https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/ studying cs & maths at howard. building things from scratch, writing about what i find along the way. en-us Mon, 20 Jul 2026 20:32:29 GMT https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/autocomplete.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/autocomplete.html Mon, 20 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT from 1950s chinese input methods to the keyboard in your pocket — how predictive text works, built up from a trie and a bigram model. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/coding_journey.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/coding_journey.html Sun, 28 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT from not knowing what coding was to building things from scratch. a timeline of how i got here. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/studying_cs_in_2026.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/studying_cs_in_2026.html Sat, 20 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT ai commoditized the application layer. here's what's actually worth learning now. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/building_search_engine_part2.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/building_search_engine_part2.html Sat, 23 May 2026 12:00:00 GMT Penalizing common words and boosting rare ones with Inverse Document Frequency. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/privacy_policy_hn_search.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/privacy_policy_hn_search.html Thu, 21 May 2026 12:00:00 GMT How the Hacker News Semantic Search browser extension handles information when you use it. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/victory-by-dying.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/victory-by-dying.html Thu, 21 May 2026 12:00:00 GMT a quote i loved at 12, a squeeze theorem, and why fighting like you're already dead is mathematically sound. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/builiding_a_search_engine_part1.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/builiding_a_search_engine_part1.html Fri, 15 May 2026 12:00:00 GMT A deep dive into building a search engine from scratch. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/twenty_twenty_five_but_god.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/twenty_twenty_five_but_god.html Wed, 31 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMT a reflective look at the transition to cs, college rejections, friendships, and family support in 2025. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/gambling_a_skillset_for_success.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/gambling_a_skillset_for_success.html Fri, 12 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMT how taking unconventional career routes and hypergambling without a safety net shapes success. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/being_an_underdog_an_underrated_advantage.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/being_an_underdog_an_underrated_advantage.html Sun, 07 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMT being backed against the wall brings psychological adrenaline and reduces expectations. how to use it to win. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/one_in_fourteen_million.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/one_in_fourteen_million.html Sun, 30 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT why the conservative logic of statistics and probability clips our wings, and why to try when odds are low. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/ninety_nine_plus_one_percent.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/ninety_nine_plus_one_percent.html Tue, 25 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT hard work is 99% of the equation, but luck is the vital 1% you can't control. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/who_runs_the_world_nerds.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/who_runs_the_world_nerds.html Thu, 20 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT why deep knowledge of a single field (specialization) is a major advantage in a world obsessed with generalists. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/success_an_ever_moving_goalpost.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/success_an_ever_moving_goalpost.html Sat, 15 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT success is an ever-changing goalpost. define your own goals instead of chasing what society dictates. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/systems_once_solutions.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/systems_once_solutions.html Wed, 12 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT a look at how bureaucratic systems designed decades ago now limit progress in research and education. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/arrogance_a_recipe_for_success.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/arrogance_a_recipe_for_success.html Wed, 05 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT arrogance, or at least a form of it, is actually required to be successful. you need to not give a damn about what a lot of people think about you and keep doing what you are doing. https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/ideas_floating_pieces_of_paper.html https://unconventionalthinker.vercel.app/ideas_floating_pieces_of_paper.html Sun, 02 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMT ideas are just like those pieces of paper. they are everywhere on normal days, and they look meaningless. but on rainy days, they float.