The last couple of weeks, now that I’m beginning to settle into the fact that I’m no longer having to go to work every day to work on the same project, have felt very much like trying to follow my instinct, learn as much as I can, and start getting some balls rolling to see where they end up…
I’m finding that I’m working longer hours than when I was fully employed; but loving having the freedom to work (at least at the moment) on what I want to focus on!
On the learning front, it’s been great to put together a Proof of Concept around an events and listings app… no immediately obvious revenue streams; but a chance to get more comfortable with Angular 2, Python, and using HTMLs Canvas object.
As far as more formal learning goes, I’ve enrolled on a machine learning course (https://www.udemy.com/machinelearning/) as this has always been an area I’ve been fascinated with, and also because a lot of the concepts and ideas I’m starting to play around with all at their core have a requirement for some intelligent processing of data to extract meaning from it. As yet, I don’t know whether some form of Machine Learning will be the solution to this; but my instinct tells me that it is going in the right direction, and so definitely something I need to understand better.
I’ve also started collaborating with some friends on a Brain Computer Interface (BCI) investigation – wiring up my head with electrodes and then trying to derive some meaning or intent from the signal produced. So far I think one of the biggest challenges is coming up with a way of quickly, easily and reliably attaching electrodes to the right location on a person’s head – the whole procedure is messy, fiddly, inaccurate and time consuming. To do it properly involves two people and careful measurement. Then spending hours working on and debugging code with wires trailing from your head is not the most comfortable thing to do. I’m not sure if there’s an easy way around it, but I’ve bought some bits and bobs that I think I could use to build a makeshift sensor head-piece. Will give this a go over the next week or so…
In the meantime, I’m enjoying the amazing weather and being able to head off on my bike through the mountains to clear my head – it’s not a bad view to have on my way to the ‘office’.