Girlstart’s Women in STEM weekly series highlights various women who are making a difference in STEM. Be inspired as these incredible women describe how they became interested in their field, provide insight into a day in the life, and share learnings from their experiences.
Debisree Ray
Data Scientist @ Big River Steel LLC
As a woman in STEM, Debisree wants to share and offer knowledge to help develop the next generation of female leaders. We are so captivated by her authenticity and vulnerability in telling her story and cannot wait to hear what she has to say today!
What sparked your interest in Girlstart?
Girlstart is a platform that has been successfully helping to develop and empower the bright and future female leaders of the society. As a woman in STEM myself, I would love to share and impart my knowledge as well as show my battle scars to develop this bright generation. We often find bright young girls shying away from the STEM fields or in need of some guidance. With my meager experience, I would like to reassure them and hold their hand through their journey as they take a potential step towards the future.
Was there anything specific that led you to your STEM career?
Yes, definitely.
1. When I was in primary school, I was fortunate to have a math teacher (Mr. Niren Brahma), who was very motivating. He used to teach much harder math than the actual scope of the course. I still believe that he has been the best teacher in my life so far. He made us think (for solving problems) in the classroom and wanted us to grow a crystal clear mathematical concept. I was one of his favorite students, and he envisioned me as a scientist in the future. I think that is the reason that I have always wanted to pursue the STEM field.
2. During middle school (it was an all-girls school), an alumnus (Dr. Sushan Konar, theoretical astrophysicist) visited the school to deliver a lecture to us. The talk was about the physics of the stellar objects in the universe. It was lucid, however, extremely scientific. It was an eye-opener for me and extremely motivating. I probably decided on that day that I am going to study Physics, no matter what. She became my role model on that day. Sounds melodramatic? Sometimes, truth is stranger than fiction!
Can you describe your career?
I have always been fascinated by the physical laws of nature and the universe. That was the driving force for me to study STEM and follow a path of higher education. I have formal training (under-graduation, and the masters) in Physics. After getting exposed to various aspects of theoretical and experimental Physics, I decided to pursue Computational Nuclear Structure Physics for my doctoral studies, that led me to achieve a Ph.D. in 2017.
As explicitly explained in the Forbes article [1], it is evident that ‘the Data is the new oil.’ With an increase in the usage of electronic gadgets worldwide, the data pull is enormous. The ease of availability of this massive data has ensured that major business decisions are highly reliant on these hidden data patterns. Nowadays, there is a huge inflow of PhDs (including me) into the industries from academia. Most enterprises’ data teams are employing Ph.D. graduates with a background as academic researchers to deal with a complicated data-driven business problem. The real-world data scenario is noisy, unstructured, and complicated. Every data problem is different. Depending on the particular domain and the business problem, a data scientist needs to take a different approach. The data scientists are goal-driven versatile professionals who have to connect all the dots from data patterns to present the story to stakeholders; the main goal is helping enterprises with major decision-making and developing predicting models for future business directions. A data scientist needs to be a certain degree of an all-rounder. The typical job demands every bit of different aspects attached to it, such as the technical/engineering aspect, the scientific aspect (analytics), an aesthetic aspect (data visualization), and a storytelling aspect. As a Ph.D., I was trained to tackle similar problems objectively, thus making Data Science my dream job.
Although my primary research experience (most of my research publications and citations) endorse me being called an expert in nuclear physics; my eventual expertise (during my graduate and post-doctoral days) ensured me grow as a data science professional. This is how, with rigorous training in basic sciences and an intense and unique problem-solving outlook through computer coding and data handling shaped me as a data scientist. I believe that now I work as a scientist in a more real-world scenario, intending to demystify data. I call myself a data-nerd.
[1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/11/15/data-is-the-new-oil-and-thats-a-good-thing/?sh=5abc09b07304
What are your favorite things about your field?
In industry or academic research (employing STEM), my absolute favorite thing is constant learning. I love the way I have to study and learn new things/techniques while working and implementing simultaneously.
What projects have you worked on?
During the Ph.D., I have worked on several computational projects in nuclear structure physics. The major one was to predict the nuclear driplines and landscape in covariant density functional theory. However, now as I have shifted towards Data and AI, my projects are around anomaly detection and prediction in the steel manufacturing industry, leveraging the power of Data and Machine Learning methodologies.
Why is confidence for girls in STEM so important?
The STEM fields employ a typical cutthroat attitude, especially in research. To survive in this relatively harsher environment, women should be more determined and confident in all their endeavors to succeed. Moreover, research in the STEM field often involves presenting your findings to your peers. A sheer determination is absolutely necessary to demonstrate the years of hard work confidently to your peers.
What words of encouragement would you share with girls who are interested in pursuing a STEM career?
A confident woman is a key to a better society. Throughout your journey in the STEM field, life will throw you a lot of curveballs. Don’t get down and disappointed. It happens to everyone. The key is, however, to pick yourself back up and refocus on your goals. Remember, everybody has bad days. It is important to learn how you can dodge them and put them in your rearview mirror.
What is your greatest accomplishment?
“I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself, I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.” – If Sir Isaac Newton, one of the greatest scientists in the history of humanity felt this way, then who am I to talk about the accomplishments?
Do you have anything else you would like to add?
Girls, throughout the world, need to be even more united to solve their problems. Only Education and a scientific mindset can change the world.
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