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 software centers on functional languages with strong, static types: a methodology proven through production Haskell, Erlang, and Nix development since 2014. I believe superior software emerges from type systems, formal methods (especially formal specification), and mathematical rigor.

I've worked on startups and enterprise software products since 2007 in a mixture of deeply focused IC, 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)
Learning and practicing math (3 to 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)
- As of early 2026, I'm 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
Reading (Interests & Favorite Books)
- I like math, computer science, science, literary fiction, classic literature, and hard science fiction. Some of my favorite books are:
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
Writing open source software
- Since about 2021, 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