Aug 15, 2022Frame Transformations in Computer Integrated SurgeryWith intuitive notation, vocabulary, and diagrams. — This tutorial is an abbreviated version of this PDF. The notation aligns with the Computer Integrated Surgery course at Johns Hopkins University. Minimal linear algebra is assumed. Frame transformations are often the cause of confusing, frustratingly simple errors in computer integrated surgery. For beginners, developing the intuition to answer the…Coordinate Systems13 min readCoordinate Systems13 min read
Aug 25, 2021RoadlockedThese spaces which our cars have taken over — “How do you keep yourself from just flooring it?” Dad laughed at my question. “I guess you just get used to it.” The one-way roadway begged me to go faster. SUVs on either side both faced the same direction. Overhanging branches created the impression of endless tunnel, with its unmarked…Mwc Space6 min readMwc Space6 min read
Mar 10, 2021How to Take the TrainThe Amtrak overlooks a lot of cornfields in between Chicago and St. Louis. Of course, there are also creek beds, interstates, and cul-de-sacs; minor league baseball stadiums; and a graffitied concrete beam at Union station which reads, “Have a great day.” However, the train’s predominant view consists of corn: row…Trains4 min readTrains4 min read
Dec 26, 2020How to Get PinnedEight months out of the year, most people called it the multipurpose room. It had the proportions of a dance studio or a chemistry lab — although it was neither — and inhabited the same basement hallway as the weight room and the lockers, containing neither weights nor changing areas…Missouri9 min readMissouri9 min read
Nov 10, 2020How to Have an OpinionProfessor Lyons possessed the sort of casual self-importance which only former consulting attorneys and underpaid professors are capable of. He had elbow patches on his jacket. His favorite movie was The Big Lebowski. …College9 min readCollege9 min read
Oct 5, 2020How to Hold Office HoursProfessor O’Leary wore circular spectacles and a wide brimmed wizard’s hat. Actually, it may have been a modest bucket hat, but the man so much resembled a wizard himself that the gray conical cap seems more likely in my mind. Peter, as he preferred to be called, spent Tuesdays on…Chicago4 min readChicago4 min read
Aug 24, 2020How to go CastingThe lake is fifteen minutes from my parents’ house, which makes up for some of its other qualities. Dense thickets and collapsing mud walls encircle the water, interrupted by abandoned camping chairs and a mossy picnic table, which sinks into the Missouri mud. After a rainstorm, the Meramec surges into…Nonfiction3 min readNonfiction3 min read
