My Childhood Dream
My fondest childhood ambition was to build a robot that resembled humans. In my dream, I saw a robot with sentiments and emotions comparable to those of humans. I got my dream from watching cartoons all the time. Especially, the animation series Doraemon and Bicentennial, which portrayed robots with human-like traits, made me feel like my ambition was attainable. I adored watching these cartoon series and was convinced every day that I wanted to build a robot. From the way they talked to how they interacted with humans, the robots were interesting.
Back at home, I was the only child. I did not have many friends and found myself alone most of the time. I played alone most of the time and soon I was bored. I needed a friend to play with and share the few happy moments. A robot that could have emotions and give me comfort is all that I needed. A true friend not only to me but also to my family. I imagined a robot that would be with me from my tender age and watch me grow until I became old enough. The robot would play with me whenever I was bored and take care of me. When I got older, I imagined the robot would take care of my children and my children's children when they eventually had their families. In case my partner passed away, I would remain with the robot to give me company and comfort during those difficult moments. All I envisioned was a robot that would be my teacher, parent, and friend.
Rediscovering My Dream
As I grew up and adapted to my lonely environment, my dream of making a robot faded away. For a long time, I forgot my dream. I was not watching the television as I would often do, and the cartoon series were no longer showing on the channels. I lost touch with my dream until later in life when I was reflecting on my life. During my free time while in high school, it suddenly struck me that I wanted to make a robot that had emotions and feelings just like human beings. I got so excited, and from that point, I knew what I wanted in life. I could not wait to finish high school and enroll in a university and pursue a course in Electrical Engineering.
Challenges in a New Country
In July 2012, I graduated from high school, and in September of the same year, I moved to the United States. I moved into an apartment alone and began life in a foreign country. It was my first time out of my country without any family member. Life was not easy at the start because I did not know how to order food online or where to go and physically purchase food. Most of the time, I stayed hungry because I did not know how to cook. Transport was another issue that affected me a lot. The U.S is one of the most developed countries, and the acquisition of services is mainly online through smartphones. Unfortunately, my inability to use an iPhone worked against me as I could not locate places and the bus. I was not used to doing everything alone. Back at home, my mother would do everything for me as I sat around. The U.S was a new experience, including communication. I was forced to spend a lot of time studying English ESL for almost two years.
Overcoming Challenges and Pursuing my Dream
When I joined college, I continued experiencing major difficulties. I was not sure of what course I wanted to major in, so I took some basic classes to improve my knowledge and skills. Unfortunately, I got a lot of bad grades in these courses. My failure was attributed to poor reading habits and my new environment. I could not read much because I constantly missed my family back at home. Additionally, I was not used to reading for long hours as I was required to do to pass the basic courses. My mind was also not committed to my studies, and when exams came, I realized I could not answer most of the questions correctly. It reached a point where I gave up and decided to go back to my country. I even told my parents about the difficult life and my decision to give up and come back home. They told me to take time and reflect on my decision and what I really wanted to achieve in life. I was to reflect on what my passion was and what I dreamt to achieve in life. I remembered my childhood dream that my parents supported me to achieve. I decided to give it a try once again. I changed my study habits, learned how to cook, and learned how to use an iPhone to order food and locate places. I made friends by participating in sports and group work that helped me develop my communication skills. I plan to be a physics and engineering tutor at Bellevue College next quarter to help me understand these subjects even better. I also plan to retake some of the courses I got bad grades in. I believe my change in attitude will help me become a successful student at the University.
The University of Washington and My Dream
The University of Washington is my institution of choice due to its impressive academic record. It is one of the best universities in the world and educates students from diverse backgrounds. The higher learning institution is engaged in groundbreaking robotics research in control theory, brain-machine interfaces, robot learning, neural control of movement, natural language instruction, sensors, physics-based animation, and Bayesian state estimation. My mom also played a major role in choosing the university. When my mom came to the U.S to visit me, we came to the university together, and she really liked it when she took a walk around the institution. When my dad was told about the great facilities at the institution, he also encouraged me to join and utilize the available technology. If given an opportunity at the esteemed university, I would grab it with both hands and achieve my dream of building a robot. I would feel greatly motivated and ready for the challenge. I believe my personality and experiences in the U.S have prepared me to become successful. I also believe that should I be fortunate to be offered an opportunity, I would achieve my dream of making a robot with feelings and emotions just like human beings.
