Hello, my name is Kevin Loeffler. I am passionate about education, science, and the maker movement. I am from Colorado, USA and work as a cyber research and development engineer in the space industry.
I hold a B.S. in Engineering Physics from the University of Colorado Boulder and graduated with high honors. While there I wrote an honors thesis on simulating ion Coulomb crystals at JILA, formerly the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics. I contributed to research that will help us come to understand chemistry in extreme environments. I minored in Electrical and Computer Engineering which I apply frequently in electronics projects. I am also a 2013 Boettcher Scholar.
My ambitions range from developing quantum computers, developing educational software, and designing new ways for people to access space to wanting to write novels and preserve Colorado’s history.
I am an avid writer and you can read my articles published in The Colorado Engineer magazine. There I wrote about equality in the sciences, exciting technological develoments, and how CU Boulder is leading the way in many key areas of research. I am a 2016 recipient of the Thompson Center for the American West’s Nonfiction Writing Contest. My submission was about the community of practice formed by Colorado’s Ute tribe. I am an avid history buff and a supporter of preservation.
I contribute to open source projects, including one that I turned into a community service project in Denver that has brought inexpensive (around $50) interactive whiteboards to several local schools which I installed and maintain myself. These systems use infrared light and Nintendo Wii remotes to let students interact with lessons via a computer and projector screen using special pens, letting them interact with their lessons like a video game. I developed training tools for educators as well as improving the project in response to user experiences.
In my free time I tinker with electronics, my 3D printer, and my desktop CNC. I love roller coasters and thrill rides and would love to build one someday. To date I have ridden 248 unique roller coasters throughout the United States and hope to one day break 1000. I collect and repair vintage computing hardware and scientific instruments.
Email: KevinMLoeffler@gmail.com
Twitter: @MakerNotInd
Adventures in Problemism 