Re: What do you study / have studied
FastMHz, Tue Mar 21 2006, 10:52PM

I'm a software developer, 100% self taught. All my electronics knowledge is self taught as well...lots of sparks, trial and error, etc

Re: What do you study / have studied
HV Enthusiast, Tue Mar 21 2006, 11:00PM

i've studied abroad . . . several times . . .

Re: What do you study / have studied
Hazmatt_(The Underdog), Tue Mar 21 2006, 11:32PM

Self taught electronics until a few years ago when I got to college. I am finishing up my EE degree, and hope to get my math degree for non math majors as well.

Right now I am studying:

EE430 transistor circuits (semiconductor application)
EE382 Communications systems (Fourier transform)
EE400 Design (calculating power requirements for electric offroad rock climber)

Re: What do you study / have studied
Dr. Drone, Wed Mar 22 2006, 12:02AM

Re: What do you study / have studied
Steve Conner, Wed Mar 22 2006, 12:25AM

Wow, intrusion detection and analysis, sounds el1te

I have a joint degree in electrical and mechanical engineering and a PhD in mechanical engineering, both from Strathclyde University in Scotland. My current job involves writing a lot of code for DSP chips as well as ordinary uCs.

I find coding and software development pretty difficult, I never had much formal training in it except for a few classes in C programming and some FORTRAN. I remember the C guys told us that you can make an array of pointers and do arithmetic with them, but they never told us why in hell you would want to do that.

It wasn't till I tried writing a menu-driven user interface in assembler, and when I had got it to work I looked back on it and realised that I was in fact doing arithmetic with arrays of pointers to decide what strings to print on the screen. In that forehead slapping moment I almost realised what the * and & operators in C are good for, but then I forgot again

I think that sums up what I find most mind bending about it. But software and firmware is obviously where the money is nowadays...

Re: What do you study / have studied
Desmogod, Wed Mar 22 2006, 12:45AM

Self taught IT professional since I was about 6 (Well, bit of an over(Under?)statement)
Currently working at Murdoch Uni in western Australia, studying Physics and Nanotech, as an Undergrad :( MANY years to go....

Re: What do you study / have studied
EEYORE, Wed Mar 22 2006, 12:56AM

Electronics self taught since i was little...Diving into electrical engineering at Florida State University.Minors in History, Classics...Later minors in math, physics, and physcology...

Upon graduation, i intend to specialize in power management/alternative energy sources sorta deal...

Matt

Re: What do you study / have studied
GODSFUSION, Wed Mar 22 2006, 01:05AM

i am currently atending Mount Wachusette Community Cole for electrican technician. MIT told me that id have a better chance of transferring if i went to a two year and transferred. So that what im doing.

- Wayne -

Re: What do you study / have studied
Simon, Wed Mar 22 2006, 02:26AM

Right now I'm doing a great big load of maths and physics. I'm currently focusing on signal processing and spectral analysis sort of stuff - digital and analogue.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Ben, Wed Mar 22 2006, 06:06AM

B.S. 's aerospace engineering and physics. Most of a M.S. in aerospace.

Right now though, I do analysis. Which means "critical thinking" and then developing models and writing algorithms. Most recently, I've had to learn how to use the STL in C++. Per run times were forecasted to get into the month range so....perl and a crazy ada based scripting language just weren't cutting it.

Steve, I finally understand the point of declaring as a reference in a function call....wait till you get to the joys of "generic programming"

When I go back to school it will be for a PhD in physics.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Jrz126, Wed Mar 22 2006, 12:13PM

Wow, quite a few smart people on this board...I wish I was one of em...
Electrical engineering here...and a double major in computer engineering just to make things interesting.
Right now I'm catching up on some Gen eds that I passed by my first time through, its quite boring.

I also have an internship at GE Transportation Systems, which has been a very valuable learning experience. I'd done some work with the IGBTs which are used to drive the traction motors (converting 600VDC to 3 phase AC). I'd love to get my hands on some of them. 1400V and atleast 600Amps. Then there are the caps...2000uF at 2000VDC, about the size of a small suitcase...Anyone up for stealing a locomotive?

Re: What do you study / have studied
Steve Conner, Wed Mar 22 2006, 01:40PM

Me, me! I always wanted one, but being realistic, it's hard enough finding a parking space on our block

Re: What do you study / have studied
Madgyver, Wed Mar 22 2006, 02:43PM

I am studying something called "Diplom Ingeneur ind Mechatronik und informationswissenschaften" which basicly is a Master degree in robotics, automatisation and animatronics.

Does the word mechatronic exist in english? I can only find references inform of "english sounding" german companys and university departments.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Steve Conner, Wed Mar 22 2006, 03:18PM

Yes, it does. I remember having a Mechatronics class in my final year.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Sebastian, Wed Mar 22 2006, 04:02PM

Got my BS in computer science and working on my MS in mechanical engineering which I find way more satisfying that computer science.

Besides that I am working as a system administaror for the mechanical engineering department of our university and as a technical writer for a company that makes digital recievers.

Re: What do you study / have studied
AndrewM, Wed Mar 22 2006, 05:02PM

Finishing BS's in Applied PHysics and Aeronautical Engineering in a month or so.

Right now I'm on:

AAE450 - Spcecraft design
AAE421 - Aircraft dynamics
AAE364L - Controls lab
PHYS 450L - Optics Lab

and, how can we forget:
PSY120
POL101

Heehee

Re: What do you study / have studied
Avalanche, Wed Mar 22 2006, 05:52PM

Studying for a degree in Software Engineering. I'm in my final semester of my final year, so kind of busy at the moment - all assignments and my dissertation have to be handed in in less than 6 weeks

At the moment my modules include - realtime systems, network design, distributed applications (web services), multimedia, and user interface design.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Bored Chemist, Wed Mar 22 2006, 06:06PM

Some of you might be shocked to learn that I studied chemistry (with pharmacology).

