Instructors¶
James Wilcox he/him or they/them
Hi, I’m James! I grew up in Nashville, went to college in western Massachusetts, and came to Seattle 12 years ago to go to grad school at UW. My research areas are programming languages, verification, and distributed systems. I like puzzles in the broadest sense, and I especially enjoy the puzzle of convincing myself and others that a piece of code is correct. I started as an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Allen School in Autumn 2022. Before joining the faculty, I worked at a startup in Seattle. Outside of work, I enjoy running and singing, but not at the same time.
Teaching Assistants¶
Aidan Suen he/him
Hey all, I’m Aidan. I’m a second year computer science major. This is my first quarter TAing CSE 123 and I’m very excited! I enjoyed taking this class a lot last fall, and I hope you will too. Outside of class I enjoy hanging out with friends, listening to music, watching sports (football, basketball), and losing in fantasy football. Looking forward to meeting you all!
Anirudh (Ani) Seshadri
Hi! I’m Anirudh Seshadri (you can call me Ani). I’m a third-year Physics major; this is my first quarter TA‘ing 123. If I’m not in section or lecture you can catch me hopelessly rewatching tv shows (seriously, I NEED show recs), trying out new sports and hobbies, listening to wide variety of music, or sending cat reels to my friends. Looking forward to meeting everyone!
Ashar Ahmad he/him
What’s up everyone! My name is Ashar, and I’m a computer science major entering my second year. In my free time I like hiking, soccer, movies, and puzzles. Feel free to talk to me about the premier league, films, or whatever you’ve been up to in life recently. This is my second quarter TA‘ing 123 and I can’t wait to get to know y’all!
Ben Wang
Hello everyone, my name is Ben and I am a Senior in Computer Science. This will be my 10th quarter TA-ing, and my 3rd with CSE 123. Outside of school, I enjoy sleeping and window shopping. Looking forward to meeting you all!
Benoit Le he/him
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hi everyone! I’m Benoit and I’m a third-year student studying Computer Science here at UW. Outside of school, I enjoy running and love to travel (especially to try all the delicious foods :D ). I’m so excited to be back TAing for CSE 123 this quarter and I can’t wait to meet all of you in lecture and section!
Bhaumik Mehta he/him
What’s good? I’m Bhaumik, a sophomore majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics. This will be my third quarter TAing for 123 so I’ve kinda got the hang of things now! In my free time, I enjoy playing frisbee, board games, and hiking. I also love questions, so feel free to reach out to me!
Brice Liu he/him
hey I’m Brice and this is my first quarter TAing the course. one fun fact about me is that I’ve beaten Ryley in Clash Royale. also, I’m trying to become more movie-cultured, so if you have any movie recommendations, please let me know! really excited to meet you all, and let’s have a great quarter!
Chris Ma he/him
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hi. I’m Chris, a sophomore majoring in computer science. This will be my 4th quarter being a TA. In my free time I enjoy rock climbing (bouldering specifically), playing violin, and watching VCT. I’ve been trying to upgrade my wardrobe so feel free to recommend clothing/brands to try (nothing too crazy, TA money ain’t paying for all that) Excited to meet y’all!
Cora Supasatit she/her
Cora is a third-year CS major hailing from Renton, WA. When not grading code quality, she spends her (little) free time horsing around, strumming the guitar, and applying sparkly nails that make typing increasingly impractical. She thrives off questions about CSE 123, Taylor Swift, and the cybersecurity landscape. Come chat! Please.
Crystal Shen she/her
Hi everyone! I’m Crystal, and I’m currently pursuing a major in Informatics. Aside from being a TA, I am an escape room enthusiast, a culinary connoisseur, and a TV show specialist (not really - just in love with Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Young Sheldon). I’m looking forward to meeting all of you!
Eeshani Shilamkar she/her
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hi!! I’m Eeshani :> This is my 4th quarter TAing CSE123. I’m a 4th year ECE student. Outside of school, I’m a dancer and I love watching good shows. This fall I’m excited for an NLP course I’m taking, rewatching Criminal Minds and Gilmore Girls, and ofc meeting y’all! Reach out if you need anything at all :>
Isayiah Lim he/him
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hey y’all! My name’s Isayiah, and I’m a Junior studying Computer Science and minoring in Business. This is my fifth quarter TA-ing for CSE 123, though I took a break in spring quarter so I’m really excited to return! In my free time, I enjoy lifting, reading, cooking, and fishing. Super excited to meet you
Ishita Mundra she/her
Hey everyone! I’m Ishita, a second-year studying Computer Science and Climate Sciences at UW. On most days, I spend way too much time reading books, but if you have any recommendations, please let me know (no nonfiction though!). I also love playing tennis, traveling, and hiking. I can’t wait to get to know you all :))
Jenny Bui she/her
Hey there, I’m Jenny and this will be my first quarter TAing! I’m a second year CS major, and I’m so excited to be working with everyone this autumn :) Find me at cafes, in the music practice rooms, making avocado toast, or working on CS projects.
Jonah Kowal he/him
Hey! I’m a second year studying Computer Science. This is my first quarter TAing and I’m super excited to meet you all! Coding is my main hobby and I generally always have a few projects I’m working on at any time. I’m always happy to talk about them if you’re interested! Lately I’ve also been spending plenty of time learning to cook and bake, and when I’m not busy with that, you can usually catch me playing Minecraft or watching YouTube.
