Math Club Special Speaker: Ria Persad

Speaker: Ria Persad, CEO of StatWeather and President of the European Chamber of Digital Commerce

Title: Following Your Dreams:  A Mathematician's Journey in  a World of Change

Abstract: Come and explore mathematically oriented career paths in STEM and how to get there. First, how do we transcend cultural or gender stereotypes to fulfill our potential in the sciences? What are keys to being successful in STEM and overcome challenges, particularly when coming from a traditionally underrepresented background? What are some paths with a STEM degree in academia, government and military, the corporate sector, in nonprofits, and in entrepreneurship? How is the world changing in technology, and how can we become a part of this age of rapid innovation? Technology progress, particularly in light of a globalized economy, is opening up big vistas for mathematicians and those in computationally-rich fields such as computer science, physics, and engineering. Potential careers include fields such as Space Travel, Cryptography, Big Data, Biostatistics, Climate Modeling, Ocean Dynamics, and more. Current and future developments in AI and Deep Learning, Blockchain, Cybersecurity, and Quantum Computing open up practical applications for mathematicians to solve some of the world's toughest problems and serve society as agents of change.

Biographical sketch

Ria Persad studied mathematics and physics at Harvard, Princeton, and Cambridge Universities. Her experience in climate modeling began at Lawrence Livermore Lab’s Supercomputer Center in 1991. Persad performed earth and solar system modeling at NASA and went on to model geophysical systems at Bell Geospace. She worked on the trading floors of Lehman Brothers and was a consultant to Goldman Sachs. As a climatologist at Enron and Duke Energy, she was alerted to the needs of the energy trading sector and weather risk management. She later went on to develop state-of-the-art long-range weather prediction systems which were peer reviewed among academia and U.S. Department of Defense scientists. She models complex systems for the U.S. Space Program and is an innovative Subject Matter Expert. Persad has been collaborating with NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information and their academic research partner CICS-NC on numerous climate and energy engagement activities to advance environmental intelligence. Persad is the Founding CEO of StatWeather, which received the 2017 International Climate Business Achievement Award for top global merit in climate technology. Persad received the Highest Honor from the Society of Women Engineers and Citations from the U.S. Secretary of Energy and the U.S. Senate on Scientific Achievement for her original contributions to computational and applied mathematics. Persad has been recently recognized by Platts Global Energy Awards as one of the top seven global leaders for Lifetime Achievement and as the International Power-Gen and Renewable Energy Woman of the Year. She is also the reigning Mrs. Grand Universe and is an advocate for climate solutions and science education. She serves as the President of the European Chamber of Digital Commerce where she helps scientists and engineers commercialize their innovations.

refreshments 5:00-5:15, talk 5:15-6:00