Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - March/April 2011 - (Page 40)

exploring career options Software Engineer Lillian Nguyen Computer Applications Software Engineer Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Lillian Nguyen holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Indiana University and a master’s in mathematics from Johns Hopkins University, but aside from word processing, she never really touched a computer until after college. Here, Nguyen explains how her math background helped prepare her for a career building and supporting software systems for major NASA missions such as the MESSENGER spacecraft, which, on March 18, will become the ﬁrst spacecraft ever to orbit the planet Mercury. How did you go from a math major to software engineering? I always knew I was interested in scientific research. In college, I did a research internship at a Department of Defense laboratory, and I learned some programming there. My first job was with a defense contractor. Interview by Amy Entwisle How did your math background help prepare you for your career? It taught me to think logically and to approach problems systematically. I was very intimidated when I was given my first computer programming assignment, but once I learned the fundamentals of the programming language, I found that having the ability to think logically and break a complex problem down into smaller, more manageable steps was more important than having a strong programming background. Imagine your car’s dashboard displaying a bunch of binary code—not engineering values like temperature or revolutions per minute. That’s the kind of data the engineers receive via their instruments. I create computer visualizations that turn this data into a value that makes sense, such as a temperature or voltage. Then I change the display to something visual like you might see on your dashboard. Or let’s say that the engineers need to visualize a spacecraft as they turn it toward a specific location. We call that changing the spacecraft’s attitude. Perhaps it’s tracking a crater on a planet’s surface so that it can be imaged, or maybe it’s pointing an antenna toward Earth for communication. My job in this case is to create a computer visualization that allows them to see the spacecraft in 3D as they make these adjustments. What are you working on now? Can you describe the work that you do? When NASA funds a mission, they might contract us to develop part of it: ground software, flight software, the actual spacecraft itself, or just an instrument. During a mission, data is constantly transmitted from the spacecraft to the engineers, who analyze it to make sure the spacecraft is healthy and everything is operating as it should be. My work helps them visualize it. A scientist might say, “My camera took an image of one of my instruments, and there’s this strange object in it that we weren’t expecting to see. Can you tell me where it’s located relative to this planet, relative to the spacecraft?” I analyze the data to determine the geometry of the situation, and create visualization applications for the engineers. I’m focused on MESSENGER, which is scheduled to arrive at Mercury in a couple of months. I’m working on an application that creates a schedule for each instrument. The schedule for the onboard camera, for example, contains the images we want it to take: the snap time, exposure duration, which filter to use, and whether or not to compress the image. Once the schedules for each instrument are created, the application generates a file containing the commands needed to set up the camera correctly to take each image. Mission operators then upload those commands to the spacecraft. I’m usually coding away on the computer all day. In addition to analyzing data and creating visualization applications 40 imagine Mar/Apr 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - March/April 2011

Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - March/April 2011
Contents
Big Picture
In My Own Words
Problem Solving
Orange County Math Circle
Number Theory
Count Me In
National Mathematics Competitions
Math at the Science Fair
Just My Speed
MathPath
When Origami Meets Rocket Science
Selected Opportunities & Resources
Making a Difference
High School Options for Gifted Students
Off the Shelf
Word Wise
Exploring Career Options
One Step Ahead
Planning Ahead for College
Students Review
Mark Your Calendar
Knossos Games

Imagine Magazine - Johns Hopkins - March/April 2011