Summary
Hey, I'm Etash! I'm currently a high school senior at Fox Chapel Area High School in the process of applying as a first year undergraduate student for a degree in Computer Science. I'm also an alumnus of the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Sciences. I'm passionate about research of all kinds, but lately have been focused on AI and ML. My experience is below, or you can hit the "See Resume" button to take a peek (look out for the disc animation). I would love to work together on a project, so don't hesitate to reach out.
Hobbies
Aside from academics, I like to play games on my DS Lite and Wii, as well as emulate retro games on my computer. I collect mechanical pencils, too. They're pretty neat, my favorite brand right now is Pentel.
On top of that I like to watch some anime and read manga. The my top shows are JJK, CSM, and Evangelion (look at the casette player). I'm caught up to the latest chapters of Chainsaw Man (peak) and Spy x Family. I'm also considering getting back into Pokémon cards...
I'm self taught in programs like Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape which I use for graphic design, including some of the elements on this site. I also have some basic experience with 3D software like Fusion 360 and Blender.
On top of that I like to watch some anime and read manga. The my top shows are JJK, CSM, and Evangelion (look at the casette player). I'm caught up to the latest chapters of Chainsaw Man (peak) and Spy x Family. I'm also considering getting back into Pokémon cards...
I'm self taught in programs like Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape which I use for graphic design, including some of the elements on this site. I also have some basic experience with 3D software like Fusion 360 and Blender.
Projects
Using Long-Short Term Memory Models to predict quantitative emotion induced in a listener from music. Presented at Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science, Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair, and submitted to Regeneron Science Talent Search. Code and models can be found on GitHub, preprint on ArXiV.
Jhanji, E. Exploring and applying audio-based sentiment analysis in music (2024). arXiv:2403.17379 [cs.SD]. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2403.17379.
Jhanji, E. Exploring and applying audio-based sentiment analysis in music (2024). arXiv:2403.17379 [cs.SD]. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2403.17379.
My PGSS culminating team research project. We completed extensive research to determine the best way to computationally approach strategic gameplay in the two player BlokusDuo board game. This project involved creating a framework and UI for the game as well as minimax, reinforcement learning, and Monte Carlo tree search agents to compete with humans.
Bressler A, Brown A, Frischmann J, Huang M, Jhanji E, Liu S. Blokus Duo: Using Deep Search Algorithms to Explore Turn-Based Game Strategy. (2024). https://bit.ly/pgssjournal. 2
Bressler A, Brown A, Frischmann J, Huang M, Jhanji E, Liu S. Blokus Duo: Using Deep Search Algorithms to Explore Turn-Based Game Strategy. (2024). https://bit.ly/pgssjournal. 2
A portfolio designed from scratch using pure HTML, CSS, and JS. With svg graphics designed in Adobe Illustrator, the site is scalable to (theoretically) any window size. Icons from BoxIcons.
A Spotify summary card that accesses playback data from the API and presents it in the pixel art formal of Gameboy Advance Pokémon game trainer cards.
Education
- GPA: 4.49/4.00 (W), 4.0 (W)
- National Honor Society, Desi Club, Technology Student Association, Math Club, Science Fair Club, Model UN
- One of 72 students selected from a pool of 524 applicants across Pennsylvania to attend
- Engaged in college-level courses in discrete math, computer science, special relativity, cellular cancer biology, organic chemistry, AI and ML, mathematical finance, and a computer science + AI laboratory
- Devised, researched, and presented a culminating research project on optimizing computational gameplay strategies in BlokusDuo using techniques including Minimax, MCTS (w/ CNNs), and PPO
Research Experience
- Complete extensive computational analysis of fluorescent microscopy images
- Develop an innovative computation to analyze stain localization on nephron tubules using computer vision
- Understand tissue structures of the kidneys and staining to work on data collection for a research publication
- Observed laboratory processes and equipment.
- Inspected results of a scratch wound assay to collect quantitative data for analysis and publication.
Volunteer Experience
- Manage social media for Steel City Codes, expanding media reach
- Design promotional materials and merchandise for general use and special events
- Expand the large set of Steel City Codes special events including hackathons and summer camps
- Part of the special events, enhancements, and checkin teams
- Introduce incoming students to the high school
- Aid the hosting of events to familiarize students and parents with the school
Activities
- Participate in local science fairs: Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science and Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair
- Organize ways to help other members navigate the paperwork and projects of a science fair
- President since 2023
- Design and build multiplex projects for competition on regional, state, and national level
- Manage club funds for students to be able to participate and build projects
- Treasurer since 2023
- Lead and volunteer to spread awareness about Asian and South Asian Cultures.
- Perform Indian dances (i.e. Bhangra) in each annual D.E.S.I./Multicultural Night
- Part of the team that organized the first annual Multicultural Night, to include other cultural clubs
- Doubled attendance since the first year
- Secretary since August 2023, previously ’Event Planner’ from August 2022 to 2023
- Research, debate, and collaborate solutions to current events
- Earned 292 NSDA Points: Distinction Degree
Relevant Coursework/Scores
Technical Skills
Python, Java, HTML/CSS/JS, R, SQL, LaTeX
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Inkscape, Linearity Curve (formerly Vectornator), Canva
Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.