Today is our last day in the beautiful country of Cyprus. It’s hard to imagine that it’s already been two weeks. But to wrap up the last day, we attended some very insightful lectures at the University of Nicosia. The first lecture was by Dr. Trihinas on data science. He explained how massive amounts of data can be generalized to create insights. There are four types: descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive. The insights provide value to businesses by allowing better decisions to be made based on data. Dr. Trihinas also explained the concept of machine learning. Essentially, a program learns patterns in data (training), from which it creates a model, that allows it to recognize and predict outputs in real data. Overall, this was probably my favorite and most interesting lecture. I thought it was very applicable, and I can see machine learning as a prominent tool in my career.
The second lecture of the day was about blockchain and crypto-assets by University of Nicosia CEO Mr. Polemitis. We began our discussion with databases, and how traditional databases have a weakness of having an administrator with total access. On the contrary, crypto-assets allow databases to be stored on the blockchain, which no one person “owns”. The information cannot be altered: a dean could not erase an entire university’s records, or a bank could not erase money from a person’s account. Of course, Mr. Polemitis explained how the technology was still in its early stages, but I can definitely see its important implications.
After saying goodbye to our friends at the University of Nicosia, we headed back to the hotel for free time. After lunch in the old town, I spent some time soaking up the sun on the balcony writing this post. It’s a very beautiful but bittersweet afternoon here in Nicosia. I’ve made many friends here, had the most amazing faculty and staff mentors, and made absolutely unforgettable memories on this beautiful island. I’m going to miss Cyprus dearly, but its spirit will not be forgotten: I’m already planning to host a Meze reunion in the fall at my apartment.
