Kushaal Singh
Hello! This is my website.
Experience
Nanoscale Design & Manufacturing Laboratory
Research AssistantDeveloped gradient descent algorithms to solve highly intractable computational problems, dealing with memory allocation, computational complexity, and real world fidelity.
Longhorn Racing Electric
Drivetrain LeadLed the design and analysis of drivetrain (motor, inverter, differential) for the electric Formula SAE team
Paradigm Robotics
Mechanical Engineering Intern - FirebotContributed to development of high-temperature robotics for firefighting applications, designing systems for 600°C environments, including thermal expansion analysis and material selection for extreme conditions.
Projects
Volumetric 3D Printing
Simulation of photopolymer curing with gradient descent optimization
Longhorn Racing Projects
(WIP) Systems design, carbon fiber halfshafts, and a novel braking packaging
American Society for Precision Engineering Student Challenge
(WIP) Controls for cutting records via Signal Analysis
Time Series Analysis Project
(WIP) Controls Project on multi-stage system for roll to roll manufacturing through ARMA model
Reading
Foucault's Pendulum - Umberto Eco
My brain is still hurting after reading this, but what a book. The middle is a slog, but the ending knocked it out of the park. Too many reviews of this book focus on the surface commentary on conspiracies, but I think it's much more important if you look at the trumpet and what that means as a symbol. I'd love to talk about this with you if you come talk to me, because I have thoughts about this book and nobody else seems to talk about it
Convertible counterpoint in the strict style - Sergeĭ Ivanovich Taneev
Uhhh, I won't pretend to have understood half of this. Recommended to me by a friend who is studying composition at a conservatory, this created a mathematical formulation for consonance and dissonance for counterpoints and broke my brain a lot. It was interesting, I think.
The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco
Absolutely amazing. I love this book so much. I can't believe it took me this long to start reading this book. The history, the theology, the final conclusion with how we search for symbols when there sometimes aren't any, all of it was great. This book, more than any book I've read before, treats you like an adult, if that makes sense. It doesn't stop to over explain, allows you to draw conclusions, presents the facts, and everything is just amazing. 10/10 a million times over
If on a Winter's Night a Traveler - Italo Calvino
What Calvino is known for, but worse than Invisible Cities imo. This was good, but not as much as hyped. Still amazing though, absolutely loved it.
T Zero - Italo Calvino
Some very fun short stories that actually inspired me to write several of my own (no, you can't see them). They were very fun, but I don't think they were his best written. Qfwfq will always be a goat name to me and I really enjoyed On the Origin of Birds.
Proslogion - Anselm
Continuing my midieval Platonist readings, read Proslogion for the famous Anselm ontological argunment for God. I've read about it many times, but never read it from the primary source, so I did and it was fun!
De reductione artium ad theologiam - Bonaventure
I was missing me some Latin, and I've never read Bonaventure, despite him coming up in context with a paper I wrote in highschool about Aquinas / University of Paris. Also medieval platonist, which I had never read before. Not sure how I feel about it
Introduction to Fourier Optics - Joseph W. Goodman
Textbook I read, thinking it would be helpful for the research project I was about to start. It ended up being unhelpful, but I still really enjoyed it!
The Death of Virgil - Hermann Broch
I was looking for something in the same realm as Memoirs of Hadrian (one of my favorite books) and came across this. Very clearly influenced by Joyce's Ulysses, but really good on it's own merit.
Leviathan - Thomas Hobbes
Recommended to me as the "most complete argument for anything." I found it very beautiful, but dense and scary. I would be scared of whoever recommends this to you.
Magic Mountain - Thomas Mann
Dense but rewarding exploration of time and western idealism through the character of Settembrini. I started with the Lowe-Porter translation and hated it, but switched to the Woods translation and found it very interesting.
Linear Algebra Done Right - Sheldon Axler
Notable for its approach to linear algebra without teaching determinants first, forcing deeper conceptual understanding. I found it very helpful for developing mathematical intuition.
The Complete Musician - Steven G. Laitz
Comprehensive music theory textbook providing formal introduction to the subject. Dense but thorough and taught me a lot. Highly recommend to anybody interested