About Rino - Almanac

Rino

I hold a Ph.D. in Engineering and work as a researcher at an institute, specializing in robotics, instrumentation, and autonomous control systems. My interests lie at the intersection of hardware and software, particularly in enabling intelligent systems to interact with the physical world through machine vision that bridges perception and action.

Beyond research, I capture photographs for In Passing, explore historical sites for Tales of Horizon, document technical ideas in Significant Bit, and create whimsical masterpieces for Small Wonders. These pursuits keep me attentive to how people perceive and navigate the world, a perspective that also influences my approach to robotics.

At university, I studied three-dimensional flow visualization in the Aerodynamic Laboratory, collaborating with talented artists, medical doctors, and engineers from various disciplines. Through this work, I gained experience in optics, image acquisition, machine learning-based image analysis, and virtual reconstruction using computer graphics.

From elementary school through my postdoctoral years, I explored a wide range of programming languages and development environments, including N88-BASIC (86), LSI C, Macro Assembler, Visual C++, Delphi, stdcxx, Perl, Python, and Rust, as well as PIC and single board computers like Arduino and Raspberry Pi. I also learned to use creative and publishing software, including Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, FrameMaker, and InDesign. Much of this was purely for fun, like drawing and publishing comic art for Comic Market, but these diverse skills later proved particularly valuable when combined.

My interest in programming began in childhood with a microcomputer equipped with a μPD780 processor, 64 KB of memory, 16 KB of video RAM, and a cassette tape interface. Around the same time, I developed an interest in editorial design. Some of those early projects now belong to what I jokingly call my “black history.”†

† A Japanese internet term (黒歴史, literally "black history") referring to embarrassing past work one would rather forget, such as cringeworthy early projects.

AI & Tools

Iuse a wide range of creative tools, from traditional film development and digital post-production to generative AI. Some photographers prefer unprocessed JPEGs or strictly analog workflows. I take a different approach. I develop, retouch, and extensively modify images because I consider post-production integral to photography, as much as capturing the image itself. Pre-production, including location scouting, is equally important.

As a researcher, I believe in “standing on the shoulders of giants” and contributing new findings back to the community. I regard generative AI as another resource, alongside the knowledge, literature, and techniques accumulated throughout human history. Imitation is fundamental to learning, and our ability to develop and refine tools is central to human progress. I use Adobe Firefly for photography; Codex and Cursor for coding; and Grammarly, ChatGPT, Grok Bot, Paperguide, and SciSpace for writing and documentation. These are assistive instruments that extend my capabilities, not substitutes for original thought.

I also see parallels among AI companies, Big Tech companies that benefit from open-source software without contributing proportionately, and academic publishers such as Elsevier. The academic Cost of Knowledge movement criticizes publishers for profiting from researchers' contributions without adequately compensating authors or reviewers, while imposing paywalls that restrict access to knowledge. Similar concerns arise when technology companies derive commercial value from open-source projects without adequately supporting their communities, or when AI companies train models on vast amounts of existing creative and intellectual work, often without fairly compensating the original creators, and then monetize access through subscription fees. I use these technologies because they are valuable to my work, but I remain skeptical that the current arrangements consistently reflect fair value or adequately recognize the contributions on which they depend.