Projects and hobbies (click here to jump to the "older stuff")

Even more homemade boats, this time of the human-size variety!

Plywood Kayaks

A homebuilt racing yacht... kind of. This one is less than a foot long and has yet to be fully rigged, but it's been a fun project so far!

       

This is completely scratch-built, no plans or guides other than my own designs. The rigging should all function accurately, and it does float!
I haven't decided if I want fractional or masthead rig yet. Once I get some sails on there I'll put up some photos of it chasing ducks on local ponds.
The hull is carved from Basswood (on a crummy benchgrinder), and aside from some craft-store accessories like anchors and blocks, everything is handmade.

Mini-project; Fashionable laser guns for 1930s Space Villains! (from Halloween 2007).
 

Tiny Sailboat Trailer

A recent project at Funter Bay was building a trailer for Megan's boat, the Jaundice. It's a 12 foot long... something, I'm not even sure what its lineage is. Rob sailed and rowed it out from Juneau single-handed, which is pretty impressive! The trailer was built with some scrap lumber and old lawnmower wheels, which worked but were undersized for the weight of the keel. 
    

Ghetto WiFi Repeater

Another recent project was an attempt at providing wireless in Funter Bay. The signal would have to avoid an island in order to reach the Cannery dock. My idea was to have a low-power repeater at a midpoint, with directional antennas to receive the initial Access Point's signal and rebroadcast it around the corner. Cringley's sketchy site aside, no one has actually made a passive repeater yet. I used two Linksys WET11 bridges due to their small size and low power requirements, as well as their antenna interface. The enclosure is a waterproof signal flare box modified to allow power input and antenna connections. I have yet to actually install or use this setup, but it's been tested and it does boost the range of a network! The only drawback is that the bridges only support an Ad-hoc connection and are harder to configure than real APs. I still need to modify the power supply to take direct 12v for a solar or battery rig.

Professional and Academic Research Papers.

A few examples of my research projects in Computer Science and related fields. These are mostly Acrobat PDF versions of the research papers. 

Technical Review of Ohio AUM GIS. (2007)
Gabe Emerson.
A review paper covering the State of Ohio's Abandoned Underground Mine Geographic Information System. This was my final project in Advanced GIS at the University of Minnesota (Geog 5563). 

Analysis of Wireless Network Use in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. (2007)
Gabe Emerson.
An area-wide study I conducted in the spring of 2007 on the prevalence of WiFi security measures in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Some of my best and most interesting academic work to date. 

Analysis of Computational Agents for Connect-k Games. (2007)
Michael Levin, Jeff Deitch, Gabe Emerson, and Erik Shimshock.
An investigation and experimental evaluation of various artificial agents for connect-k type games. (Essentially, an AI approach for the Go-Moku and extended connect-4 family of board games)

Sudoku Puzzles as a Constraint Satisfaction Problem. (2006)
Aaron Christensen and Gabe Emerson.
Description of a simple CSP-based AI for for solving Sudoku logic puzzles. 

Database Models for Geographic Information System Applications. (2006)
Gabriel Emerson
A simple survey of existing GIS database approaches and comparative benefits. 

The following are older papers which are mostly here to serve as writing samples and an archive of past work. The research on most of the IT-related topics is more and more out of date, so current usefulness is questionable. 

Implementation of Security in Multi-User Operating Systems (2004)
Gabe Emerson
Another simple survey and discussion of 2004-era computer security concerns. 

Effects of WWII on Alaskan Economic Development and Infrastructure. (2004)
Gabe Emerson
An undergraduate research paper for UAF's Northern Studies class. Follows the same type of research as my Sitka WWII history project from high school, but in a more formalized and professional format. 

AMD 64-bit Architecture (2004)
Gabe Emerson
A review and discussion of the AMD64 platform from UAF's computer architectures course. . 

Older projects and hobbies (infrequently updated) are listed below:
 

Sitka WWII History - A research and historical documentation project from my high school days. 
Also see one of my college research papers related to this project.

Piracy - My biggest project over the last few years has been my Bayliner sloop, the Pagoo. 

Maquarium - My simple how-to guide for turning a worthless computer into a cool fish tank.

Computers - Old, new, whatever. What began as a hobby is now a dangerous obsession

Radios - More old electronics and projects that I probably don't have time for.

Potato Cannons - Because spuds were meant to fly, not sit there in the ground!

Dumpster Diving - Some people actually pay money for their furniture and electronics. 

Finer Grain: • Ashley's House • Europe • Archive • Computers • Radio • Starch Abuse • Dumpster Diving • Links

©2007 Gabe Emerson - gabe <AT> saveitforparts <DOT> com

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