iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

www.thetimes.com/world/asia/a... Quick thinking, courage, and decisive leadership. Rajendra Dadabi is an example of a good leader.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Finished Melanie Mitchell's book, Complexity: A Guided Tour. I hope she keeps this book up to date with future editions. #complexity

$Cover to Melanie Mitchell's book, Complexity: A Guided Tour There were some interesting concepts in the book like fractal networks, chaos theory, cellular automata, Kleiber's power law for metabolic rate, social and structural factors in game theory like tit-for-tat strategy & the prisoner's dilemma, Von Neumann's self-reproducing automaton, Turing machines, and logistic maps.$

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Yesterday, my child learned to swim by doggy paddling. It was so awesome to see. She is getting more comfortable being in the water, especially with her big jumps into the pool.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Finished the latest book in the Children of Time series by @aptshadow.bsky.social Quite the page turner. He wrote some really loathsome characters. I can think of a few people that could fit their profile. There was a line somewhere in the book that said, "there is always another way." I liked that.

Cover to Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Strife

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Finished Dr. Cecilia Laschi's book, Soft Robotics, yesterday. Good intro to soft robotics. I'm sure we'll see updated editions in the future. It would be cool to try to mimic mammalian tissue.

Cover to Cecilia Laschi's book, Soft Robotics

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Just finished Hannah Arendt's book, The Origins of Totalitarianism. This was a phenomenal book. I wonder what her writing process was. The writing was amazing and each sentence had significant weight. I wish her book was more well-known to the general public. #Arendt #politicaltheory

The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt cover

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

"The clearer the proof of their inability to treat stateless people as legal persons and the greater the extension of arbitrary rule by police decree, the more difficult it is for states to resist the temptation to deprive all citizens of legal status and rule them with an omnipotent police." - H.A.

Cover to Hannah Arendt's - The Origins of Totalitarianism

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

Graduated with my Masters degree in Computer Science yesterday. Now for some gardening and leisurely reading for a few weeks.

I am standing in a green graduation gown next to the George Mason statue.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

Presented my semester project today at my Human Robot Interaction course.

Me in a red shirt standing in front of my semester project poster

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

The Robotixx Lab with Dr. Gregory Stein's and Dr. Daigo Shishika's labs of George Mason University showcased their robots for Microsoft's Family Day in Reston, Virginia today. people.cs.gmu.edu/~gjstein/res... www.shishika.com robotixx.cs.gmu.edu

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Finished Gary Bengier's book, Unfettered Journey. I commend his effort in writing a novel; more than I have done. I thought that the story was hokey. I couldn't buy the characters and their emotions. It all seemed simple and a personal fantasy than a story I could believe in. I would pass on this.

Gary F. Bengier's cover of Unfettered Journey

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

Following Ian Millington's book on Game Physics Engine Development, I translated his fireworks C++ to rust. I am slowly learning how simulators work.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 29/11/2025

I just got the same 80s Care bear blanket I had when I was a toddler from Ebay. Now my toddler will have it.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

First time I've been drawn in a way that looks like a person versus a nebula of color. Left to right, a flower, the sun, me, and bebe. Proud moment.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 30/09/2025

Dr. Xuesu Xiao's Robotixx Lab at George Mason University

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 20/09/2025

Monarch butterfly hatched from its cocoon today. I wish could have seen it and that I had a camera that could catch these things.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

I had had this book on my shelf since 2019 and had yet to read it until now. It's a short read. I had high hopes for it when I got it. He didn't discuss creativity at all. He wrote that the humanities were incoherent but it was this book that was aimless. I do not recommend this book.

Cover to EO Wilson's The Origins of Creativity

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

Learned earlier tonight from the class rep that a classmate of ours, Cory Walls, passed away from cancer last Friday evening. He leaves behind his wife and three children. Cory graduated from the US Merchant Marine Academy in 2006 as a marine engineer and naval officer. He sailed as Chief Engineer.

Cory is third one from the right next to Ray Serzanin in the green John Deere hat.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 25/08/2025

I was able to finish up O'Brian's Post Captain early this morning before the Fall semester got rolling. It was a good read. Quite a bit of early 19th century English language and seadog slang to it. My favorite phrase from Aubrey on the HMS Polychrest was "Quick's the word and sharp's the action."

The cover to Patrick O'Brian's Post Captain. It shows a starboard side view of frigate that looks like its in Far East waters.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

Finished Arendt's, The Human Condition.It was an education. She argued that humanity is best served by having a plurality of voices engaged in face-to-face public conversations and to collaboratively act toward building a shared world that is durable in memory and living more than just for survival.

