Month: August 2017

Presenting Represently’s Summer Fellows: Brandon Obas Spotlight

Brandon Obas

One Word that Best Represents You:

Passionate

Tell Us One Time You Hacked Something:

I once helped to build an app called Iris at a hackathon that allowed users to communicate with their browser through voice. The app was designed to service people who were unable to use their hands.

When Was Your First “Political” Moment:

My first political moment was in 6th grade when we watched president Obama’s 2008 inauguration in class.

Ninjas or Pirates:

Pirates – the freedom of the sea and just doing whatever you want with your best friends sounds like the dream.

What’s a Random Topic on Which You are a Pseudo-expert:

I once watched an hour-long video on the meanings of different facial expressions. So, I’m a little knowledgeable on micro-expressions, which are expressions that people unconsciously make that reveal their true emotion.

Why Reviving Representation Matters to You:

The American government was built to serve the American people and it seems that people have become more disconnected to government. We need more effective representation for government to serve the interests of all Americans. I want to make a difference in how the American people and politicians communicate. Technology has allowed us to significantly change the way politicians and people communicate for the better. The more people who voices are heard, the better our government works.

Brandon Obas, who studies computer science at the University of Pennsylvania, built an award-winning project in PennApps, UPenn’s massive hackathon.

Presenting Represently’s Summer Fellows: Ryan Swope Spotlight

Ryan Swope

One Word that Best Represents You:

Driven

Tell Us One Time You Hacked Something:

Driving the way I do with Waze often seems like a hack….For those who don’t know Waze: it is a traffic and navigation app based on crowd-sourced information from users. Some of this information includes where police are stationed to catch drivers speeding. Thus, as long as Waze tells me there is no cop, I’m flying. As soon as Waze tells me a cop is ahead, I slow it back down and likely narrowly avoid a ticket. I would give this “hack” about a 60% success rate.

When Was Your First “Political” Moment:

Weirdly enough the moment I started taking an interest in philosophy was the moment I started caring about politics. I had a kind of pseudo-interest in politics before that point, but largely through what was presented to me by my parents, more politically engaged friends, etc. But once I started studying philosophy, specifically morality and ethics, I began taking a lot more interest in the decisions our government makes.

Ninjas or Pirates:

Ninja in a fight, pirate as a companion.

What’s a Random Topic on Which You are a Pseudo-expert:

Stringing racquets (squash and tennis). I’ve been stringing tennis since I was 15 and squash since a couple years ago. Between stringing and coding I expect full-blown carpal tunnels by age 30.

Why Reviving Representation Matters to You:

I think the most valuable part of reviving representation is that it is inherently non-partisan and universally beneficial. We will all benefit from a more efficient system that better represents its members, and therefore I think this idea of reviving representation has a lot of potential to be a unifying cause in increasingly partisan times.

Ryan Swope, a Middlebury University student who majors in computer science and philosophy, is proficient in React.js and Vue.js and has experience in systems engineering.