Hi I am Robert Duff and I am from Leawood Kansas. I have always loved computers, from a very early age I would spend my time playing simple games on my parents computer. My first video game was for the pc, Monster Truck Madness, I played that game constantly. I think that is where my interest for computers and computer science was sparked. Starting freshman year in high school I built my first computer. Since then I have slowly upgraded it to what can truly be called a battle station. Since then I knew I wanted to study computer science. 

   The reason I chose Kansas State to study computer science is because I love the atmosphere, people, and the facilities are all amazing. I feel very welcome here which was an impression I didn't initially get at other schools. I am very excited to expand on my knowledge of computer science here at Kansas State. I still do not know exactly what I want to do with what I learn, but I know it will be in this field. I really like the logic side of programming and enjoy finding a shorter way to doing different things. 

     My family consists of my parents, my younger sister, and myself. My Parents and I enjoy sailing as our main hobby. From a very early age I have been sailing. My Dad bought me my first boat for my 6th birthday. Within 2 months I was able to sail it by myself. When I was 8 I started going to a sailing school near our cottage in northern Michigan that my mom also learned how to sail at. I graduated form that program when I was 16 and have taught as an instructor there for the past 2 summers. I do a  lot of racing with sailing and that is where my passion for the sport is fueled from. I have placed very well at many regattas in the past including 2 state championships. I just recently won my first college regatta last weekend with the Kansas state sailing team that I have helped start this year. That was a very big achievement for me, and I'm really excited to travel to more regattas.

   Another hobby of mine is eSports. I play Counter:Strike Global:Offensive more than I would like to admit. I have been on multiple teams, and competed at Lan tournaments in the area. I really enjoy playing the game competitively and hope to make it onto the team here at K-State in the spring when I bring my desktop to school. I think it has taught me a lot about communication and teamwork especially when working with random people who I do not know. I think that i a really good skill that I have gained from playing so much.

The chapter I look forward most to learning about is chapter 5 Algorithms and Heuristics. Like I said before I really like the logic part of programming and am really excited to learn about that. An online source I check frequently is reddit, specifically r/technology. I really enjoy seeing all the new things invented each day and how they can change the world.