Cryptography

Come join us at Nova Labs for our monthly lockpicking meeting! We meet every third Wednesday at the Nova Labs Fairfax location at 3850 Jermantown Road. Learn about locks, lockpicking, lock modifications, and even lock smithing in our classroom environment. No tools, skills, or knowledge required, but feel free to bring any of those things with you! Our meetings are overseen by one or more locksmiths.

Please join us for happy hour and board games at the Grape Escape wine bar in Gaithersburg. Feel free to bring your own food to pair with their nice selection of wine and beer. You can’t beat this cozy little place for fun on a Tuesday night! We'll have a couple games but please **feel free to bring a game of your own!** Come for the beverages, the games, the conversation, meeting new people, or all of the above. We'll be at the big tables in the middle of the venue. Look for GRASP table flyers and Eli's GRASP shirt. We can't wait to see you there!

Join us for another session of our study group as we dive into the fascinating world of Large Language Models (LLMs) using the book **Build a Large Language Model from Scratch** from Manning. In this session, we will finish **Chapter 7: Fine-tuning to follow instructions**. In the last session, we talked about how to prepare the dataset for instruction fine-tuning and in this session we will perform the fine-tuning and evaluate the model afterwards. This isn't just a lecture! Come ready to ask questions, share insights, and code along. Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, this is the perfect opportunity to build a strong foundation together. If you plan to work with the code on your own laptop during the session, try and set-up the environment ahead of time (https://github.com/rasbt/LLMs-from-scratch/tree/main/setup). We will be meeting at the North County Governmental Center this time that is across from the Reston public library.

Meeting in the big room at George Mason Library in Annandale, VA, for a get-together to celebrate this Meetup group being 11 years old! We will have food and drink. Bring your favorite prints (2 max and any size) that you took in 2025, and bonus points if they were taken at a Virginia Beltway Photography Meetup. This year we will have three prizes: for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Please review the Meeting Room Terms & Conditions. Only light refreshments, such as granola bars and bottled water, are permitted. Additionally, the meeting room must be cleared no later than 5:55 p.m. Users are responsible for room setup, including arrangement of tables and chairs, and cleanup, including returning furniture to its original placement. Setup/cleanup time should be included in the reservation. Groups are expected to leave rooms in an orderly condition promptly at the conclusion of the reserved time.

Let’s meet at Thai Tanium in Kentlands for some of their delicious food. Please only rsvp if you will attend. It is not fair to the restaurant to have no shows.

THIS CLASS IS OFFERED THROUGH CAPITAL PHOTOGRAPHY CENTER **PLEASE REGISTER WITH CAPITAL PHOTOGRAPHY CENTER, NOT MEETUP!** https://capitalphotographycenter.com/classes/class/2026-02-01-photographic-composition-essential-techniques The composition of a photograph is the single most important element a photographer uses to convey an artistic statement. What’s included, excluded and the arrangement of elements within the frame is all part of composition. This class will teach you techniques to improve the composition of your photos with hands-on shooting experience coupled with feedback. Join instructor Michael Koren as you learn about composition in the Postal Museum and Union Station. The class begins with a lesson and viewing examples of compositional techniques from master photographers to help you when composing your own photographs. We'll then go to specific locations to practice those composition techniques. Afterwards, participants will have free time to photograph all the museum has to offer. We’ll follow up with a gentle critique and feedback of your best work of the day. This class is about "seeing" stronger images. Any camera will do from DSLRs to mobile phones. If you *are*bringing a DSLR or mirrorless camera, lenses in the range of 18-135 would work well. No tripods allowed for this class. Questions can be directed to Marie Joabar at info@capitalphotographycenter.com. Class limit: 8-10 *** **THIS CLASS IS OFFERED THROUGH CAPITAL PHOTOGRAPHY CENTER** https://capitalphotographycenter.com/classes/class/2026-02-01-photographic-composition-essential-techniques

**Join globally respected cardiologist , Dr. Mohit Gupta, as we explore how our thoughts impact our physical health and overall well-being.** Our thoughts are far more powerful than we often realize. A single thought has the capacity to influence our emotions, shape our health, strengthen or strain our relationships, and quietly guide the course of our lives. The Power of One Thought is an insightful session that explores how conscious and intentional thinking impacts the brain, heart, and overall well-being. Through a thoughtful blend of scientific evidence and meditative practice, participants will gain a deeper understanding of how thought patterns influence stress, emotional resilience, mental clarity, and long-term health. In this session, Dr. Mohit Gupta seamlessly integrates modern neuroscience and cardiology with the wisdom of Raj Yoga meditation, offering practical insights into emotional regulation, cardiovascular health, and the slowing of biological aging. He uses his own life stories of Belief and Resilience. The experience is designed to be reflective, engaging, and immediately applicable to both personal and professional life. This session is ideal for individuals seeking inner clarity, emotional balance, and a deeper understanding of how one consciously chosen thought can create lasting transformation. **About Dr. Mohit Gupta** *Dr. Mohit Dayal Gupta, MD, DM, FACC, FRCP, is a globally respected interventional cardiologist and Director–Professor of Cardiology at GB Pant Hospital, New Delhi, and serves as Cardiologist to the Parliament of India. A four-time TEDx speaker, he has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed scientific publications and is a Fellow of leading international cardiology institutions.* *A distinguished clinician–scientist, Dr. Gupta’s current research focuses on the effects of Raj Yoga meditation on biological aging and cardiovascular resilience. Associated with the Brahma Kumaris since childhood, he is widely known for his rare ability to bridge cardiology, neuroscience, meditation, and spirituality, offering a compelling perspective on holistic health and conscious leadership.* Fri., Jan. 30th, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm. Held at Brahma Kumaris, 14020 Thunderbolt Pl, Suite 200, 2ndFloor, Chantilly, VA. Free Event – Register at: [https://shorturl.at/wt8yd](https://shorturl.at/wt8yd)