The Communication Networks Institute participated in the Research Internships in Science and Engineering (RISE) program in 2009. RISE is an internship program initiated and funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) offered to students from the US and UK. Two students from the US and another two students from the UK got the internship and attended the department during the course of summer 2009. Here are some impressions from this year’s RISE program at CNI and the RISE project outlines.

The attendees in 2009:

• George Todoro – The Cooper Union – New York (US)
• Providing Real-Time Multimedia Communication Services In Fast Moving Vehicles for NGNs
• James Fitzpatrick – George Washington University – Washington DC (US)
• iPhone Service Development for an Electric Consumption Monitoring Application
• Ximuto Dos Santos – Newcastle University – Newcastle (UK)
• iPhone Service Development for an Electric Consumption Monitoring Application
• John Harris – Bristol University – Bristol (UK)
• Outdoor performance evaluation of wireless relay networks for emergency services

James Fitzpatrick Impressions

The overall experience during my RISE internship in Germany was exceptional. It was my first time being here and I really did not know what to expect from the people to the academics. The trip allowed me to experience a different culture compared to the USA and gain avaluable amount of knowledge along the way.

My family in the US had previously housed two German students who were brothers over the course of 2 years. I was very fortunate to be able to stay with their family during my stay. The family lived very close to TU Dortmund where my internship took place. The hospitality from my hostfamily was nothing short than great. They helped me settle in and always offered to help on any minor problem that occurred.

The communications engineering department at TU Dortmund offered a great staff of friendly PhD candidates and other students.There was a great sense of community in the department which I find lacking in many US universities. The faculty was always available to explain and answer any questions pertaining to the research material or even on German social life too. The research project was thoroughly planned out with an opening presentation that laid down the projected goals for the internship. There was always constant communication between the project moderators and students working on projects in the department to ensure the project stayed on track throughout the two months.

The detailed area of research was in mobile communication, specifically with the Apple iPhone. Another student and I worked on a mobile application that graphed accumulated data from a smart meter that was stored in a remote database. The iPhone would communicate with a server to retrieve newly added data and update the application accordingly. I had no prior experience in iPhone development and I gained an extreme amount of knowledge after the completion of project.

The communications department also showed the participating RISE students great social opportunities in the Dortmund area. Some events included attending a match in Dortmund’s stadium and going out to local restaurants.

Ultimately, I have no negative comments about my stay in Germany. It was an extremely rewarding experience, both academically and socially, and I hope to return in the future for either research or continuing my studies.

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