Bio

I started coding when I was doing tree mortality research. I never thought myself to get into programming when I was young. I naively thought computer science was just about repairing computers. As a first-generational college student, I was the kid who had to ask my classmates sitting next to me, “How do I use Google?” I had always thought computers were rigid and intimidating, and it would not ever fit for somebody like me who enjoys having a space to be creative and flexible. Little did I know, my ecology internship changed my view towards programming. I started teaching myself R; was oddly excited by my first ggplot; and I grinned widely at my first linear regression model. Since then, I could not get enough. I was energized by the data insights I could extract by sitting in front of a computer. I love that data analysis and modeling both incorporate creativity and problem solving. I am constantly inspired by the new things I learn and the bright minds I get to learn from. I owe who I am today to mentors whom I have crossed paths with -- I am truly grateful for them. Fast forward to today, debugging data cleaning and machine learning code can, of course, get on my nerves, but there is always an unexplainable sense of fulfillment at the end. Being a DS consultant involves a lot of piecing different things together at a high level, more often than not involving scoping out clear requirements from ambiguity. But I found that I love and feel excitement in bringing structure to ambiguity. I love to work with teams to figure out what works best, and remind myself to always think from another end user’s perspective to produce better products (e.g. cleaner code, simpler ML systems). My personal mission statement is to lead with compassion and courage, work with humility and integrity. Like when I first started, there are still many new things in the field of computer science today, to learn, to build, and to share. Recently, I find myself most earnestly grabbing onto material about productionizing ML and monitoring ML post production. Outside of work, you can most likely find me drinking chai (the only drink I order from a coffee shop), visiting outdoor markets, and taking/editing pictures. Skills: Machine Learning, NLP, Distributed Processing with Spark, ML System Design, Public Speaking Programming: Python, SQL Interests: Data Ethics, Mentoring Website: www.chengyineng.com