Amanda Guan, SEAS ’27, Asbury Park, NJ
This summer, I had the amazing opportunity to conduct research under Professor Benjamin Lee at Penn. I’m extremely grateful for the 2024 Career Services Summer Funding Grant for allowing me to pursue this opportunity. I first gained an interest in working on a project involving computer hardware after taking the Intro to Computer Systems course. Previously, my interest had been focused on software, but this course gave me my first proper introduction to the world of hardware, sparking a desire to learn more about hardware and how software interacts with it. Professor Lee’s lab was the perfect place to do just that.
My research project was focused on analyzing the power draw of machine learning workloads when running on GPUs. The primary goal was to identify power provisioning strategies that GPU data centers can use to increase power efficiency. This project was particularly appealing to me because I had done work with machine learning before, including running models on GPUs, but my focus had been entirely on the side of designing the models. Now, I had the chance to turn my attention to another equally important aspect of machine learning while considering the ever-important issue of sustainability.
I gained a lot of valuable technical knowledge through this project. Whereas previously all I would see when looking at a GPU server was a hunk of metal that miraculously works, now I can identify many of its components. I increased my familiarity with using Bash to automate tasks as I wrote scripts to run machine learning workloads. I learned how to use tools such as Nvidia-smi to interact with Nvidia GPUs, both receiving performance data and adjusting device settings. I also gained experience working with machine learning benchmark libraries, including understanding the code these libraries are written in and working through issues when running them.
Beyond just the technical side, this summer gave me valuable insight into the world of academic research. I was able to meet and talk to other professors and older students and hear about the research they were working on. From Professor Lee’s feedback and advice, I gained an understanding of the flow of a research project and how to plan out next steps. I increased my presentation skills as I gave overviews of what I had accomplished during weekly group meetings. I loved being immersed in such a rich research environment.
One of my favorite memories is sitting in on a meeting where three professors bounced research ideas back and forth. It was amazing to just listen to three experts in their fields discussing ideas, and I could feel their passion for their research. I’m constantly considering whether I’m interested in pursuing higher education, and while I haven’t yet answered this question, this summer has definitely provided experience that will help me make this decision.
I enjoyed my time in the lab so much that I plan on continuing into the school year. The work I did over the summer has provided valuable groundwork that I hope to continue building upon throughout the year. I’m excited to see where my research takes me.
This is part of a series of posts by recipients of the 2024 Career Services Summer Funding Grant. We’ve asked funding recipients to reflect on their summer experiences and talk about the industries in which they spent their summer. You can read the entire series here
