CV

Education

Ph.D in Computer Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, current
B.S. in Computer Engineering, University of Idaho, 2019

Research experience

Summer 2022 - Current: Graduate Research Assistant
- People and Robots Laboratory
- Duties includes:
  - Performed human subject research by conducting interviews, transcribing audio, and performing qualitative and quantitative data analysis to gain insight into traumatic brain injury users’ experiences with conversational agents and social media.
  - Started and currently lead the Assistive Technologies for Down Syndrome project with one undergraduate mentee and one graduate student collaborator.
  - Conducted semi-structured interviews with six adults with Down syndrome, seven parents, and three experts to gain insight into technology usage and needs.
- Supervisor: Professor Bilge Mutlu
Fall 2021 - Summer 2022: Ph.D. Student Assistant
- Wisconsin Wireless and NetworkinG Systems (WiNGS) Laboratory
- Duties includes:
  - Simulated nonlinear chirp waveform models for low-power LoRa (Long Range) communication systems to increase the possible number of connected devices in a network.
  - Design and print custom PCB stacks for the MSP430 microcontroller to collect long term weather data.
- Supervisor: Professor Suman Banerjee
Summer 2018 - Spring 2019: Student Researcher
- University of Idaho
- Project name: Speech Pathology Application (Sponsored by Micron)
- Duties includes:
  - Developed a portable MySQL database with Java API to store child speech audio data for speech therapists and future artificial intelligence research.
  - Scheduled milestones, monitored reporting, communicated with clients, and performed technical design review presentations.
- Supervisor: Professor Feng Lee
Fall 2015 - Spring 2018: Project Manager and Technical Lead
- NASA Undergraduate Student Instrument Project
- Duties includes:
  - Managed a team of multi-disciplinary undergraduate students to design, build, test, and fly three payload systems on high-altitude and low-altitude balloon platforms.
  - Developed and tested atmospheric data collection, sensor communication, and data storage software for post-flight analysis.
  - Created and maintained research schedules that met NASA design review standards while overseeing a $200K budget.
- Supervisor: Professor Joseph Law

Work experience

Fall 2021 - Spring 2023: Teaching Assistant
- University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Duties includes:
  - Created, edited, and graded labs, assignments, quizzes, and tests for CS640: Introduction to Computer Networking in Fall 2021 and Spring 2022. Provided Java debugging support for assignments and labs.
  - Created, edited, and graded labs, assignments, quizzes, and tests for CS220: Data Science Programming 1, in fall 2022. Provided Python debugging support for assignments and labs.
  - Held weekly office hours for students to ask questions on class materials and assignments.
- Supervisor: Professor Suman Banerjee, Dr. Meenakshi Syamkumar
Summer 2019 - Summer 2021: Computer Engineer II and Lab Manager
- DCS Corporation
- Duties included:
  - Designed and developed a multiplayer game in QT/C++ for human-agent teaming research to study how reaction time differences occur under situations of risk and ambiguity.
  - Developed and tested a quantified uncertainty study in Qualtrics and Javascript to understand how information framing can enhance performance in computer-based training.
  - Developed a human teaming virtual environment task in Unreal Engine/C++ to gain insight into remote human teaming communication through stressful situations.
  - Managed the Innovation Commons lab space operations for Army Research Laboratories (ARL).
- Supervisor: Matthew Jaswa
Summer 2018 - Spring 2019: Firmware Engineering Intern
- Hewlett-Packard Incorporated (HP Inc.)
- Duties included:
  - Developed and tested memory configuration file generation command line tool for future print devices, increasing engineer productivity.
  - Performed unit, system, and engine testing on various developed printer firmware drivers.
- Supervisor: Alfredo Bravo Iniguez
Summer 2017: Engineering Intern on TechEdSat Project
- NASA Ames
- Duties included:
  - Practiced Cube Satellite design, integration, and NASA’s quality assurance procedures.
  - Participated in two professional presentations and published a scientific poster on the TechEdSat passive Exo-Brake for cube satellite atmosphere reentrance.
- Supervisor: Marcus Murbach

Grants and Awards

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program: April 2023
University of Wisconsin-Madison Fall Competition Grant: December 2023
Outstanding Senior, University of Idaho Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: May 2019
Computer Engineer of the Year, University of Idaho Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: May 2018
NASA Undergraduate Student Instrument Project Grant, $200,000: May 2016

Publications

SMART-TBI: Design and Evaluation of the Social Media Accessibility and Rehabilitation Toolkit for Users with Traumatic Brain Injury

Hu, Yaxin, et al. "SMART-TBI: Design and Evaluation of the Social Media Accessibility and Rehabilitation Toolkit for Users with Traumatic Brain Injury." arXiv preprint arXiv:2408.09683 (2024).

``It Is Easy Using My Apps:’’ Understanding Technology Use and Needs of Adults with Down Syndrome

Johnson, Hailey Lynn, Audra Sterling, and Bilge Mutlu. "" It Is Easy Using My Apps:" Understanding Technology Use and Needs of Adults with Down Syndrome." Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2024.

Investigating Day-to-day Experiences with Conversational Agents by Users with Traumatic Brain Injury

Hu, Yaxin, et al. "Investigating Day-to-day Experiences with Conversational Agents by Users with Traumatic Brain Injury." Proceedings of the 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. 2023.

Service and leadership

Lead People and Robots Lab Mentorship Program: Summer 2023 - current
Volunteer at Gigi’s Playhouse Madison: Summer 2022 - current

Hailey L Johnson

CV