Hard work is its own reward
APPLE’S annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) gathered developers from all over the world at the San Jose Convention Centre in California, the United States, from June 3 to 7.
The event is so popular that spots are decided via lottery but one privileged Malaysian, Steven Tan, managed to clinch a special scholarship that enabled him to attend the prestigious event.
The only Malaysian at this year’s WWDC, Tan’s work on the formation of geometrical patterns between Earth and Venus’ orbit over the span of eight years secured him the coveted scholarship.
“The reason I chose the solar system was to commemorate the late Stephen Hawking. In my opinion, Apple is looking for passion in your submission and my work is designed with freedom and creativity in mind – to change other planets and orbital speeds – using science to create art,” he said.
This is not the first time the software engineering student from Monash University Malaysia has made his way to the WWDC. His attendance at the conference in 2018 saw him learning more about augmented reality (AR), which he brought back to Monash.
Working together with the School of Pharmacy, Tan focuses specifically on using AR to teach pharmacy students about atrial fibrillation (known as AFib or AF), an irregular heartbeat that could lead to various heart-related complications such as stroke or heart failure.
“AR technology works really well in this aspect of education, because it is hard for the students to grasp and visualise the abstract concepts,” he said.
Coming from a single-parent family, Tan said the world can sometimes be unfair but we should focus on what we can do and do it to the best of our abilities.
This is also why he chose software engineering as he believes it is a field where even though you may not have the resources, as long as you are focused on what you want to do and hope to achieve, you will succeed.
“As a developer, we are the ones making the decisions. Developers thus have a big responsibility in making the right decision when building a platform of their choice.
“As an app developer, I’m not looking at serving users from a specific region. Instead, I’m focusing on users of a specific platform,” he said.
Prior to heading for the WWDC, Tan looked forward to meeting more developers. He said that WWDC was where he could learn from the best minds, on the latest in technology and its best practices for app development. He also shared that the WWDC is the best platform for him to further enhance his knowledge of all available tools.
Becoming a software engineer is more than a career option and passion for the ambitious 23-year-old: “I know how computer science can help change lives around us.
“Everyone is equal in this field. The key difference is in our effort and how much change we hope to make in the world we live in.”