[Thoughts on life]Build my own databse

Information. After industrial revolution, now it is so-called information revolution.
I haven't had time to contemplate about what exactly information is about. As computer science studying is going on, firstly it is interestingly clear the difference between raw data and information.
I need to internalize of the raw data that is all surrounding me in order to make information. Data is anything, anywhere - it can be a list of restaurants, a bunch of random numbers from the car plate, the titles of books and so on. Whereas information is needed to have efforts. Information is something that I process myself using my own energy to activate my brain.

When a person is young, data and information usually don't have a specific boundary. As the person grows up, the person is getting formed with all data that have been collected consciously or uncounsciously.
I think that is pretty critical to be aware of that what kind of data is being processed as an information in one's mind.
Without monitoring of this processing, it is quite easy to get lost in this complicated and complex so called 'life'.
Though I don't think that to have a solid awareness of this process is easy, it is certainly not a rocket science. It just all the time start with a simple question 'why' and trying to answer on one's own.

I guess so far I've collected so much data, yet I did not know how to use them properly. But now I feel like I'm processing all the data that I've got, and adding new data each day to process for making the most useful information for myself.
I'm pretty sure one day all this data whether it is processed or not will come in handy. :)

[Journal for independent biosensor research] Overview of current biosensor technology

An overview of current biosensor technology

-Introduction to biosensor

Biosensor sounds quite familiar even to those who do not have special technical background because it is just natural for people to want to know what is going on with inside the body, especially when there is any noticeable abnormality or some symptom.

When technology was not developed enough, it was future technology. However since first commercialized glucose biosensor has come out, so much improvements have been taken place.

So I will write about overview to glimpse at what has been going on for developing biosensor, and where the current technology stands now. Since this article is aiming for covering broadly, I might not be able to cover all different types of biosensors and characteristics in depth which I plan to do for next two months(April, May). However, I will try to cover as much as possible in general.

Biosensors are sensors that transduce bio-recognition processes into measurable signals via a physico-chemical transducer, with electronic and optical techniques as two major transducer(Fan et al 2005)

Simply put, it is a sensor to detect/monitor biological analytes for various purposes. Roughly it is divided into three sections. First, the materials that are actually analyzed and monitored by the sensor such as tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell receptors, enzymes, antibodies, nucleic acids. Then biosensor, obviously, needs physical hardware and software(system and application).

Also biosensor can be classified by transducing mechanism – resonant biosensors, optical-detection biosensors, thermal-detection biosensors, ion-sensitive FET biosensors, electrochemical biosensors.

1. Hardware

According to Moore’s law, more transistors are on a single chip, and it increases performances. Now nanotechnology is rapidly on the way to develop a smaller chip and higher functions, and biosensor chip field seems hugely favored of the nano technology.

For the materials of hardware could be divided into 4 categories – sillicon, compound semiconductors, organic semiconductors and nano materials.

Not only what kind of materials are used is concerned, but also how to generate power more efficiently is another big factor to consider when design a biosensor.

So far, there are photovoltaic, thermovoltaic, micro fuel cells, electrostatic, electromagnetic and piezoelectric.

Unlikely in the past when only individual biosensor is available, it is now shifting to a network. Like above there are quite many different types of biosensors, and it seems quite obvious to integrate those sensors into one chip for more efficiency.

It is now called body sensor network which implies two types of networks – small(on body) and big one(information network between user, physician, and server). In order to make this network, mote which is a sensor node takes place to connect all information from each different sensors. One of the most commonly used mote is telos.

2. Software 

As far as I understand, the most important role of the software for biosensor is how to make more efficient and robust one. The reason is when we think about how much volume of data are generated by each sensors, it can make a huge delay or error when processing data. Especially, it needs to be real-time monitoring system, the data keeps coming in and needs to be analyzed in a certain speed.
Though there are numerous different software needed for not only system but also application, the outline that I had in my mind was quite simple – operating system for user, physician and sever managers, devices software for requiring all different data from sensors, processing the data program for physician and server and monitoring system.
As I’ve been studying more about it, I’ve discovered more about operating systems, framework, other application softwares.
For operating system, it seems TinyOS is the most commonly used one and there are Mantis OS, Contiki, MANTIS and so on. SPINE(Signal Processing In Node Environment) is developed as an open source framework at UC Berkely, and it is a part of Dexternet which is an open platform for heterogeneous body sensor network and applications.

3. Review and conclusion

Since it is my first attempt to summarize what I’ve learned this month, I don’t expect it to be perfect. Yet, I was able to understand about not only about basic structure of biosensor but also a direction of where biosensor technologies are going to. 

From what I learned, besides all major challanges in detail, the main point to make biosensor more accessible is firstly miniaturization of the chip and secondly efficient system infrastructure to support a vast flow of information. 

In the next two months, I'm planning to study more about each biosensors that are used to comprise heterogeneous biosensor. The reason is that I believe in order to build such a robust system for body sensor network, it will be quite beneficial to learn about each biosensors characteristics. 

Developing software of biosensor has a unique characteristics in which the input is not comprehensible to anybody, and I think it is critical to understand what kind of input the system is dealing with.

Therefore I'd like to maximize my biology background while I'm studying each sensors, and use those knowledges back to when I build such a biosensor system.

