Christian Durant
Software Engineer
I graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Central Florida in Spring 2025 with a degree in Computer Science. My current technical interests include machine learning and full-stack development. I am always seeking opportunities to learn new skills and technologies so that I can develop my ability as a software engineer. I love to undertake projects, especially in a team setting, and as such I place great value in effective communication, collaboration, and time management.
Software Engineering Intern
Google | Assistant - Deep Retrieval Platform - Mountain View, CA
May 2024 - August 2024
- Implemented parallel data-processing pipelines using C++ for generating high volumes of synthetic training data (queries) for the Deep Media dual encoder language model.
- Conducted ablation studies to identify dimensions that contribute to high recall during evaluation.
- Analyzed production traffic data using Python and SQL to identify patterns between input queries and user satisfaction scores.
- Investigated techniques for sampling the entities (e.g. artists, tracks, albums) used to generate queries, formatting queries, and employing hard negative results for second-stage training.
- Increased offline model recall performance on production traffic by +5% after incorporating curated synthetic data into the training pipeline.
Sofware Engineering CWEP
Lockheed Martin | Rotary and Mission Systems - Orlando, FL
November 2022 - April 2024
- Integrated the proprietary Prepar3D simulation software with specialized aviation training devices for distribution while employing agile software development principles.
- Implemented interfaces and features within Prepar3D in C++ for contract deliverables and experimental investigations.
- Developed my understanding and usage of the Scrum agile development methodology, improving my ability to coordinate with software engineers to deliver products in a volatile environment.
Grayscale Image Colorizer
I designed three autoencoder NN architectures using PyTorch to determine the difference in performance between fully connected and convolutional latent space representations when converting grayscale images into their RGB counterparts. I tested these models against the 32x32 RGB images of the CIFAR10 dataset.
HouseHold Task Manager
Developed the backend for a full-stack task managment application hosted on AWS Amplify. I built the API using GraphQL and JavaScript to connect a DynamoDB database and used AWS libraries to implement the required functionality of our MVP.
Multi-Tier Distributed Web-Application
Deployed servlets and JSP technology on a Tomcat server to allow users of different types to access and maintain a persistent MySQL database using JDBC. I established permissions for specific users to access, query, and/or manipulate a backend database via the frontend.
Project Nocturne
Developed a 3D Platform Runner game. I was responsible for the scripting of the player movement and abilities.
Contact Manager
Developed the backend of a contact manager LAMP stack application using PHP. I created all of the CRUD operations required for manipulating the tables of a MySQL database and test all of the API via SwaggerHub.
ASL Live-Detection
Created multiple iterations of a program designed to detect a set of ASL hand-signs as well as letters of the alphabet via live camera feed. Involved using transfer learning techniques through adjusting a pre-trained model to learn to classify new ASL gestures.
InfoVenture Game
Worked within a team of 4 to build a game in Unity to compete in the ShellHacks hackathon competition. Mainly was responsible for the designs and logistics of the project.
Level Up Learning
Designed and implemented a chrome extension to encourage studying by offering incentives as you use academic resources. The project required learning to use chrome storage APIs to store user data and progress.