Sonika Vuyyuru

I am a recent graduate of UC Berkeley where I double majored in Computer Science and Cognitive Science.

I've interned at NASA Glenn Research Center, Multiply Labs, and OpenBCI.

I am interested in deep learning, artificial intelligence, and the nature of the mind and consciousness. Beyond my academic pursuits, I am passionate about teaching and working to address the issue of educational inequities, especially in STEM, and building a community to initiate positive change.

Outside of the classroom, you can find me reading (currently reading Carl Sagan's The Varieties of Scientific Experience), listening to podcasts (some favorites include This American Life and Very Bad Wizards), playing tennis, or running.

svuyyuru@berkeley.edu / Resume / Github

Research

I am interested in research questions at the intersection of deep learning, theoretical neuroscience, and neurotechnology.

Transient Optimization of an Electrified Gas Turbine Engine Using Machine Learning

Jonathan S. Litt, Jonathan L. Kratz, Sonika Vuyyuru, Marcus A. Horning

Paper

Using machine learning with a genetic algorithm to concurrently optimize the electric machine power command and fuel flow acceleration schedule for an updated, higher fidelity version of the AGTF30 electrified gas turbine engine model.

Supervised Dynamical Components Analysis

Neural Systems and Data Science Lab, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Building off of previous work on Dynamic Components Analysis that explicitly maximizes the dynamic complexity in the data using predictive information, rather than variance like traditional PCA, to find subspaces of past neural data that have maximal mutual information with subspaces of future behavior data.

Projects

EMG Controlled Tetris

RISC-V CPU in Verilog

EECS101 AI Chatbot

Concentration Controlled Helicopter

Audio Convolutions and Markov Chains

Convolutional Neural Network from Scratch for MNIST Classification

Outreach

An important part of my academic journey has been teaching and working towards addressing the issues of educational inequities. I have had many mentors and teachers who have given me invaluable support and guidance, and it is important to me to hold that door open for others.

Below are some organizations and projects I have taken on that allow me give back to my community in various ways, each with a focus on education.

Teaching Assistant, AddisCoder Summer 2024

Undergraduate Student Instructor, CS61C Spring 2024
Undergraduate Student Instructor, CS61C Fall 2023
Undergraduate Student Instructor, CS61C Spring 2023

Course Staff Tutor, CS61C Fall 2022

Course Academic Intern Tutor, CS61BL Summer 2021

Photography

I love the geometry and challenge of composition. I also enjoy capturing my experience of a place and conveying a specific emotion in just one frame. For me, photography is a tool to reach a deeper appreciation of the subject. Taking photos at my favorite places forces me to slow down and appreciate things I might not have otherwise seen. Check out more of my work on Instagram @photosbysonika

This page has been accessed at least times since November 12, 2024.

Adapted from Jon Barron website.