Duke Diary Dispatch: Learning the Value of Patience

Working on a Code+ project focused on Duke's campus mail service, Alex Pieroni is learning about patience and communication

Duke students in a lab working on software coding

This is the latest in a series of diary entries from Alex Pieroni, a Duke student staying close to home this summer and doing a Code+ program in Durham. Read more here.

Hello once again! I’ve been busy with Code+, and I continue to grow more invested in the final product as we progress through the program. The most valuable lesson I’ve learned is patience while building a novel solution to a tried and true problem. One of our main obstacles is balancing the wants of students and the needs of our stakeholder Campus Mail Services. 

I’ve learned the importance of effective communication to gain insights into the staff’s perspective and challenges, considering the ~155,000 packages that come into their warehouse yearly. Throughout this process, it’s been vital to build an interactive design of what we believe could meet their needs, take their notes, and return to the drawing board. 

While we’ve been working to build our web application during the day, I have also enjoyed quality time with the team. Hosting them for dinner and treating them to a delightful brunch at the Nasher Cafe has allowed us to forge stronger connections and foster a sense of camaraderie. It's important to balance work and leisure; these moments of shared enjoyment have added a special touch to our journey! I’ve been keeping busy, playing lots of Catan with friends, getting creative with recipes, and working on my new side project, Heartcoded!

Heartcoded started as part of Duke Ignite, a hackathon hosted this past spring. The concept is simple: to create a dating app that harnesses the power of AI to increase the chances of finding meaningful connections. My partner and I have been outlining the puzzle pieces to make a minimum viable product, and it’s been fun to use skills I’ve been developing this summer on a new canvas! 

Until next time!