I was part of the first graduating data science major class at NYU’s business school. Worked in venture capital for a bit, and then finally got a chance to work with data at a company I liked.

I like the data field because of the strong community and the relationships that you get to build – if you play your cards right, you can work with all different groups at your company and support them in interesting ways. It’s sort of like being an internal consultant

I support the product group at DigitalOcean, working on analysis and modeling that helps us figure out how people use our products and how we can make our user experience best in class. Cloud is cool and important because it makes up the building blocks for all of the different things people want to build with software. DO has (I think) the best UX for people like data scientists working on their own projects.  I also freelance a bunch building content and dataviz for growing companies.

As far as hobbies go, I’m really into sneakers (I collect Common Projects), guitar, and dataviz.

A day off? Oh, that’s a good one. It’s mostly food, some reading, a long walk, music, and shopping

Please welcome Justin to Real Scientists!

I am the head of Australia’s National University, and chief employee of Maipenrai Vineyard and Winery

Professor Schmidt grew up in Montana and Alaska. His interest in science grew from his family environment

Father was a scientist – always wanted to do it. Chose astronomy because I didn’t know what I wanted to do.

He completed his undergraduate degrees in Physics and Astronomy at the University of Arizona in 1989. Under the supervision of Robert Kirshner, he completed
his Astronomy Master’s degree (1992) and PhD (1993) from Harvard University. In 1994 he and Nick Suntzeff formed the HighZ SN Search team, a group of 20
astronomers on 5 continents who used distant exploding stars to trace the expansion of the Universe back in time. This group’s discovery of an accelerating
Universe was named Science Magazine’s Breakthrough of the Year for 1998.

I have worked on Supernovae for my entire career (along with many other things along the way) and was the lead of one of the teams that discovered that the expansion rate of the Universe is accelerating, which lead to the idea that Dark Energy makes up ~70% of our Universe.

Joining the Australian National University (ANU) in 1995, Brian was awarded the Australian Government’s inaugural Malcolm McIntosh award for achievement in the Physical Sciences in 2000, the Australian Academy of Sciences (AAS) Pawsey Medal in 2001, the Astronomical Society of India’s Vainu Bappu Medal in 2002, and an Australian Research Council Federation Fellowship in 2005. In 2006 Schmidt was jointly awarded the Shaw Prize for Astronomy, and shared the 2007 Gruber Prize for Cosmology and 2014 Breakthrough Prize in Physics with his High-Z SN Search Team colleagues. For his work on the accelerating universe Brian Schmidt was awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with Adam Riess and Saul Perlmutter. He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, The United States Academy of Science, Royal Society, Foreign Member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Sciences, and Foreign Member of the Indian Academy of Sciences. In 2013, he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia. Brian has also delivered many public talks, including his 2012 TEDx Canberra talk on Uncertainty and his TEDx Sydney talk, The Universe is Big.

Science is a cornerstone of humanity and our culture, but it is also incredibly powerful for advancing our prosperity. It is essential that citizens of the world understand science so that they can make sensible decisions in their lives – and to appreciate the Universe around them

In his spare time (!), Brian also runs Maipenrai Vineyard and Winery, a 2.7 acre vineyard and small winery in the Canberra District which produces Pinot Noir. His ideal day off involves cooking:

 Wine is NOT a hobby, working around the farm – preferably the winery.

Welcome Brian Schmidt!

Welcome to Real Scientists! Can you tell us a bit about how you got into astronomy?
I’ve always loved science and learning about the world around me. Both of my parents are scientifically trained (dentists), and they taught me that it’s possible to find the answers to your own questions if someone else doesn’t know the answer. That really drew me to science. I particularly loved astronomy: I remember getting my Brownie Guide astronomy badge by pointing out constellations. When I went to university, I knew I wanted to study how the universe works, so I chose to study physics and maths. I wasn’t always the highest achieving student – I wasn’t dux [highest-ranked] of my school or first in class for anything throughout my undergrad years, but I was so excited about physics and math that I always wanted to learn more. During my honours year, I discovered that research suited me much better than classes with exams, and the feeling of discovering had me hooked!

What got you interested in gamma-ray astronomy?
I loved astronomy, but I didn’t want to specialize on just looking at one thing as I was interested in such a range of physics problems. The amazing thing about gamma-ray astronomy is that it ties together particle physics, nuclear physics, math, computer science, statistics and instrumentation (yes, even theorists need to understand where the observations we’re trying to explain come from), so I am able to explore all the areas of physics and math that interest me while I do my research.

What are you working on currently?
I try to understand how processes that occur on subatomic scales – like nuclear reactions, and the interactions of electrons and protons with the electromagnetic field – shape our Universe. My PhD focused specifically on understanding the origin of Galactic antimatter [RS Note: Please say this is already a band name]. Antimatter is like matter’s evil twin – every particle has an equivalent ‘antiparticle’ with the same mass but opposite quantum properties. When matter and antimatter meet, they ‘annihilate’ – this is the only process which is 100% efficient at converting mass into energy. The energy is released in the form of gamma-rays, which we can observe using special detectors like gamma-ray telescopes. I try to explain the observations made by these gamma-ray telescopes by using computer simulations and theoretical calculations to model how anti-electrons (positrons) and radioactive nuclei are produced and transported around our Galaxy.

