Note: I am also interested in anything found on my Favorites page.

Academic Interests

My research interests are shaped by my vision of where I see the Computer Science field moving. Usability is quickly becomeing more important than efficiency, so I believe that Artificial Intelligence and its related sub-fields are going to become exponentially more important over the next few decades. Specifically, I am interested in intelligent software agents and multi-agent systems, machine learning, natural language processing, and neural networks.

My other interests include compiler and programming language design, web-based application design, internet protocols for increased client/server interactivity, and networking in general.

Computer Game Programming

You'd think I spend enough time at the keyboard being a Computer Science student, but the more I learn in class the more excited I get about using it out of class. Computer games are what made me fall in love with computers, and I've been programming them since I was in middle school. Check out my Favorites page for a list of my favorite games.

Choral Singing

I got into choral singing in high school. I started off singing Tenor, but later changed to Bass. I can still sing Tenor when I need to, and usually do when singing in the various church choirs I sing with. My high school choir (John Carroll Catholic, Birmingham Alabama), under the direction of Ken Berg, was nationally recognized, and we went to several competitions and conventions where we won awards every time. My senior year we and various choir alumni toured Eastern Europe (St. Petersburg, Russia; Helsinki, Finland; and Talin, Estonia), which was the most amazing trip of my life bar none. At Loyola I sing in the University Chorus whenever I can fit it into my schedule.

In a large choir, I like to sing the big warhorse classical pieces... usually something by Mozart or a composer of similar merit. In a small group, I prefer contemporary spirituals or novelty a-capella pieces. My favorite composer is Roy Swingle.

Cooking

I love to cook! This is a hobby that was born of necessity (Loyola's cafeteria leaves something to be desired), but eventually became an interest. My mom is an excellent cook, so in college I have been unable to settle for packaged food and instant stuff. I tend to cook by look (as opposed to smell or taste)... which is a strange way of doing things, but I find looking at food to be the best indicator of what it needs. Most of my recipes are based around inexpensive, relatively easy to prepare food. My specialties are my lettuce wraps and fried burritos, but I have been known to get as gourmet at coconut fried shrimp and fried prokchops stuffed with brie and bacon.

Dungeons and Dragons

My sophomore roommate and I took this up as a hobby while in exile during Hurricane Katrina. Despite being a computer guy, I still appreciate a good table top game that doesn't involve any computers. D&D is a great creative outlet because it is so open-ended. I spend a lot of time DM'ing, which means that I write the stories that the players follow during the game. I also founded the Loyola University Gaming Society, a club for playing D&D and other such games.

Movies!

I collect movies... primarily fantasy and science fiction. Check out my Favorites page for a list of my favorites.

The WePlayHere Community

This is a web community based around the games and forums at www.weplayhere.com. I founded a group of players there which is now the oldest active Dinky Bomb clan on the site, and through it I have made some great friends. My screenname on the games and forums is L4E_WakaMol-King.

The Interactive Fiction Community

Interactive Fiction is genera of computer games which puts the player in control of a character within a developing story. Games like this are usually text-based, and have the feeling of reading a good adventure book. This is a new interest of mine, but I have already fallen in love with the community that has sprung up around the games and on ifMUD, where you can find me under the name StephenW.