Kyle Lam Hacker Scholarship

I love building/creating, especially when it's to solve a problem. It's part of the reason I have a special interest in engineering, and I hope to be able to do some level of engineering along with research through my physics degree. When thinking about all the things I've built, one, in particular, reminds me of what was written here about Kyle Lam and the "hacker" spirit he carried. My dad is extremely into barbequing. He will spend an entire day cooking dinner if he has time, making sure the smoker has the right type of chips, the marinating or dry rub is just right, and most importantly: that the temperature stays perfect. He has a thermometer that senses the temperature of the meat and the inside of the smoker and controls a fan to moderate it based on that. He wanted to be able to watch it all day though, and it's quite heavy and an odd shape. Plus the counter near the grill is always covered in food and other stuff he wouldn't want to get on it. He came to me asking how he could keep the thermometer in an easy-to-see, but safe place, and I set to work. The first thing I did was take a contour gauge out to the countertop; it wasn't just a squared-off edge, so I had to carefully trace its shape onto a piece of paper. I scanned that shape onto my computer and through CAD (3d design) software, I recreated the outline of the counter. I also took measurements of the thermometer and modeled a holder that could sit on the counter. Due to the weight of the thermometer being farther back, it wouldn't slide off. Careful to select a filament that wouldn't get damaged by rainwater (I knew my dad would forget to put it away), I 3d printed my holder. It took a few tries, the first ones didn't slide onto the counter as easily as I would have hoped, and one even snapped in half in trying to force it on. Eventually, I printed one that easily slid on, and gave it to my dad. He loves it and has one more tool in his BBQing toolbox (yes, that's a thing he has...). I know this isn't that big of a creation or even something that many people could use, but I think it embodies that hacker spirit. It was a fun thing to make to a very unique problem and getting to give my dad something that makes it slightly easier to enjoy his hobby made me happy. I also think it shows how many of life's smaller problems can be solved by technology. Of course, we should focus on the bigger issues that worry humanity, but we shouldn't forget that this technology (like 3d printing) can also be used for everyday nuisances to make our lives just a little bit easier.