In Their 20s” by Arkansas Business for being

among creative and talented individuals who have

Dr. Nitin Agarwal:

Associate Professor (UALR)

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found early success in their profession, he also shows keen interest in

Social Computing, and has a number of journals and

publications in this field. He is also known for his

authoring of a number of books in fields of Data Mining,

two of which are:

Social Computing in Blogosphere: Challenges,

Methodologies, and Opportunities

Modeling and Data Mining in Blogosphere

Part of his research is funded by the National Science

Foundation and US Office of Naval Research. He has

the Best Paper Award for Context Based Privacy Model.

Dr. Agarwal believes that if one wants to explore in research then

Industry is not suitable, rather than doing what is being told you do not

have flexibility. The exploration facet attracted him more, which helped

him choose this career path and become a professor, “In universities,

you are sort of your own boss – leading your own research group. So,

you have to be extra-motivated, eventually you end up spending your

time and energy in something you like to do, your hobby has turned into

your profession. At the end of the day, even if you are exhausted, the

kind of exhaustion you feel is good exhaustion, plus you are not stressful

all the time.” He continues, “It is also very rewarding to see the students

you molded grow successful.”

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Apart from research, writing papers,

and of course teaching, Dr. Agarwal likes

gardening. “I try to balance my lifestyle. I

especially like gardening, which I believe, is

an interesting way to see nature up-close. I also go to the gym, play

racquet ball. Hiking and trekking adds up to the list as well. I also like

listening to modern Hindi songs.” He believes that one needs to be

careful to not miss out several aspects of life. There could be sometimes

when days could get so busy that there is no time to even glance out of

the window. So, it is important to go out, enjoy time with friends, and

meet with colleagues. He also shares a beautiful bonding with his

students, and is an amiable person.

“You are very young,” he advises me. “Be very open minded, try

as many things as you can, you can always blame it to your immaturity,

but at later stages you have nothing to

blame but yourself.” He continues, “So,

be very open to trying new things and

don’t be afraid to make wrong

decisions.”

Dr. Agarwal is a really good

advisor. His patience and positive

attitude is something I really liked. Throughout the interview, I found

him so confident. His vast knowledge in computer science enabled me

Be very open to trying new

things and don’t be afraid

to make wrong decisions.

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to think about the fields I can specialize. I was not sure about my future

goal. Looking at his research works, I find computer science can be

integrated with the other branches of studies. I realized how broad the

field is.

Getting to know him was a great experience. Whatever I thought

and believed before choosing this field, I heard him say them aloud. I

always wanted to pursue a career in academia, and he seemed to be just

the right person to talk to. The reasons he gave were very strong, and

sufficient to convince me that the decision I made is not wrong.

Samer Al-Khateeb, aged 24,

is a graduate student in University

of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Initially, an exchange student at

UALR from Iran, who decided to

transfer to UALR to complete his bachelors, and then continued to

pursue his masters.

“I chose UALR because it has a good reputation and affordable

tuitions and fees,” He said, “I also finished my undergraduate degree

here so I already knew how things work around in the college, also

Samer Al-Khateeb

Graduate Student (UALR)

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many professors here know me so I decided to finish my graduate

studies here.”

How often do you find yourself saying, “In a

minute”, “I’ll get to it” or “Tomorrow’s good

enough” and every other possible excuse in the

book? Samer manages his personal and study time

in a very interesting way. "By using a white board

that I have at home,” he said, “I write on it, all

what I need to do for the whole week, and when I

plan to do it. It always worked for me. Also I do not have to worry about

forgetting, all I need to do is to erase everything I did every day and

update new stuff which takes about two minutes.”

He believes that the purpose of getting a graduate level degree is to

obtain more information and experience that one

did not get during their undergraduate study. It is

good to increase ones salary and have more job

opportunities. Also the best part of this field is

that one can find job in many places and fit in

many fields.

Most companies collect data for long time

and would want someone to take care of these data somehow. For

example, by designing a new physical database, or take care of the

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security of these data, or create an

application to operate on these data or

discover new facts from these data to help

make better decision.

Initially his major was Systems

Engineering. After he finished his English requirements at IELP

(Intensive English Language Program) he got great help from the faculty

of Department of Computer Science. “They are such a great and helpful

people,” Samer said. “I was so eager to learn programming, web design

and databases than dealing with Systems Engineering theories. So I

decided to change my major to Computer Science, with minor in

Systems Engineering.”

According to Samer, it is always good to plan ahead. To have a

clear vision of what one wants from life, to try and achieve them so that

later on they won’t have to regret. It is always good to have a focus as

early as possible.

Samer seemed to be a man of

techniques. A person, who manages time

well, knows his stuff and is sincere about

his studies. After talking to him I got to

know that graduate studies not only help us

learn in depth about the courses, but also

Erase everything I did

every day and update new

stuff which takes about

two minutes.

