About the author: My name is Vincent and I am currently pursuing a degree in computer science at the University of Houston. As an Information Management Intern for the 1Line Team, my summer project is to use the Google Maps Application Programming Interface (API) to create a graphical map for the Constitution Pipeline.

It has been just about a month since I have arrived at Williams, but in that short amount of time, I have really been challenged. An easy parallel to sum up my time here so far is: I learned French and the culture behind it, only to go to Spain and wander its streets. It’s overwhelming knowing I only have 3 months to try and learn as much as I can about an establishment that has been there forever. The streets are unfamiliar and the things heard are followed with blank stares and a slight nod.  Just about everything is something to be learned.

But with the help of my handy-dandy translator, aka Google, and of the incredibly friendly and willing people of this foreign country, I am beginning to cozy up and settle in. Don’t get me wrong, I am still very clueless. I get lost, stuck, frustrated, then ask for directions every day in hopes that in the future I’ll be able to do whatever without having to stop and ask for directions.

This internship is far from easy, but I will learn more this summer at Williams than I would taking it easy at home.

My summer projects are no longer just-summer projects