Hey how's it going?
Hello! Thats a good question. I think I am passionate about education and about helping people overcome addiction and disease. I'm good how are you today?
Ooh, that's a really good one.
Been in the chat game for long?
I'm good! For me probably helping refugees Not too long, no
Thats a good one too. There are a lot of refugees in Utah that need the help.
What about you?
I just started this round. So not that long either. But I'm determined to win it.
Cool Yeah? How's it going for you so far?
Haha Pretty good. What about yourself?
I dunno if I'm really trying to win, it just looked fun, I'll at least get enough point to get in the raffle and then see how it goes from there
Yeah thats a good plan. They raffle off some good prizes! So do you know any refugees or what makes you interested in that cause?
I'm not really sure how it started, honestly, I guess just from reading the news and stuff, it's just crazy how many refugees there are in the world right now, Like the numbers are insane
Yeah I'm not even sure how many there are but I know it's a big problem. And I'm not sure of too many programs available to help them. It's definitely a need that needs fillin filling
And I had to do a research project on some current event for an English class a couple years ago, and I chose refugees and what's being done to help them worldwide, And that got me even more interested
OH nice. Gotta love those english projects. I know there is a place up in salt lake where you can go and they just have service projects that you can do for the refugees.
There was also a really cool family in my home ward that was from Rwanda that I got to hear a bit of their story , and it's kind of crazy Oh yeah? That's cool! I'll have to look it up What about you? Why addiction and disease?
Yeah! I'm sure they have some crazy stories. It's amazing the faith and dedication they have though. Good question! Well just like the numbers are insane for refugees, they are also insane for addiction and disease. Heart Disease is the biggest cause of death in America, and it's mostly preventable. Addiction is another huge problem.
That's definitely true Yeah for sure
I'm not sure on the exact numbers for addiction but just drive down I-15 and youll see billboard talking about the Opioid Epidemic
Oh yeah that's a huge thing that's just barely getting addressed, I feel like Like it's been a problem for a long time but people are just barely starting to talk about it
What's really sad is that a lot of the problems with addicction lead to suicice, which is just tragic and can totally be prevented if there is help. True.
My dad is actually trying to start this research study with using a medication that helps with opiod addictions, and using it to help people with pornography addictions
Thats really cool! What is his job?
Haha he teaches accounting at BYU actually, so you wouldn't think that would be connected to addiction or anything, but a lot of the research he does is with psychology It's really cool though, there's like this nasal spray that basically shuts off all the dopamine receptors in your brain temporarily, so you're unable to get pleasure from
Oh cool! Yeah that is interesting that he has different interests. But Accounting is sweet. I took an accounting class and really liked it. So is this nasal spray the one that he is doing research on?
taking opioids, so you take it, and it helps you quit the drugs because they don't do anything for you anymore
Yeah thats sweet.
Mmhm. I don't know a ton about it, but that's the idea. And just using that, and seeing if the same principle will help porn addicts
Yeah that would definitely help Porn addicts. I've actually thought about starting a free email subscription service that sends porn addicts an email every day with motivation motivational tips to quit and stuff And just like stories of strength and ideas on how to focus your mind on other things
Oh yeah? That would be way way cool Have you ever heard of fight the new drug? They do a lot of cool stuff with fighting porn addictions
Sometimes you just need to feel like someone is there by your side when you are trying to quit an addictive behavior. It can be very difficult. Yeah I have heard of them!
Yeah exactly. And that can be one of the hardest things because it's so perrsonal, and usually no one knows about it, so if you don't tell anyone, you really don't have anyone
I haven't looked at too much of their stuff but it seems like they are doing a really good work in that field and helping a lot of people to overcome it. And just raising awareness. Yeah very true.
Yeah exactly. I did a service project with them one time and helped out at a fundraiser they were doing, and it was really cool
Oh sweet. I wonder if they are a utah based organization
I'm pretty sure they are, yeah
Yeah thats awesome. I'm glad people are working on noble tasks and goals to improve the world.
I think raising awareness is one of the biggest things, because people are going to be a lot more likely to talk about it and get help if they don't feel like they're alone Yeah me too So how's your morning going? Do you have any fun plans for the weekend?
I totally agree with that. It's going pretty good. I'm just out playing with the baby. Later today my wife and I are going to a little family get together and maybe a baby shower for one of her friends. what about you? Have any fun plans?
Oh that's so fun! And not a whole lot, just getting caught up on homework mostly, and I might go to a party tonight with some friends
Are you going to any of the games? Partying is fun! I remember when I used to party haha now I change diapers.
Hahaha
That's kinda a joke. I love being a dad
That's so cool :) how old is your baby?
He is 6 months old!
Cute! That's awesome. Is is hard to balance school and everything with being a dad? And no I don't think I'm going to any of the games, but maybe if my friends are going haha
Yeah it's definitely a challenge. But its so fun and it's just really nice to have a family. You know like I come home from school every day and it's like my people you know. No more dating and wondering who likes me and what the girls are thinking and if it's gonna work out.
