Hello! My name is Jonathan and I'm a junior majoring in Mechanical Engineering at the University of California at Davis. In my engineering studies, there are a couple things that really fascinate me. One of them is thermodynamics and studying heat and other forms of energy. I hope to use this knowledge I am building to work in the energy engineering industry, contributing to a more sustainable future by designing more energy-efficient building systems.
The other topic I love studying is much more down to earth (albeit still along the theme of sustainability I suppose)- bicycles. As a UC Davis student, I get to ride my bike to class and around campus every day, and as a California resident, I enjoy access to world-class mountain biking trails. Being surrounded by bikes, I couldn't help but learn about these amazing mechanical systems that are impressively efficient at providing human-powered transportation. Of course, I've fixed many flats, but I've also been pushing beyond this surface-level experience over the past few years. With help from others, I've learned to adjust brakes and derailleurs and to replace spokes. I am also currently dissecting and reverse-engineering the rear derailleur on one of my bikes to better understand how it works and investigate if there are any opportunities for design improvements.
Here is that derailleur after disassembly. Who would've thought there are so many pieces to a relatively simple part!
And here is my mountain bike. You can't tell from this photo, but the chain has become very rusty and dirty from riding through mud. I plan to make a guide showing how to remove the chain from the bike and deep clean it, as a form of preventative maintenance.