Re: What do you study / have studied
Adam Horden, Wed Mar 22 2006, 08:31PM

Hi,

I did my City and Guilds 2240 in electronics service and repair. I specalised in TV reception. Took me 4 years to complete it then decided that service and repair of electronic equipment was not me. I was working at the same time as studying for that.

I then decieded I wanted to work in design and looked at doing my degree. I decided to do a BTEC ONC electronic and electrical with units in:

Electronics - Analouge
Electronics- Digital
Electrical applications (motor control etc)
Electronic CAD (computer simulations)
Electronic test and measure (use of scope etc)
Maths (Engineering maths introduction)
Furthur Math (Matrices, More calculs, More trig, Sats etc)
Science
Principles

I am on my second year and I get the results in september.

The first year I passed with distictions will allow me to get into uni. I have to average a disitction this year to get into uni but they gave me a condition offer and a placement for september. I have been accepted to study my masters degree in electrical / electronic engineering. I start in september.

I currently work as a medical electronics technition. I get to play with cool equipment but its not really indepth electronics.

Adam

Re: What do you study / have studied
Coyote Wilde, Wed Mar 22 2006, 09:21PM

I'll be studying Physics at the University of Waterloo (Canada) come september.
At the moment... self-taught very little in many subjects.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Alfons, Wed Mar 22 2006, 10:26PM

I'll be studying Physics at the University of Waterloo (Canada) come september.

lol; didn't know that there was a Waterloo in Canada. There's a Waterloo in Belgium too (it's where Napoleon was defeated in 1815)

Re: What do you study / have studied
Desmogod, Thu Mar 23 2006, 12:33AM


OMFG! What I would give for that course to be available here :(

Re: What do you study / have studied
Carbon_Rod, Thu Mar 23 2006, 12:53AM

Hmmm, IIRC my studies in general involved computer science (discreet mathematics etc. ), physics (fun math), and physical chemistry (more math.) Accumulated various bits of paper over the years too.

I would say most practical things I have learned from work and independent related research. In retrospect I think I should have taken more business and contract law – it could have saved having to learn some expensive lessons the hard way.

Ben, it takes some real guts to go for a Physics masters. Are you thinking about any specific research areas or teaching? A friend of mine did his a few years back with honours – a very disciplined individual indeed.

Re: What do you study / have studied
Omicron, Thu Mar 23 2006, 02:37AM

All self taught: chemistry, electronics, physics, quantum physics, biology, pyrotechnics, first aid, rocks and minerals, refrigeration, duct working, engineering, radiology and carpentry. If I forgot any thing I will update.
All I do is ask the graduates for their text books, they give them to me, I read the books and do all assignments. Any body else do that?

Re: What do you study / have studied
GimpyJoe, Thu Mar 23 2006, 02:53AM

Sort of. I got some welding textbooks from the library and learned to weld that way. My education so far is nothing special. Just a high school sophomore with no option of taking vocational courses or anything, so I'm self-taught. Well, I guess self-taught isn't the right word, since I don't really know that much... But I keep trying

Re: What do you study / have studied
Omicron, Thu Mar 23 2006, 03:01AM

I know welding and metal work too. I am an all around type of guy.

Re: What do you study / have studied
ragnar, Thu Mar 23 2006, 05:58AM

jack of all trades, king of none... ^^ hehe

I won't list my subjects here, because A) the Australian education system doesn't carry much international merit, and B) you wouldn't believe me =-)

Re: What do you study / have studied
Simon, Thu Mar 23 2006, 09:03AM

At my uni there's a nice science/engineering library that's all I'll need. I mean, where your typical library might have a few books on hobbyist electronics, this one has a shelf devoted to semiconductor switches.

I saw a book called "Lizard Social Behaviour" there today. That's not something I've ever thought much about.

Re: What do you study / have studied
GODSFUSION, Thu Mar 23 2006, 09:05AM



Of course i could never buy any of the books for myself!

- Wayne -

Re: What do you study / have studied
GimpyJoe, Thu Mar 23 2006, 01:39PM


Why not!?

Re: What do you study / have studied
Ben, Thu Mar 23 2006, 05:16PM


I haven't decided, which is why I haven't gone back yet. I need to do it soon, before I get too old.



It's not as much fun as it sounds like. My "favorite" subject from that course was "parametric cost modeling". It told us that our design would cost $10 billion. (which is kinda reasonable since it was an interplanetary space transportation system)

Re: What do you study / have studied
AndrewM, Fri Mar 24 2006, 01:06AM

It's not as much fun as it sounds like. My "favorite" subject from that course was "parametric cost modeling". It told us that our design would cost $10 billion. (which is kinda reasonable since it was an interplanetary space transportation system)

Ours just hit $130 billion. We're doing a lunar mission, with the ridiculous requirement of using a nuclear rocket for the transfer stages. So far we've outlined like 5 heavy lift vehicled larger than Saturn 5's, and about 10 other required vehicles for the mission.

I actually hate the class. Theres a whole lot of handwaving going on, and while some people are fine with that, and continually impressed with their own ability to make plots that have no true data in them, I'm not so thrilled. I'm tired of fighting with engineers who found a single AIAA or NASA paper detailing, for example, a 3W tank cooler for cryo propellant storage. 3W isn't enough to keep our tank cooled, and they insist that we cannot scale the cooler, or add another one, because 'they just don't work like that'. Their solution is to shrink the tank volume, and add more tanks until 3W is justified. ::sigh::