I am a computer science Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern University working in HabitsLab and the Ka Moamoa Research Lab under advisement of Dr. Nabil Alshurafa and Dr. Josiah Hester. Blaine's research interests concentrate on rapid prototyping of novel sensing devices by building tools to control devices, collect and analyze data, and reduce reliance on expensive proprietary hardware and software. My research focuses on novel applications of wireless sensing technology with the aim of democratizing access to the development of ubiquitous embedded devices that promote research, creativity, and education. My work in embedded interface design supports research efforts funded by DARPA, ARPA-H, and NSF.
Currently, my primary research involves the protection of Manoomin, a wild rice which natively grows the great lake regions of North America. Manoomin has cultural importance to the Ojibwe and other indigenous groups spanning thousands of years. Learn more are the STRONG Manoomin Collective.
In addition to academic research Blaine is a co-founder and lead software engineer at Winnemac Labs, a consultancy focused on developing end-to-end embedded systems to aid research. Blaine has a decade of experience in software development ranging from enterprise application development to artificial intelligence, working in a variety of industries.
Blaine is pursuing teaching positions in Computer Science.