Is there something you want people to know about your work?
Taking ‘pictures’ of gamma-rays is a very hard problem, as gamma-rays can’t be focused the way visible light can. This is a problem for astrophysics, as we want to create a picture of where gamma-rays are coming from in our Galaxy, but it’s also a problem in the field of cancer diagnosis and treatment, which can use gamma-rays. By refining the methods we use to take gamma-ray pictures of space, we can pass these discoveries on to the medical imaging community. Gamma-ray astronomy also gives us insight into where the elements that make up life on Earth – like oxygen, carbon and iron – come from.

That is seriously cool. What do you get up to when you’re not in the lab?
I’m involved in a mentoring program for high school students called ‘Science Scholars’ – it’s an opportunity for keen high school students in Australian Capital Territory who want to experience research to take on a project for several months. It’s a wonderful program because it’s open to students who are keen, not just the students with the best academic histories. Often, students who may not be the best at exams benefit the most and find it easier to learn in a research environment. Mentors also run academic writing and presenting program for these students – skills that aren’t usually taught, even at PhD level.

One of my hobbies is building scale models – things like airplanes and tanks. I tend to really suffer from perfectionism affecting me in a negative way – I can get overwhelmed by thinking that for anything I do to be good, it has to be perfect. Scale model building is a good way to challenge this for me – you can still create something that looks amazing, even if it isn’t perfect.

What does a perfect day off look like for you?
I like to get up fairly early, even on days off. The perfect start would be a cup of tea and some vegemite toast with my partner, then heading out for a hike. Canberra is great because there are lots of areas to go for a hike on our doorstep. Then be home in time for lunch and spend an afternoon catching up with my parents via skype, reading and then cooking something yummy for dinner (I love trying out new recipes).

Fiona Panther, welcome to Real Scientists!

I ask basic questions in the hope that as we understand more at the “first principle” scale, and communicate with scientists with different motivations, together we’ll be able to find human-first applications. A great example of a direct application is drug delivery: understanding how something like vesicles in solution form can lead to forming pharmaceutical molecules inside soft vesicles designed to deform & release in a specific way (either at a specific site or in response to a controlling variable like light). 

And your ideal day off??

Coffee and getting ready for the day for 5 hours (gotta twitter!!!!), an outdoor friendship event (going to beach, going on a hike), late lunch and more coffee, a crafts & movie night at somebody else’s house, then coming home to snuggle my cat again.

Welcome Mary Rose Devine to RealScientists!

I love questions, and puzzles, and I love solving them even better! 

I get to explore the Galaxy and find new worlds.

I search for planets around other stars, and then I try to work out how common they are. Ultimately it’s pushing towards the question – are we alone? The question of ‘Are we alone?’ must be one of humanity’s oldest questions. Now we have the technology to start answering it!

Curled up somewhere warm with a cup of tea and a good book. Then meet up with friends for dinner and a movie.

Please welcome Dr. Jessie Christiansen to RealScientists!

Why did you choose Neuroscience?

I was excited to learn a little (because that’s really all one can learn in a lifetime) of what goes on with the brain. An accidental love for coding and neuroimaging data analysis and the people I’ve met along the way keep me here. In the lab, I collect and analyze functional MRI data to help answer questions about the brain’s reward circuit such as – how does it evolve as we age? and – how do cigarettes affect people’s attention and thinking?

Beyond the lab, I mull over the systemic problems that plague Medicine and Science, and work on projects in this area in my free time.

What do you think is important about your work? 

I think everyone should and can easily know what science is up to these days, if people within the field would bother to talk about it minus all their self-comforting jargon. I think that science and medicine are jobs just like any other. Nothing stands between those who are curious to know more and those who have some firsthand experience other than clear, friendly communication.

One reason for people to care is that a lot of science is “translational”, which means it traverses the lab-verse into the hospital/clinic-verse; knowing about science can be empowering to anybody who seeks healthcare. Another reason to care is that science is happening around us all the time, and it can be a lot of fun to see science at play in our everyday lives! Then there’s the fact that everyone, whether they like it or not, is a scientist. Babies are annoying little scientists when they keep dropping their things on the ground. Newton didn’t have (or need) a PhD to wonder why apples go down, only curiosity.

Being aware of systemic issues in Medicine can help people navigate this complex and often opaque system that most people will use at some or other point in their lives with a little more ease, or at least ask physicians key questions, participate more actively in their own healthcare, and advocate for their health and treatment.

What kind of hobbies do you indulge in?

I like volunteering for science outreach, demoing fun physics experiments to school kids and watching them go ‘ooooh!’ Consuming and producing satire. Fraternizing with stationery.

How would you describe your ideal day off? 

Beanbag, snacks, sunshine, book, pajamas, maybe a friend or two to hang out with in the evening, tons of sleep.

Isha Dhingra – postdoc at Yale

What drew you to conservation biology??

I have always been fascinated by the natural world and interested in science, but I was not aware of any wildlife careers. Meeting a Black female zoo keeper during an internship broadened my career horizon and changed my trajectory.  