4. Reference

- Saraju P. Mohanty, Biosensors: A Survey Report, Nov 24 2001

- David P. Klemer, MD, PhD, Microelectronic Biosensors: Materials and Devices

- Joseph Polastre, The Mote Revolution: Low Power Wireless Sensor Network Devices

- Jonathan Lueke and Wailed A. Moussa, MEMS-Based Power Generation Techniques for Implantable Biosensing Applications

- Shiping Song, Hui Xu, Chunhai Fan, Potential diagnostic applications of biosensors: current and future directions

Another good web site for cs self learner

Udacity
While I was searching for how to design a computer program, I came up with this website. It has a few courses that are taught by experts, and it is easy to just sign up and take the course! Maybe I can consider after this project! ;)

[Thoughts on life]Self learning and independent thinking

It's been almost 2 month since I started to study my 1st term. One of the things that I learned in my bottom heart is not only mere knowledge in mathematics or circuits, but also a great change of the way of thinking.

Since it is a self education, it is inevitable that it all depends on me to find any resources, to set up the time frame and how much I learned and how well I understand. Then one day I realized that it is the best way to practice to think more indepently and act independently.
I'm a teacher, a student at the same time. Just like a teacher, I'm thinking how I can give an easier and practical way to teach myself for any difficult subject or contents. Also as a student, I'm trying to absorb what I prepared myself for me.

This way of thinking led me to percieve the world in a quite different way in which I used to do. If there is no question, then there is no action for finding an answer.
Though it seems there are abundunt data, it doesn't seem like not many people ask a very fundumental question about 'why'. It coudl be a pain in the nect if one is trying to ask about almost everything that looks just obvious.
However, as far as I discovered there is no such thing that is "fixed".
All the rules, any objects or even the way we are thinking is just made through out the time, and somehow people claims that something is right because it has this long history or just because so.
Numbers - invented, letters - invented, cars - invented, computer - invented.
It is quite amazing how many things we tend to forget how we are using such a system and take for granted.

On the other side of indepedent thinking, it is possible to make some conflicts with a majority of society. I guess that's because in order to form a civilzed society, it is required to have a system which we live in now, and it somehow nees a conformity. Maybe it is an unavoidable feature of a modern civlized society.
Would it be possible to have a parrell line between independent thinking and conformity? 

[c programming]A good website

I found this website quite well structured and informative.

Controlling the real world with computers

I've started to learn c programming (well I put c++ aside for a while since I couldn't understand most of them :p), and I finished one book.
Now I am studying by using KnR and this website.

Anyone who is a beginner like me should be helped by reading one article a day along side studying programming! :)

TalkonGlobe - developing

Anyone insterested in international discussion group?

This is a side project of MIT OCW computer science self education project
-> TalkonGlobe
    
If so, plase click here!

[MIT OCW CS/SE project] Progress checking (Mar - 1)

*This project is NOT affiliated with MIT at all.

So I've been studying using MIT OCW since Feb. First, it has been working quite well for several reasons, though there have been some changes in detail.
I decided to write a checking note twice a month, once in 2 weeks. That way I can keep track of how I've been doing, what things have changed. Plus potentially this chronicle of my self educaiton can give some actual help about problems or advantages to other self learner(freak like me? :p).

Some changes

1. I dropped out Computer structures and interepretation for computer programs

-> The main reason is that I do not intend to use LISP any near in the future. Instead of LISP, I've been studying C programming. I guess some may say that studying LISP will give me a good understanding of how computer program is structured. However, I thought learning C programming language should give me a fundumental knowledge after all.

2. Start again with Circuits and Electronics

-> I guess it is my third time to start over. Well, that's because I'd been studying this before I started off the project and I decided to take from the start. Then MITx came out a month ago, and it seems that it would provide a better structured  envorinment to study. I was a middle of lecture 9, and honestly I didn't do quite much follow up to review as much as I was supposed to do. My first term is supposed to be done by the end of May at the lastest. I have more time to review through one more time for better understanding before I encounter other difficulties for further study.

3. Do homeworks!

-> Actually I haven't done any homeworks because there are no solutions. If there is no solution to figure out what the answer is, I found out that it is useless to spend time on it. But what I've been learning so far is that I should do enough exercies as I go on, because other wise I 'm just taking a lecture and that's all. Though it has been quite great to learn/brush up math so far.
For the next few weeks, I will try to finish all the exercised that I have missed so far.

Feedbacks and new ideas for self education


1. Be a teacher and student at the same time
-> It is double sword about self education. I found that it is quite fun to find my own answers and any resources, but at the same time it feels that I might be doing something wrong. However, it is a great advantage that I can take of as a self learner beacuase it gives me think independently and find a way to solve by myself.

2. Idea of a discussion group online
-> I just came accross this idea today. The initial point of this idea was kind of similar reason with lack of guideline above, but it is a bit different. Since all this project is taken care of by me, that means it is quite hard to find any folks around to discuss on some problems. Altough MIT OCW has a connection to open study, it doesn't seem very active.

I've been taking some seminar not exactly on regular basis, but I have watched a few seminars on MIT world from time to time. So what I want to do is to form a group to meet up online through skype for more lively discussion once a week or two weeks. Since my interests are farily oriented to inventions, technology, computer, biosensor stuff, I should think of a way to find people who are interested in this. (Anyone who's interested in this, please email me! :))
Well the topic doesn't have to neccessarily only about technology or science though.

Anyway, I've gained so many lessons about not only math and computer science but also when I understand better about the subject, how I can actually apply  the knowledges for real world and how I can use other resources to help my study etc. Hopefully I will enjoy as much as I did in the next half month!