Computer technology research a passion for some professors, students
The world of computers grows more and more essential to the world's daily operations, and it needs more minds to support and upgrade its infrastructure.
Gongzhu Hu, professor of computer science, focuses on numerous projects while instructing at Central Michigan University. One of his areas of research is data processing and data mining.
In laymen’s terms, Hu said, data processing and data mining is the way in which data from large organizations, such as banks and retail stores, is collected and analyzed.
“You will find something in the data to help you make a decision … from a store for example,” Hu said.
Amazon.com is an example of how data processing is used to make recommendations based on past purchases.
“Let’s say I bought a book,” Hu said. “The next time I log in, (Amazon) will recommend other books I may like.”
Data processing is also used in Facebook ads, loyalty programs at stores and in the health care system. Hu said the approaches present endless opportunities.
"There’s a long way to go with data processing and data mining in the future," Hu said.
Howell freshman Kellen Reason decided to major in computer science after transferring from Baker College of Owosso.
Reason's main interest is in software engineering.
"My dream job would be doing research for a large educational institution where technological strides are made, such as (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) or (Georgia Institute of Technology)," he said.
Reason said the professors in CMU's department have provided a great experience for him so far.
"People really don’t understand just how specialized you really are," he said. "I like to believe being a computer science major is like knowing another language."
Neelima Shrikhande, professor of computer science, studies computer vision. She said she writes programs that allow the computer to recognize images.
“The image is composed of zeros and ones,” Shrikhande said.
Facial recognition is her current focus.
Shrikhande said there are many features and aspects that must be extracted for the computer to generate the image.
“There is a lot of geometry involved,” she said.