Yeah, man that sounds really really nice Kind of peaceful. I mean I'm sure life is still crazy, because when is it not, but that's a nice stability to have
Yeah it really is. Sometimes when you are like in the whole dating game wondering how you life will end up it's stressful. But if you are just patient and keep at it eventually you find your person and everthing works out and it's great thats not to say that it's all easy all the time. It's work for sure but it's work with a purpose and its really fufilling
Find your person, haha I like that Yeah definitely. It's good to hear that from someone further along in life than me, it's kind of hopeful. Thanks
It's very true though! And like I'm still pretty young, I'm only 23. But I just think why would anyone want to put off the blessings of a family. I mean obviously you Oh no problem. Yeah I'm always wanting to encourage others I was saying you can't control everything. Like everyone is on a different timeline. But of what you can control definitely think family should be a top priority
Oh definitely. And the blessings from it are  a lot further reaching than the blessings from just about anything else in life, ya know Yeah definitely. That's really true
They are. Sometimes its hard to imagine. But knowing that you can be with your family forever is such a blessing for sure. I just feel like life wouldn't make sense if it wasn't that way though
Oh yeah, totally. It's hard to imagine not knowing that, it would change the way I view everything, and it's just not as  hopeful an outlook without that knowledge So are you still in school? What are you studying?
Totally. Yeah I'm in school still. I graduate in April in Exercise Science and then hopefully will get into dental school and go off to do that. What about you? What are you Studying in school?
Oh cool! I actually just talked to someone on here yesterday who was studying exercise science too
Yeah it's a popular major! I think it's the biggest one on BYU Campus. Strange that it would be but I guess a lot of Pre Med people do it.
So I'm trying to get into the commercial music program right now, I'm applying for that this winter. I'm also minoring in CS
OH cool my brother is thinking about doing that!
Oh yeah, that makes sense
So what is it about the Commercial Music Program that you like? And why CS?
Oh yeah? That's awesome! Yeah it's a really fun program, I'm really hoping to get in. It's super competitive though
I didn't know it was so competitive. What do you mostly learn in it? Like Recording and stuff?
I just really love writing music, I've been doing it for as long as I can remember. I've played piano my whole life, and I've just always enjoyed making stuff up. And I like t the technology side of music too, like audio engineering and production, and I'd love to learn more about that too It's kind of just everything in the music industry. Everything from singing/songwriting, to music business, film composing, sound design, audio production, just everything
You play piano? Me too! Thats sweet that you like to record and stuff. I definitely think it's super cool and would like to learn it one day as maybe a hobby. But right now
Like there's a ton of different emphases you can choose from within the program, and I'm not really sure what direction I'd want to go yet
I'm just too busy. But yeah that sounds really fun. And Computer Science is cool too. Why are you minoring in that? Cause like I think learning how to code would be a super useful skill.
Yeah, it's really fun. You should definitely try it if you ever have time! Life is crazy though, I feel you I really enjoy programming and learning more about that, honestly I wish I could double major in CS and commercial music but that would be way too much to do at once, haha I just got way into it in high school, I took an AP computer science class and for a project me and two friends programmed a neural network from scratch that can recognize han
Yeah. I mean you can learn anything online nowadays. So maybe later I will take some courses. Oh yeah I feel you a double major would be crazy. I have a major and minor too
handwritten numbers, which sounds simple but it was way hard. But that's what kind of made me fall in love with it
and it's a ton of work. Oh thats sweet. How does it work? Like I woulnd't even know where to begin
So basically it breaks down the image into each of its pixels, it's a 28x28 pixel image so 784 pixels, and then it generates output by running it through a ton of math etc, and when it starts out, the output is basically random. But then it runs a cost function to figure out HOW wrong it is,
That sounds really complicated.
and it updates a bunch of parameters in the formulas to be sliightly more correct for the next run through. So you train it like that and eventually the output gets more and m more correct It is, yeah, but I really enjoy it haha What are you minoring in?
Sounds crazy. I'm astounded at how people can do that. And like make the AI. Like even this contest to study human chat and make a Robot that speaks more like a human. Like it amazes me the technology we have created. I'm minoring in Business Management. I just like all the business classes and I think it's useful knowledge Especially because I want to own my own dental practice so I will basically be running my own business and having that background will be beneficial
Oh nice! That's awesome, that's definitely a really useful minor for anyone, I feel like everyone can benefit from those skills What's your favorite class you've taken as part of that?
True! probably accounting or the entrepreneurship lecture series. That one was where a bunch of entrepreneurs came in and talked to us about how they started their businesses and what they learned. so it was super chill and really educational and an easy A. It was a win win class. I definitely recommend it. It's only one credit.
Hey that's way cool! I'll keep that in mind Starting your own dental practice would be really cool. Do most dentists do that, or do some join existing practices?
I'd say it depends. You can start your own but it's a lot of risk and you have to put up all the money. Some join existing ones as a partner and some join bigger corporate offices. I'm thinking about maybe starting in an existing one to save money and pay back the loans but then later on starting my own. Once I have more experience and money to fund it.
Gotcha. That's really cool though, to have that as a long-term goal Do you know where you're gonna go for medical school after you graduate?
Thanks! Yeah it's good to plan long term the hard part is figuring out how to get there. I'm hoping to go to Arizona to a school called Midwestern. Thats where our parents live and it would be nice to be close by especially while having kids to get help. And because I'll be very busy in school my wife will have people to hang out with. And the kids will get to know their grandparents and cousins more.
Oh that's awesome! That sounds perfect, to be able to balance family and school priorities so nicely like that
Yeah I'm really hoping we can go there.
Also, I should probably start on the homework I have to do today, but it's been great talking!
Yeah okay! Good luck with that! It was good talking! I wish you well! Bye!