Who is Parnell?
My name is Parnell Springmeyer. This website is my long-form, written interface with the internet, serving as my platform to refine the craft of writing and articulate my developing ideas.
I'm a software engineer and engineering leader. My approach to building modern software centers on functional languages with strong, static types—a methodology proven through a decade of production Haskell, Erlang, and Nix development. I am convinced: superior software emerges from type systems, formal methods (especially formal specification), and mathematical rigor.
I've worked on startups and enterprise software products for close to 19 years in a mixture of deeply focused IC roles, management, and leadership roles. Currently I work for Arista as a Director of Engineering for the NDR product line.
Personally, I like to spend my time:
- Powerlifting (4 hours a week)
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Learning and practicing math (3-4 hours per-week)
- I'm taught by a retired professor of Mathematics; and,
- Math Academy (granular spaced repetition system for learning and practicing math)
- I'm currently well into "Calculus 1" with early beginning coverage in Linear Algebra and Vector Math, Lines in Space, and Planes (my tutor likes to teach these first). I like linear algebra a lot
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Reading (Interests & Favorite Books)
- I like math, computer science, science, literary fiction, classic literature, and hard science fiction. Some of my favorite books are:
- A liberated mind : how to pivot toward what matters
- Growth: from microorganisms to megacities
- Transformer: the deep chemistry of life and death
- Vector: a surprising story of space, time, and mathematical transformation
- The Art of Computer Programming 1-4B
- Active inference : the free energy principle in mind, brain, and behavior
- The rings of Saturn
- The brothers Karamazov
- The name of the rose
- I like math, computer science, science, literary fiction, classic literature, and hard science fiction. Some of my favorite books are:
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Hand-tool woodworking
- In late 2018 I did a 16 day hand-tool-only timberframing course in Latvia with the Northmen Guild
- In late 2024 I embarked on a project to build my own Anarchist's Workbench
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Writing opensource software
- Over the last five years, I've struggled to find time for regular contribution (as I'm spending it remediating my math education); but,
- You can find many of my aging projects on GitHub




