8 Bit Bonanza:

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Zen and Preet, sophomores in electrical engineering, tackled the challenge of building an 8-bit computer during HackUMass two weekends ago.

Despite limited resources, they improvised by substituting unavailable components with alternatives found in their makerspace, leveraging datasheets, the internet, and ingenuity to make a working clock and data bus. This made their project stand out among the rest earning them an award!

They credit their success from the material they learned in ECE 124 and ECE 210.

“All the stuff we learned in 124 that I asked myself ‘where would I use this?’ I used in this project” remarked Preet.

The duo plans to keep working on their project, possibly adding features like an LCD display to show "Hello, World!"

After our talk about their project I asked if they had any words of wisdom for someone unsure about the frontier of electronics:

Preet shared, "The hardest part is just getting started."

Zen said, "There's no harm in learning from others' experiences as long as you truly understand what you're doing", then added "It takes focus and dedication, but the end result is worth it