- What new ideas, challenges, or other issues have you encountered with regard to your project (this might include data collection, information that contradicts your assumptions or the assertions of others, materials that have enriched your understanding of the topic or led you to change your project, etc.)?
The best moment I had with the research this week is definitely seeing a City Harvest Truck outside Morton Williams. I went up to the driver and had a casual but meaningful conversation while he waited for Pret to close and pick up their food. He showed me the inventory he had in the truck, and his genuine happiness giving out food to people meant a lot to me. I saw more meaning in the project I'm doing, and also realized some oversights. I realized that my model might be over-estimating the stops a truck driver can reach during a day, especially if they are constrained to pick up food after closing for different restaurants. I'm working to incorporate this finding in my research, and I do think the conversation was very helpful. Throughout the research process, I encountered a lot of data collection problems throughout the process, but I have now found a new way of using different mathematical models to measure the uncertainty. The lack of information is very common in the real-life situation, so having this extra layer to the project would also make it more meaningful.
- How have these ideas or challenges shaped the bigger picture of your research? Has the scope or focus of your topic changed since you began this project? If so, how?
I thought I would be bringing the algorithms to a new field, but in fact I realized that there are a lot of human elements and lack of data that requires a more delicate way for introducing the algorithm. Since the start of the project, I have had many different conversations with different non-profitable food rescue/donation organizations. I have become to realize that, as the intermediate agent, these organizations sometimes have enough funding/food, but it is the operational efficiency that is limiting them from reaching out to an even wider population. I really hope my proposed models and methods can help mitigate the amount of deficiency present in the field, and allow all the help to be delivered and everyone to be reached as much as possible.
- Now that you’ve engaged in Part II of the Leadership Retreat, reflect on a learning point that remains with you as a new way to understand leadership, and to incorporate into your own engagement, in the future.
I really want to practice leading from within, and incorporating leadership in every part of my life. In a way, every social interaction is a chance to practice leadership. I'm a strong believer in "You can only lead if you're capable," so gaining the quiet confidence that allows me to be a leader in every situation is what I want to work on throughout the summer. My parents always say that I can be the best musician among the mathematicians, and I want to take away the idea of interdisciplinary capability from these childhood conversations. Indeed, I still have a long way to go with my modeling ability, but I have a well-rounded understanding and new perspectives from real conversations with different food banks that I can bring to the existing literature. I aspire to be more confident and creative in the remaining time of Laidlaw, and further down the path of life.