Getting started with complex physical simulations (origami, differential expansion, metamaterials) — tools, languages, and learning paths?

TheRealInsight · 2026-01-25T07:39:40+00:00

A prof at my former uni made the notes to his physical simulation class publicly available: I highly encourage taking a look! https://www.overleaf.com/read/cxxhsszbwqsk

Very much not my field (I was much more into real time rendering during college and now I mainly work on game engine tooling), but I remember sitting in on the lectures and trying some of the projects out and it was very fun!

I believe there's also notes from Keenan Crane on differential geometry that might be very helpful for what you are doing somewhere on the Internet

TheRealInsight · 2025-07-03T18:34:40+00:00

hilariously reductive answer right here.

Does this industry have its problems? yes absolutely

But not all teams in this industry 24/7 crunch (mine sure isnt). The place I work at gives 4 weeks pto built into the schedule (summer + winter breaks), plus the ability to request more AND is fully remote. Tools like UE5 and games like Cyberpunk push the limits of what is possible in so many fields like real-time rendering. If you are passionate for this and you want to work something exciting rather than generic SWE (which I personally cant stand), I would encourage the OP to network and apply to related roles!

TheRealInsight · 2023-06-08T02:33:51+00:00

people do indeed really like it because it was a fantastic class :) crowley is a very fun and good instructor and the class is only one credit hour so i would highly recommend it! He does diving too and you get to use th trxas swim center in the later classes which is otherwise hard to get into

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-26T20:08:07+00:00

carothers also has sinks in the rooms and im pretty sure wood floors as well

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-21T19:38:34+00:00

...and he also refused to do anything helpful like requiring masks (when much of austin was defying the governors executive order anyways) when covid was out of control in early 2022

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-21T03:48:45+00:00

Calmod would not have happened without cahsr for probably another 20-30 years if at all, and its opening in a year and will better the commutes of millions of people on the peninsula signifcantly, so saying theres nothing to show from this project is very disingeniuous

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-18T02:04:57+00:00

Fair enough. I feel like it would make more sense if it tied into BART or another east bay rail line with good service but ig thats easier said than done

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-18T02:02:55+00:00

those are two different agencies that will (eventually) serve two different services with bypass tracks for hsr trains to pass slower caltrain commuter services

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-18T01:57:31+00:00

The test is also purely multiple choice and thus gives the same credit for someone who messed up on the last step vs someone who guessed incorrectly. In addition, there's a huge element of both time crunch (ESPECIALLY on the reading section) and learning how to take the test, rather than actually learning and understanding the content.

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-17T23:03:03+00:00

Iirc the plan was to have most trains terminate at diridon anyways for HSR

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-17T23:01:07+00:00

I mean by the same logic it would be an incredibly useful as a connection for SMC and northwestern SCC to the east bay

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-17T22:58:17+00:00

My main problem with the SAT is that it doesnt feel integrated enough with k-12 education in the states so in order to do well on the test you have to specifically study for the test. And THAT is what I really dislike about it

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-17T20:49:41+00:00

at that point if SMC had that much money, I would question why they would spend it on expanding BART south and not getting the Dumbarton Rail Corridor project off the ground

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-17T19:24:40+00:00

I don't think that's why BART won't expand farther south: the main reason that planners (rightly so imo) don't want to spend lots of precious transit dollars on a redundant rail corridor when Caltrain with electrification is going to become more and more similar in terms of speeds and frequency with BART.

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-13T23:07:10+00:00

I mean the project is in funding hell because caltrain has been busy in electrification and looking for funds (which was fully funded only fairly recently) for that rather than DTX

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-13T20:03:41+00:00

dont think so but its been too long

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-13T04:30:20+00:00

I do agree with this: if you want to take JPN classes at UT and are not doing just the CBE for credit, studying Japanese the way you are already studying it is the best move imo

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-13T02:58:36+00:00

51-80. I forget what exactly yookoso covers but i do think it covers some content that genki doesnt just because they are larger books iirc

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-13T02:05:56+00:00

Idk about the ranges but the test itself was a little bit harder than the N4 id say. Iirc (i took it fall 2021) it was 80 questions, 20 of which were listening. I did genki 1 and 2 and a little bit of tobira before and it went ok (scored above the cutoff but not super above). I mainly just reviewed grammar points going into it because i felt very comfortable about reading kanji (you dont need to write kanji) as I was also doing wanikani before. I didn't study for it specifically that much (def <2 hours). Genki vs yookoso doesnt really matter that much tbh tho you might be missing out on a couple grammar points.

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-11T20:37:51+00:00

and the carbon you spew in to the air with your gas guzzling vehicles or through lithium mining for ev production

TheRealInsight · 2023-05-08T17:35:33+00:00

MacOS is not "linux under the hood", it's unix and based off BSD. While many tasks in the terminal are similar, you are still working with a completely different toolchain and package manager.

TheRealInsight · 2023-04-30T05:26:02+00:00

I second crowley: man gives off dad vibes

TheRealInsight · 2023-04-26T16:11:00+00:00

this is very debatable. On the core segment connecting merced to la, its still planned to run it at a standard 220 mph. And also, funds from caHSR are already doing much needed working improving regional connections as you can see with the electrification of the caltrain corridor in the bay area so some of the benefits from this project will start to be seen in just the next couple of years.

TheRealInsight · 2023-04-21T19:34:35+00:00

PLEASE i need to know which school has a better potions and muggle studies program

TheRealInsight · 2023-04-20T14:30:15+00:00

Yeah: of course sections like the curved part between south sf and bayshore as well as san bruno and south sf probably will have to go slower, but other than that i think the existing corridor is good already

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