Getting my hands dirty...

Lately, I have been very intrigued by the technologies and opportunities associated with the semantic web. And being who I am, I like to get my hands dirty immediately. To most this would mean, starting to code and understand the technology in depth. To me, 'getting my hands dirty' means that and more. I have began reading Semantic Web Programming, which I must say, provides a great introduction to semantic web technologies while offering some depth learning as well. I am currently on page 208 and plan to finish the book before college starts in September.

But 'getting my hands dirty' means a lot more than learning the technology. I am trying to find any opportunity to meet people who are gurus in this area already for additional perspectives.

I'm definitely planning on interacting with the MIT DIG research group in CSAIL, which is working on cutting edge semantic web research. I recently attended the Semantic Technology Conference 2009 in California where I enjoyed meeting enthusiasts and learning from them. I have also gotten in touch with Alexandre Passant in France, who has been kind enough to share his thoughts and the details of his project in EDF which puts semantic web technologies to use at the enterprise level.

I am also on the look out for any part-time opportunities at semantic web startups in the Cambridge/Boston area to further my interest in this area.