I became obsessed (in the literal sense) with birds during my ornithology course in college. I knew then that I wanted to both work directly with birds and to conserve avian species in peril. I have had the privilege of doing both!

I started my professional career as a zookeeper and conservation educator. During that time, I founded several programs to encourage ethnic and socioeconomic minority high school students to consider careers in wildlife science.

Since transitioning back into school from zookeeping, I have continued to direct one of those programs remotely.

Why is what you do important?

As a graduate student my research focuses on the conservation of the Seaside Sparrow–a coastal marsh dwelling species that is imperiled by sea level rise.

Sea level rise exacerbates already existing threats, especially the threat of predation.

As they nest higher to avoid flooding from rising sea levels, they become more exposed to nest predation. I am assessing the variation in predation threat across different landscape measures, and seek to determine if the frequency of nest predation corresponds with the density and diversity of predators in their habitat.

Climate change is an issue that will affect every person, place, and creature. Some people specialize in creating innovative solutions for establishing food production, housing, and economies resistant to climate change. Others of us specialize in creating systems and management practices that preserve the diversity in the natural world; that’s the kind of research I do.

Preserving the earth’s species diversity allows for resilient, stable ecosystems (which directly benefits humans), and the opportunity for us to witness the splendor of the natural world for generations to come.

What do you do when you’re not working on your research?

I serve on the steering committee for an organization called Young Evangelicals for Climate Action. It’s a group of young, Christian activists trying to promote climate change awareness and activism in the church. I love playing piano and dancing!

Describe your perfect day off:

Hiking in the Smoky Mountains, shopping for Christmas ornaments, and eating tacos…then getting to cuddle as many dogs as possible.

Please welcome Corina Newsome to RealScientists!

Please welcome Naia Butler-Craig to RealScientists!

How did you get interested in geoscience?
I’ve always been fascinated by natural hazards, and specifically volcanoes as my family come from a volcanic island. I want to understand volcanoes more on behalf of my family. Collaborating with researchers and talking to people about volcanoes keeps me here.

What are you working on now?
My research aims to understand how people on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines have come to co-exist with the eruptions of the volcano La Soufriere. I am also currently teaching undergraduate students in physical geography.

What should the public know about your work?
Humans are increasingly living in hazardous environments, and therefore must understand how and why.

What do you like to do in your free time? How would you describe an ideal day off?
Playing video games and sleeping in!

Welcome to RealScientists, Jazmin. We look forward to getting to know you this week!

How did you end up in science?
I ended up in science after a STEM/Engineering demonstration during my senior year in high school. I had never considered science as a career path because I was deadest on being a journalist! But my curiosity was piqued and I began to explore different fields once I was in college. I eventually settled on Physics and I haven’t looked back since!

Why the physics of squishy systems?
I didn’t want to study the standard or older physics topics I had learned about. I was more interested in learning new physics and exploring new systems. Many of my colleagues seemed to be drawn to the standard fields such as particle physics, hard condensed matter, high energy, etc., but I wanted to apply my knowledge of physics to an area that’s barely been touched. For many years, physicists didn’t have the tools to study these very complex biological/squishy systems, but now we are beginning embark on new methods and new models that are beginning to assist in our understanding of the physics of nature.

What are you working on now?
I study self-assembly. Viruses are one of nature’s most dynamic and efficient self-assembled systems. Our lab specifically looks at a simple spherical virus called MS2. By studying the self-assembly of MS2 we hope to gain a better understanding of nature’s design mechanism’s for building larger more complex systems.

What do you want the public to know about your research?
The physics of life is something many scientists have pondered for years. Even better understanding viruses will assist us in learning about ourselves. Many of us share DNA with “ancient viruses” that existed centuries ago. Viruses are one of the simplest biological systems that are able to reproduce themselves (biologist do not kill me), viruses are highly dynamic, and the research that we perform in our lab can assist with questions about life and what is living (again biologist don’t kill me), our evolutionary background, and different methods that may allow us to control the assembly or creation of biological materials like viruses.

What are some of your passions outside the lab?
I tend to involve myself in efforts within my community surrounding equity and inclusion when I can. I believe that in addition to large programs, platforms and conversations it is important for some of us to be doing some of that groundwork that takes time, a bit of agitation, and lots of accountability. I currently chair the Equity and Inclusion Recruitment Committee (EIRC) in Harvard University’s Physics Department. We are in our early stages, but our plan is to attempt to be thoughtful about the things that we try to do before making claims about what we’ve accomplished within the community. This will hopefully prevent any false narratives or propaganda that may come with hype surrounding “Diversity” initiatives. Harvard is definitely not perfect, no institution or program is, but we definitely intend to try to take a more productive approach.

Can you describe the perfect day off?
That question is not workaholic friendly! But if I try really hard to not do work, I will go see a movie or go to an art museum. I love food. I am such a foodie. I will spend any amount of money on food. I am that person that will buy a $30 donut if it is delicious! I may eat packaged ramen for the rest of the week, but the experience was worth it!

LaNell Williams, welcome to RealScientists! We are thrilled to have you.