Hello! My name is Quang Vo, and I am a Computer Science major. My summer impact project for the Summer 2019 was focused on developing novel mathematical algorithms to solve biology problems, and building a web application named TATA (Transcription Factor Association Tool for Analysis) for those findings. The web app has an intuitive user interface that not only makes the input of biological data straightforward, but also produces output data in a simple form that can be easily understood by a non-science audience.
On a weekly basis, I worked closely with Dr. Tyrus Berry, Dr. Luis Rodriguez, and Prof. Shanshan Cuito discuss the requirements for the web app, and I gained a great relationship with all of my mentors. Also, I was very fortunate to collaborate with other Biology, Math, Web Design, and Computer Science students that helped me improve my communication and teamwork skills. My long-term goal is to become a full stack developer, and TATAweb app was built using React.js(JavaScript, HTML, CSS) for front end, Plotly.js for graphing, and Django (Python) for back end. Therefore, I am very grateful for the opportunity to pursue this summer impact project with support from OSCAR, which is very beneficial for me to practice and become well-prepared for my future career after graduation.
One thing I discovered this term is what a long-term project looks like in my field, and how often the project doesn’t go as planned. Even though there were numerous times I found the project frustrating, it became more rewardable when looking at the final outcomes. Every time I hit a roadblock, I needed to adapt and find an alternative way to solve the problem. I learned more about my own work habits, learned how to manage time and improve deadline management skills. I am forever grateful to OSCAR, my mentors, and everyone else who has supported me in this summer impact project.