Hannah Arendt's book, The Human Condition
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GR-ftCJJyaQ

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 11/08/2025

Nature walk at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia with GMU Robotixx Lab and University of Catania Robotic Systems Group

Lab Hike at Harpers Ferry on the Maryland Heights Trail

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

Just happened to look out my kitchen window

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

These are the first vegetables I have ever grown.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 20/07/2025

Finished reading Dr. Edith Eva Eger's book, The Choice. I read it concurrently with Viktor Frankl's book. It felt like one complemented the other. I highly recommend this book. I believe this should be included in everyone's education. I heard about her on the Lives Well Lived podcast.

Dr. Edith Eva Eger's book, The Choice: Embrace the Possible.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00MQlFEA2Hg

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 19/07/2025

Just finished reading Viktor Frankl's book, Man's Search for Meaning. I need to ruminate on his thoughts on collective guilt. I believe he was ultimately right on opposing it. Singling out individuals for guilt is much harder. I wonder how much apathy or willful ignorance contributes to guilt.

Cover to Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

"National Socialism nurtured racism. In reality there are only two races, namely the 'race' of decent people and the 'race' of people who are not decent. And 'segregation' runs straight through all nations and within every single nation straight though parties. Even in the concentration camps one came across halfway decent fellows here and there among the SS men - just as one came across the odd scoundrel or two among the prisoners. Not to mention the Capos. That decent people are in the minority, that they have always been in the minority and are likely to remain so is something we must come to terms with Danger only threatens when a political system sends those not-decent people, i.e. the negative element of a nation, to the top. And no nation is immune from doing this, and in this respect every nation is in principle capable of a Holocaust!"

- Viktor Frankl in a memorial speech to mark the 50th anniversary of Hitler's invasion. March 10, 1988, Rathausplatz, Vienna, Austria

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 07/07/2025

Just finished reading @jmelendezbadillo.bsky.social's book on Puerto Rico. I knew nothing about this history. My only connection to the island is that half my DNA is from it and I have a few relatives there. I don't speak Spanish nor know any of its culture. It was an enlightening read.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 06/07/2025

Sunday morning run on the W&O to Sugarland trail

Stream with stepping stones across the paved trail

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

A monarch caterpillar on my milkweed plant. What a nice surprise.

A black, white, and yellow caterpillar on a milkweed plant

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

Finished reading @anilananth.bsky.social's book, Why Machines Learn. This was an excellent read. I feel that the context and history for which science develops helps my understanding. His prose and explanations were better than anything else I have yet to encounter in my Computer Science education.

Cover to Why Machines Learn by Anil Ananthaswamy

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

Brown-belted Bumble Bee, Bombus grisecollis, enjoying the milkweed flowers at our little garden.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

I feel like this intersection in Arlington near Mason Square should be a roundabout.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Biked to Arlington this afternoon to help with the Robotixx Lab move. Happy World Bicycle Day!

Urban Arrow cargo bike in front of Fuse building at Mason Square.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 29/05/2025

I think this is a woodpecker fledgling. Must have gotten blown out of tree and landed behind my car. Moved it to the grass with a garden tool. It’s gone now. Don’t know if it was a good or bad outcome for the little bird.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 24/05/2025

"For lying latent in all men are the remnants of long-ago males who where protectors before they were caretakers, caretakers before they were breadwinners or patriarchs, with bodies and brains responsive to the transformative power of babies." - S.B. Hrdy Finished this very interesting book today.

The cover to Father Time: A Natural History of Men and Babies by Sara Blaffer Hrdy.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

Earlier this month, my teammates and I completed the Unmanned Aerial Systems Prototyping short course at GMU's makerspace called the MIX. We built and operated a quadcopter. We also discussed business applications with aerial drones.

two quadcopters on a table with four undergraduate engineers and myself. The undergraduate engineers are a mix of freshmen and sophomore women in mechanical and electrical engineering.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

Finished Sarah Wynn-Williams book, Careless People. I can't say that I am surprised at the lack of moral character that people at Facebook/Meta exhibited. I just wonder if this is a microcosm of American society or is it the behavior of the untouchably wealthy across the globe? It's probably both.

Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sara Wynn-Williams. A memoir of the author's time at Facebook/Meta.

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David Abuín Eichinger @davideichinger.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

Went for a nice little trail run at Great Falls this afternoon.

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