Hi, My name is Ariana Lissak. I am currently an Undergraduate at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) where I am majoring in Computer Science. In addition to my coursework at RPI, I am also working in the Center for Automation Technologies and Systems as an Undergraduate Researcher. I am very passionate about robotics. I interned for two summers at an incubator where I programmed robotic vehicles. In high school, I took formal classes in both robotics and mechatronics and founded a FIRST robotics team so that I could continue to explore my passion outside the classroom.

In addition to my passion for robotics, I am also very passionate about learning more about the larger world through cultural immersion. In fact, last year I organized my own gap year in China. Initially, my plan was to spend the year studying Kung Fu in the Shaolin Monastery in Dengfeng, China. However, after a couple of months there, I grew frustrated with my inability to effectively communicate with my teachers and peers and I decided to move, on my own, to Shanghai to intensively study Mandarin. While there, I also interned for a technology startup for the rest of the year. Upon my return to the US, I took and passed the HSK 3 Chinese proficiency exam sponsored by the Chinese government. 

This summer, I am currently working on creating high-density 3D point clouds of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) bombs to give operators a better view of the object and more understanding of the claw in relation to EO. It will give the operator more perspective through distance.

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