Kavya Nair she/her
Hi, I’m Kavya! I’m a senior studying Computer Science and this is my seventh quarter TAing. Outside of classes, I love skiing, singing, and traveling the world with my family. Some of my favorite musical artists are Metro Boomin, CAS, The Weeknd, and The Neighborhood. I look forward to meeting you all this quarter!
Kuhu Nain she/her
Hi, I’m Kuhu! I’m a senior majoring in ECE, and I’m excited to be a TA for 123 this quarter! I like traveling to new countries, working out/hiking, and trying new places to eat! I am excited to see you guys soon!
Lawrence Wang he/him
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hi! I’m Lawrence, and I am from Mukilteo, WA. I’m a 3rd year in Computer Science, and this is my sixth quarter TAing this class. In my free time, I like hitting the gym and cooking. Excited for a great quarter!
Misha Nivota she/her
Hi everybody! My name is Misha (rhymes with Trisha, not Meesha), I use she/her pronouns, and I am a junior studying computer science at UW. Outside of classes, I like playing Linkedin games (smarter than 95% of CEOs), hiking, watching TV shows, and going to Desi events on campus. This is my very first quarter as a TA, so I’m very excited to meet you all :D
Nichole Tian she/her
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hello! My name is Nichole and I’m a third year in CS hoping to also minor in ASL! In my free time, I like to knit (mostly scarves), bake bread (sourdough and focaccia!!), and play tennis. This is my 5th quarter in 123 and I’m excited to have a great quarter with you all :D
Packard Stephenson
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hey, I’m Packard! I’m a junior majoring in Computer Engineering, and this is my 4th quarter as a 123 TA. Ask me about Nathan Fielder, Survivor, who’s gonna win the AL MVP race (I love you Cal, but probably Aaron Judge), or anything music related! As always I’m really excited to meet all of you and looking forward to a great quarter. Now do your homework and stop reading TA bios!!
Prakshi Shukla she/her
Hey everyone!! My name’s Prakshi and I’m going into my second year and am majoring in CS. I love swimming, hiking, and watching sports! I also love binging sitcoms like B99, Modern Family, and Abbot and am looking for a new show, so would love any recs! This is my second quarter TA‘ing 123 and I’m super excited to meet all of you!! Hope everyone has a great quarter, see y’all in class and section! :)
Rena Yin she/her
Hi there! My name is Rena, I’m a junior major in Statistics: Data Science. This is my first quarter as a TA : ) and I’m super excited! Aside from being a TA, my hobbies are listening to music; watching movies(my fav: 1. The Shawshank redemption 2. Farewell My Concubine (”霸王别姬“ in Chinese)); and traveling. Can’t wait to meet y’all!!
Sahana Sarangi
Hi everyone, I’m Sahana! I’m a second year pursuing neuro. In my free time I love to dance, ski, and rewatch Brooklyn Nine-Nine. I’m looking forward to meeting all of you this quarter!
Sean Eglip
Lead Teaching Assistant
Hey everyone! My name is Sean and I’m a junior studying Computer Engineering. In my freetime I enjoy hooping and wakesurfing. Looking forward to meeting you all this quarter!
Trien Vuong he/him
Head Teaching Assistant
Hey y’all! My name’s Trien, and I’m currently a Senior majoring in Computer Science. At this point, I’ve basically lost track of how long I’ve been here. In my free time, I mainly enjoy playing video games (currently Monster Hunter Wilds), watching shows, and eating food. Super excited to get to know y’all.
Getting Help¶
Having questions or getting stuck on something is entirely expected in the learning process. If you find something challenging with your studies, that is a sign you are learning! Learning is not something that you need to do alone though! In fact, connecting with your peers or asking a member of the course staff for help can add extreme depth to your knowledge.
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Synchronous Help (Office Hours): One place to go to get help is our Office Hours hosted throughout the week. TAs staff office hours for many hours a day to provide you the help you need when you need it! This is a great place to go if you want to review a particular course concept, work on a practice problem with the help of a TA or your peers, or get help on a Creative Project or Programming Assignment if you are running into difficulties.
Tip
A common misconception is that you can only go to office hours with specific homework questions. That is not true! If you have any questions about course concepts (e.g., from class that day), you are super encouraged to go work on that concept with a member of the course staff at office hours! Getting help with a concept earlier, when you first are feeling unsure, is much better than saving it until you need it on the homework.
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Asynchronous Help (Ed Discussion): With a class of our size, directly emailing a member of the course staff is not always recommended. There are many of you and only few of us, so if you email one person directly we can’t make a guarantee how quickly we can respond! To alleviate this one-on-one communication of email, we have a course discussion board that will be a much more lively place for discussion and a way to make sure you can are helped more quickly. The message board is set up so that all of the course staff can help you, which will make it more likely for you to receive a quicker response!
Ed Tips
- If you are asking a general question about the course logistics or content, you can make a public post. This way other students can benefit from seeing your question, and you can even answer each other’s questions to share your perspectives!
- If you want, you can choose to post anonymously so that other students in the course can’t see your name. Note that anonymous posting does not hide your identity from the course staff.
- You’re encouraged to answer each other’s questions as well! Explaining a topic to someone else (even on a discussion board) is a great way to help you better understand the material. The course staff will still look over student answers and can nicely point out some misconception if there is one so that everyone benefits.
- If you have a question that’s pretty specific to your homework solution, or, is about some personal details that you would not want to share with the class (e.g., DRS accommodations), you can make a private post on Ed that is only visible to the course staff. This way, any member of the staff can respond to get you the help you need!
- For sensitive matters that you only want to discuss with James, you can instead email James if that makes you feel more comfortable. Note that the response time for the instructors’ email is longer than posting on the Ed board.