I’m Jacob, a rising college freshman and here’s my blog!

I’m an avid card game player, gamer, and student. I also play CTFs for .;,;. AresX and am an incoming freshman at the University of Michigan majoring in computer science and business administration! In this blog I tend to write about my interests, in particular, about subjects at the intersection of business and computer science. Hopefully there’s something you’ll find interesting in here!

The Case for Business and Computer Science

What draws me to each? For those interested in business, why you should also try out engineering For engineers, why business is also important Conclusion It seems pretty counterintuitive to talk about the junction of business and computer science. No two disciplines seem to be more at odds with each other than these two. As someone whose grown up interested in business and who has an older brother studying computer science, I’ve probably heard most common insults at least once at our dinner table....

July 14, 2024 · 5 min

TJCTF24 Crypto Writeups

Weird-Crypto [151 solves, 118 points] Hulksmash [23 solves, 229 points] This past weekend, I competed in TJ CTF 2024 with my friends at Slith3r. It was a pretty fun CTF although I wasn’t able to spend the full time focused on the competition. I’m just going to be writing about 2 of the Crypto challenges and the overall thought process when solving them. Weird-Crypto [151 solves, 118 points] Here’s the given source code...

May 20, 2024 · 5 min

DECA qualifying business classes. Which ones should I take?

Introduction to Marketing Advanced Marketing AP Economics Personal Finance Accounting Business Law Closing Thoughts Before I start, I wanted to mention how this is the 4th and last article I’m writing for Newport DECA. What started as a joke as to how I’d contribute to the DECA Debrief has become one of the many ways I’ve been able to share my passions in business with others (Credit to Songling for suggesting the great name “JC Hot Takes”)....

May 20, 2024 · 7 min

My 4 years of High School Business and the Lessons I've Learned

Table of Contents DECA Stock Market Personal Finance Internships Personal Projects Summer Programs School Courses Career Interviews Work Experience Conclusion For many interested, business as a field of study has some inexplicable draw to it. No matter what interests I pursue, what hobbies I partake in, business has always been a part of my life. I think that’s in part due to how society (at least in America) is, with its capitalistic nature....

March 24, 2024 · 15 min

College Counselors, Dissecting Their Value

Table of Contents The Lay of the Land A Seemingly Green Light School Counselors Private Counselors (Paid) Author’s Note The Lay of the Land It’s hard to describe how much the landscape of college admissions has changed in the past 30 years. For many of the parents who have kids applying, the entire college application process can seem completely different from the one they went through. College applicant numbers seem to increase year over year, which creates a negative feedback loop....

February 1, 2024 · 6 min

Debunking the Myths of Summer College Prep Programs: Are they Really Worth It?

Table of Contents Summer Programs Paid Summer Programs Hosted by External Organizations Hosted by the College Themselves Merit-Based College Programs Debunking Myths Will college programs help me get into a competitive college? How can I tell if a college program is actually prestigious or not? What are kids actually doing during these college prep programs? Would you say doing these programs are worth it? What are some cheaper alternatives? I’ll start by prefacing this by saying that everything I say is my own personal opinion and based on my own experiences....

December 17, 2023 · 7 min

NewportBlakeCTF Writeups

Introduction December 1st 4 PM PST through December 3rd 5 PM PST. Those were the dates of our first cybersecurity competition. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to write a couple challenges for NewportBlake CTF and work with some of the most passionate and talented high schoolers out there. I mainly focused on writing Osint challenges, but I also wrote the introductory web challenge. Overall, this post hopes to discuss a bit of my thought process when making the various challenges, the things I’ve learned and finally end on a note of looking towards the future as a CTF player and a chall designer....

December 11, 2023 · 11 min

Wharton Global Youth, My Experience

Table of Contents What is the Wharton Global Youth Data Science Academy? My Overall Opinions Thoughts on Essentials of Entrepreneurship (EOE) Thoughts on Data Science Academy (DSA) Thoughts on Final Presentation and DSL8 Personal Growth What I Learned as a Person What I Learned as a Leader Advice to Others Applying to Wharton Global Youth Programs Conclusion Over the summer, I had the opportunity to attend Wharton Global Youth’s data science academy....

August 5, 2023 · 11 min

AP Exams, a Memoir

Table of Contents Preamble What Are AP Exams? Remembrance Things I’ve Enjoyed About AP Exams Things I’ve Enjoyed Less About AP Exams Conclusion Preamble While not exactly pertaining to either business or computer science, AP exams have played a large role in my high school experience so I feel they deserve a proper discussion. The main objective of this article is to describe my thoughts as well as to give current and future ap students some food for thought, especially with how they feel about these defining high school exams....

July 5, 2023 · 4 min

Who Makes Money in Card Games?

Table of Contents Preamble Essential Question Primary and Secondary Markets Primary Markets Secondary Markets Peer to Peer Transactions Peer to Institution Transactions When the Lines Begin To Blur Takeaways How do Small Card Shops Make Money? Events Individual Cards Takeaways Preamble I’ve been a competitive card game player for a long time now; about 5 years. In that time, I’ve found a love for both the game while I’m playing, but also the other parts of the ecosystem that allow a competitive card game to function....

July 1, 2023 · 9 min