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enhances job opportunities. And the advice that he gave warned me to

not delay my planning and set my goals well ahead of time, so that I

know what I want to do and find a way to approach it.

Srinikhil Gupta Gourisetti,

aged 23, presently an employee of

Welspun, completed his

undergraduate and graduate in

Engineering from UALR.

Srinikhil was an exchange student

from India to UALR, he completed his bachelor’s degree and then

joined masters program under full scholarship. He graduated in spring

2013, and joined Welspun this July.

Srinikhil is specialized in systems engineering, and has a lot of

experience in research. He had around six papers published in IEEE

during both his undergraduate and graduate studies. IEEE stands for

Institution of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, which is one of the

reputable organizations for engineers. He is currently a supervisor in the

company. “Industrial experience is something beyond the theoretical

concepts.” He said, “It allows me to explore the horizons of Industry.”

Srinikhil Gupta Gourisetti

Professional (WELSPUN)

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“Initially I was interested in

Biology. I was good at it. Then somehow

I developed a liking for Mathematics.

Maybe I found it more challenging and

opted engineering as a career,” said

Srinikhil. His days are usually very busy.

He has to work both during the day and

night shifts alternatively. This job of his involves manual labor, where

he actually has to work on the development procedure. Building and

scrutinizing the construction of the structures forms an integral part. He

said sometimes it becomes very hectic, but at the end of the day he feels

great that he learnt something new.

Srinikhil is a very hardworking person; perfection is what he likes

the most. He makes it a point that he

devotes himself completely in his work.

Learning is a never ending process for

him. He likes the education system of

the US, as it allows a student to explore

beyond the boundary. He thinks

everyone should grasp every opportunity

in their way, someday it will definitely help. Engineering students need

to explore things around them, learning should not stop.

You are your own master.

Parents, relatives, friends,

colleagues can only be your

advisors; they should not be

your decision maker.

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During his leisure time, Srinikhil enjoys playing computer games,

watching animations and of course reading lot of novels. “I am bachelor!

I am all by myself. No worries about family for now!” smiled Srinikhil,

expressing his relief.

His positive motivation will be a real booster for all of us. He said,

“You are your own master. Parents, relatives, friends, colleagues can

only be your advisors; they should not be your decision maker. Enjoy

your work to the fullest.” He emphasized on always looking up for

improvement. “Use your brain and follow your heart,” he advised to all

the upcoming students.

I am not sure if I am ready to explore the challenges that Industry

has to offer yet. He was motivating and after talking to him I could

decide even better for my future goals. It seemed that academia has a lot

more learning scope than industry, I know now that academia is what

where my heart lies.

Being an introverted person, I

always hesitate to start a

conversation. I will always end up

stammering in front of the

Reflection

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individual. When I got this assignment to interview people, I went all

blank. I could not decide where to begin. In fact, scheduling an

appointment was such a tough job for me. Somehow I scheduled my first

interview.

The D-Day arrived and I went to interview

Dr. Nitin Agarwal, Associate professor,

Information Science. With mind full of hesitation, I

somehow greeted him and began interviewing. My

hesitation vanishing instantly I went on asking all I

wanted to know. It was a big achievement for me. I

felt more confident. Interviewing Samer and

Srinikhil had become a lot easier for me. This assignment encouraged

me to start conversation and share thoughts.

Samer Al-Khateeb is a very dedicated student. I really liked his

maintaining of a whiteboard, where his weekly schedule is planned. I

think every student needs to understand time management and task

accomplishment. Srinikhil overall introduced me to the professional

world. The real time scenario is the amalgamation of all your school

learning. Practical implementation is always challenging.

I wanted to be a Mechanical Engineer, but my father being a

mechanical engineer himself, disagreed and insisted that I go for

Computer Science. He believed that the manual labor required in

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mechanical engineering is inappropriate for his daughter. So, I

remember being very nervous and scared on the first day of my

freshman year, attending the very first class, Programming in C, of

Computer Science department. I had never done any coding before,

unaware of even the “p” of programming. The first few days were very

tough, but eventually it became my passion. I used to look forward for

programming classes, I started to score well, and understand the basics

better.

This is how I grew more interested to explore new areas in this

field. With time, I began to study the opportunities that Computer

Science provided. I learnt that there is a very vast scope of different

computer related subjects. Database management, Computer

Networking, Web-development are some other areas that are interesting.

It is not necessary to be a very good programmer to excel or make a

career in this field. The only thing matter is that you put your mind into

it.

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http://ualr.edu/nxagarwal/Homepage/Home.html

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2013/091713-computer-

science-major-earning-potential-273915.html

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/time-passing

http://www.beloit.edu/computerscience/

Citations: