Malin Dhamsara

Everything began the day the first set of batteries for my remote-controlled toy car died. I suppose every child might disassemble their car to find ways to repower it. I did the same, and found no solution, but realized the batteries were the actual problem. Rubbing the batteries on the floor to heat them up was the intrusive thought I acted on. Yes, it worked for a few seconds and went off again. Batteries were expensive, I couldn't cry in front of my parents, and it was no fun. My next thought was to disassemble the car and run it with less power. So, I removed the wheels and the motor to run it with a single battery (without any load). As I recall, that was my first learning experience.

Around 10 years of age, I had become quite familiar with Windows XP on the desktop computer sitting in our living room. I had learned about the network stack and had set up a working internet connection paired via serial to an SLT Citylink (CDMA) phone. And yes, it loaded Google in Internet Explorer, even though I had to click through a hundred dialog boxes with red crosses just to open it. Quite a few years later, another laptop came in (my dad's office laptop), and I had the audacity to upgrade it from Windows XP to Windows 7 because I had had enough of XP and Internet Explorer. By then, most websites recommended Firefox for a better website experience, and that's how I found my comfortable spot. A few years later, my parents needed another laptop, and I had the experience and entitlement to choose one from Liberty Plaza, Kollupitiya, Colombo, where I picked out a Windows 10 machine. After a year, the laptop was entirely mine to use. I eventually had enough of Windows 10 bugs (blue screens) and installed Linux, specifically Kali. (Something in me liked it, since hacking was given a rebellious yet regarded value in society).

I studied ICT for my O/Levels and had to do some Pascal programming. However, Linux wasn't comfortable for programming in Pascal because the popular IDEs were not available. Therefore, I had to run a dual-boot setup, switching back and forth during ICT class. By then, I had received a used Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, where I tried out and experimented with useless stuff (but it was fun), unknowingly learning Python in the process. At this stage, I was a full Linux user with Ubuntu and Fedora experience, as well as an open-source enthusiast.

After my O/Levels, sparked by curiosity, I wanted to learn what AI was and started a ball-following robot project. Using online tutorials and my Raspberry Pi 2 Model B, I was able to complete the project and show my parents. They were genuinely happy to see it. Even though this was a really small and simple project, it gave my brain an understanding of what AI can be and what it looks like.

By the time I finished my A/Levels, I received a result I wasn't even expecting. For the entire A/Level period, I had followed the syllabus in a very lenient manner, spending most of my time on the computer creating secure tunnels (V2Ray, Shadowsocks, Trojan) for over 100 people who needed them. At this stage, I had obtained the GitHub Student Developer Pack using my school report card and hosted DigitalOcean VMs to sell these tunnels, which indeed satisfied my financial needs for junk food and endless sugar. Docker came into play when I became too lazy to configure VMs over and over again with the same setup. By then, I had developed a solid understanding of how Docker works and what it is used for. I wrote a couple of micro-software programs to accommodate my laziness, such as a Telegram bot (TeleXray) to automatically create configurations, and much more. The A/Level results surprised me because I achieved 2 As (ICT and SFT) and a B (ET) in the Technology Stream, ranking 96th on the whole island.

Now I faced a specific choice. I was sufficiently skilled in both electronics and computers, but the trend for software engineering was through the roof due to the COVID-19 lockdowns. That pushed me into selecting ICT at the Faculty of Technology, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. I know I am not a person who writes exams well. I often mess them up but I had to take this opportunity. Eventually, I got into IEEE volunteering and joined a dozen organizing committees to learn about people, communication, and leadership. The Gavel Club was also a place that gave me good vibes and a sense of community to help build my public speaking skills.

During my undergrad period, my first hackathon experience was CryptX 1.0, hosted by my own faculty, where my team and I were finalists. After that, I participated in multiple hackathons and recently joined the Cursor Buildathon, placing 2nd in the n8n track. My first CTF experience also ended successfully; we emerged as 2nd Runners-up in Medusa 2.0, a popular CTF competition organized by the University of Kelaniya.

I have always operated and thought like an engineer, breaking down complex parts and reassembling them to solve problems. Constant learning and curiosity have fueled me in the best possible way. My motivation for learning, making mistakes, and building things has never changed, and hopefully won't change in the future. This drive will support me in helping humanity in a modern yet technological way. :)