Your Bio

I'm a graduate student at UMass Amherst where I'm working on my PhD in nanoscale computer architecture. In my spare time, I play board games, run science fiction conventions, train at karate, and take photographs. I'm new at taking photography seriously, but I'm striving to improve my skills.

Galleries

Karate BBQ, Spring 2009 : Toward the end of spring 2009, the UMass Shotokan Karate Club had a party.

Karate BBQ, Spring 2009

Toward the end of spring 2009, the UMass Shotokan Karate Club had a pa ...

Updated: May 25, 2009 4:46pm PST

Miscellaneous : Photos that don't have anywhere else to go

Miscellaneous

Photos that don't have anywhere else to go

Updated: May 25, 2009 4:30pm PST

Karate Exam, Spring 2009 : The UMass Shotokan Karate Club hosted a kyu exam at the end of the Spring 2009 semester

Karate Exam, Spring 2009

The UMass Shotokan Karate Club hosted a kyu exam at the end of the Spr ...

Updated: May 25, 2009 4:24pm PST

Deja Brew Concert : Deja Brew is a band my friend Scott Borecki played in. He was the lead man. They stopped playing at the end of the Spring 2009 semester, but I caught one show at Seven-O's across the street from my apartment in Squire Village.

Deja Brew Concert

Deja Brew is a band my friend Scott Borecki played in. He was the lead ...

Updated: May 06, 2009 7:44pm PST

New England Webcomics Weekend 2009 : Initially expected to be a little gathering of mostly webcomics artists, this turned into a much bigger event and attendees had to be turned away. I snapped a few shots of the Cintiq demo, plus a couple of shots in the main hall.

New England Webcomics Weekend 2009

Initially expected to be a little gathering of mostly webcomics artist ...

Updated: Apr 09, 2009 12:13pm PST

Portraits : Miscellaneous portraits

Portraits

Miscellaneous portraits

Updated: Apr 09, 2009 10:55am PST

Parents Birthday Party 2009 : My parents birthdays are close to each other in March, so they celebrated jointly in 2009.

Parents Birthday Party 2009

My parents birthdays are close to each other in March, so they celebra ...

Updated: Apr 09, 2009 10:52am PST

UMass Shotokan Shiai 2009 : The word "shiai" means different things to different martial arts groups. For the UMass Shotokan Karate Club, it's a special day's training. We mix the usual training routine with demonstrations, competitions, and study techniques we usually wouldn't. At this shiai, we started with some warmups and kihon (practicing techniques), then had several demonstrations, a kumite (sparring) tournament, and a kata (forms) tournament. I both participated and took photographs. The type of kumite we did was ippon kumite, or one time kumite. In an ippon kumite match, there are 2 competitors. One wears a red belt in addition to their usual belt to distinguish them. There are four corner judges and one head judge. The competitors each attack once, with the defender blocking and counter-attacking. The judges then indicate who they thought won using red and white flags, and the head judge decides who is the victor. If a tie is declared, they fight again, sometimes with a different attack or more restrictions on the counterattack. Making contact is a disqualification - you need to have sufficient control to avoid hurting the other person, as these are not real fights. The few photos below that have me in them were taken by another attendee, whose name I didn't get, and Erin.

UMass Shotokan Shiai 2009

The word "shiai" means different things to different martial arts grou ...

Updated: Mar 26, 2009 8:43am PST

My Smug Mug :

My Smug Mug

Updated: Mar 25, 2009 10:21pm PST

Arisia 2009 : Photos taken at Arisia 2009. These were taken through the weekend, during bits of free time.

Arisia 2009

Photos taken at Arisia 2009. These were taken through the weekend, dur ...

Updated: Feb 25, 2009 11:51am PST