Hello, everyone! My name is Omar Montasser. I am an international student from Libya. I grew up in Tripoli, Libya and I currently live at State College, PA. I speak both Arabic and English. I am currently a senior studying Computer Engineering. I like solving algorithmic problems which is why I would like to pursue a career that involves lots of problem solving. There are still lots of unsolved problems in theoretical Computer Science and ultimately I would like to contribute to a solution to one of these problems. I am taking this class not only to satisfy a degree requirement but also to learn more about the effects of geography on us, humans. Moreover, I am interested in learning more about how we can optimize our use of natural resources while minimizing the negative effects on the environment around us. Besides that, I enjoy trying food from different cuisines, I especially like Italian and Middle-Eastern foods.

One issue that is of particular interest to me is using geography to understand spatial patterns. For example, we could study the correlation of geography and demographics. More specifically, how geography affects demographics. I think visualizing demographics on maps can help us detect how location characteristics affect demographics. Furthermore, such an issue could be investigated at different scales. We could investigate how demographics change on a continent-level, country-level within a continent, city-level within a country, etc. Understanding how geography affects demographics is important because it can help us identify factors that contribute to certain geographic locations having poor demographics such as high poverty rates.