Blog posts

Data Visualization at Imperial’s Data Observatory: Unveiling Insights Beyond the Surface

Hi, I’m Sharia, a third-year MEng Computing student at Imperial. I was raised in Tehran, Iran, and I’ve always had a passion for music. I enjoy playing Flamenco guitar and the traditional Persian instrument, the Tar. In my free time, I like to stay active by playing basketball, and I also enjoy CTF challenges.


In a recent visit to Imperial’s Data Observatory, I embarked on a journey through the realms of data visualization that left me profoundly enlightened. Nestled within the heart of the Department of Computing, the observatory is a beacon of innovation where data transcends mere numbers to reveal intricate patterns and unseen insights.

The Data Observatory is the largest of its kind in Europe, it features an enveloping circular wall of 64 monitors powered by 32 computers facilitating 313 degrees of surround vision. Over 130 million pixels make up the total screen resolution, allowing participants to experience big data like never before.

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High Speed Rail (Data): Querying Train Prices with C++

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m in the second year of Computing. In my free time I enjoy studying foreign languages, playing water polo and doing Competitive Programming. This year I’m behind Imperial CyberSoc and CTF Team. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!Hamish photo


A few months ago, I took the train to Oxford with a school-friend. Rolling through the picturesque Chilterns, the sun streaming through the window, and as the fans of GBRJ that we are, we proposed visiting more UK cities by train. Yet, existing booking sites wouldn’t let us sort destinations by price. Fine, we thought: a bit of programming will solve this. It also happened to explain a long-running enigma why UK train prices seem so random: 

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Second-Year Projects – WACC and PintOS

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m in the second year of Computing. In my free time I enjoy studying foreign languages, playing water polo and doing Competitive Programming. This year I’m behind Imperial CyberSoc and CTF Team. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!Hamish photo


Amongst computing students there is a definite consensus that the second-year projects of WACC (writing a compiler from scratch) and PintOS (adding features to a barebones OS in C) are among the most formative experiences of the degree, though we haven’t had a blog post on them, so I want to give an overview of this term and last, and what I’ve learned (incredibly hard to sum up in only a few hundred words!) 

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Internships for First Years!

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m in the second year of Computing. In my free time I enjoy studying foreign languages, playing water polo and doing Competitive Programming. This year I’m behind Imperial CyberSoc and CTF Team. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!Hamish photo


It’s no secret that internships are the most common method of tech graduate recruitment, with nearly all Imperial students undertaking one before graduating. Nonetheless, the success rate in acquiring a first-year placement is lower, as firms often prefer students closer to graduation.

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Perk-ademy Awards 2022-23

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m a first-year student in Computing at Imperial. I like programming, Linear Algebra and modern foreign languages. I play water polo for IC 2s and hope to represent Imperial in Competitive Programming next year. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!Photo of Hamish


In a previous post on reasons to be happy I mentioned the perpetually puzzling fact that people actually want to hire us (!), but not the important ramifications of this.

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Min-Maxing your Groceries and other Computing Problems

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m a first-year student in Computing at Imperial. I like programming, Linear Algebra and modern foreign languages. I play water polo for IC 2s and hope to represent Imperial in Competitive Programming next year. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!Photo of Hamish


Often while wandering around doing whatever students do, I discover a relationship to what I’ve learnt in Algorithms or Competitive Programming, so I wanted to share some cases I’ve thought about recently where computing is Here To Help with student life.

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n Reasons to be Happy in Imperial Computing

Hi, I’m Hamish; I’m from Watford, UK, and I’m a first-year student in Computing at Imperial. I like programming, Linear Algebra and modern foreign languages. I play water polo for IC 2s and hope to represent Imperial in Competitive Programming next year. Let’s connect on LinkedIn!


As is to be expected at this time of year, the Imperial exam season is well underway, which could be a source of worry for many students, whether fretting about achieving top marks or just hoping to pass onto next year. Therefore, I think now is a great time to take a break from revision and share my top n reasons to be happy in DoC. Writing this in my room in Imperial’s Kemp Porter Buildings I feel genuinely overcome with positivity, so why is that? Let’s dive in:

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From Programming Languages to Modern Foreign Languages and back again with Imperial Horizons

Hi, I’m Hamish, a first-year student in MEng Computing (Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning). So far this year I’ve enjoyed discovering set theory in our discrete maths module and learning to build a processor in Computer Systems, while at the moment I’m relishing Kotlin. I particularly like honing my competitive programming skills through algorithmic problem solving, and outside of my degree I play water polo once a week.


One of my most eye-opening experiences in secondary school was learning foreign languages. Having limited experience of Spanish from primary school (merely memorisation of set phrases), I was amazed and delighted to uncover a world of well-defined grammar rules, enabling me to construct my own sentences and express myself.
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What it is like to be a first year Computing student at Imperial

Dhruv-JimuliaHi! I’m Dhruv, and I’m a first-year Computing undergraduate here at Imperial. I was born and raised in India and recently moved to London for my higher education. I love meeting new people and I enjoy playing the keyboard in my free time.


As someone who is currently revising for (read: rewatching entire lectures and stressing about) my end-of-year May examinations, I thought this would be a great time to share my experience of studying first-year Computing at Imperial. Jokes apart, I think my experiences at the Department of Computing will really help incoming students and prospective students (and others of you reading this) understand what an Imperial Computing degree is like. (more…)

So what about job searching in DoC?

Hi! I’m Chloe, a Final Year BEng Computing student at Imperial! Coming from a Hong Kong and Welsh background, I’m a very diverse person and I like to meet new things and people! I also dabble into various branches of Technology – currently some NLP and Computational Linguistics for my final year project.

In DoC, many of us are very career-focused, it’s great knowing how everyone is doing, and that there isn’t much competition within the department, everyone is helping everyone to reach further. We also have DoCSoc and DoC Opportunity Liaisons, which loop us in available job opportunities. If you need help with applications, just ask a mate within the degree, they will be able to provide a steady number of application sites 🙂

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