[No. 188] Mayumi Naka

Thank you very much for this opportunity to contribute to the Alumni Relay Column.

I have changed jobs twice in my career, but I have consistently been involved in corporate data analysis and related educational activities. When I first entered university, I never imagined I would be doing this kind of work. Looking back, however, I have come to realize just how much my studies and experiences at university and graduate school have become a source of strength for me today.

I believe my parents were a major influence on my decision to apply to the Faculty of Science and Technology. As I was advancing from an affiliated high school, I had to choose my preferred faculty. Since both my parents were in the sciences, they often mentioned in passing how "it was good to be in science," which gave me a vague idea of going to the Faculty of Science and Technology. However, I didn't have a clear idea of what I wanted to do specifically. After talking with various professors who had graduated from the Faculty of Science and Technology, I became interested in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. I learned that the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering included mathematical elements that interested me while also dealing with themes directly connected to everyday issues. Therefore, I decided to enter Gakumon 2 (now Gakumon C) with the goal of joining the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering.

However, this idea changed significantly during a department orientation session in my first year of undergraduate studies. A professor from the Department of Mathematics explained that "engineering is about whether the results are useful in practice, while science is about asking why." This made me feel that science might be a better fit for me. I had many anxieties: Could I keep up, given that I was already struggling with the required first-year mathematics courses? Would studying mathematics be useless once I entered the workforce? Would I be able to find a job? Despite these fears, listening to the professors helped alleviate my concerns, and I decided to proceed to the Department of Mathematics.

When the specialized courses for the Department of Mathematics began in my second year, I realized that mathematics was broader and deeper than I had ever imagined. At first, I couldn't make sense of the course titles, and I struggled to absorb the material in class. However, perhaps because there were many professors for a relatively small number of students, the professors, TAs, and my classmates all patiently taught me at my own level, allowing me to somehow earn the credits and catch up. I was also grateful that, as a member of the tennis club, the department's lack of lab experiments compared to other departments gave me more flexibility with my time.

From my fourth year of undergraduate studies through my Doctoral Programs, I belonged to the Shibata Laboratory, which specializes in data science. Through my research, I was able to gain a variety of experiences, including conference presentations, writing papers, and internships.

While the Shibata Laboratory conducted data analysis in all sorts of fields, I had the opportunity to work on the data analysis of marine organisms. This was part of a joint research project with the Australian Research Centers and Institutes, CSIRO, that was underway just as I was joining the lab.

Specifically, I analyzed data obtained from a survey on the impact of trawl fishing on ecosystems in Australia. By focusing on the weight of benthic organisms and using a gamma distribution, I detected the effects of trawling. A challenge in the data analysis was that the survey data did not include the weight of individual organisms, only the number of individuals and their total weight. This required creative approaches to modeling and evaluating the fit. Furthermore, in writing up the results as a paper, I faced various difficulties, such as clarifying points like "Why use a gamma distribution?" and "How does this differ from conventional methods and results?", and preparing explanations for anticipated feedback. However, with the support of many people, I was able to get the paper published in a journal. I ultimately continued into the Doctoral Programs, where I advanced my data analysis with a data-driven approach—understanding the data and its context to consider the necessary statistical models for analysis—while also engaging in research on the related theory of mathematical statistics.

After my Withdrawal from the Doctoral Program (After the Completion of Required Course Work without Submission of a Thesis), I continued my research while working in data analysis consulting at a venture company founded by Professor Shibata. After obtaining my degree, I moved to Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC, and I am currently engaged in work related to the application of data science in R&D at Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Looking back, I feel that my studies and experiences at university have been a source of strength in many ways. For example, regarding mathematics, although mathematical formulas do not often appear in my daily work, when a slightly more complex analysis is required, mathematics becomes necessary for a proper understanding. In such situations, the knowledge I gained at university can sometimes be directly applied. But more than that, I feel the strength I gained from studying in the Department of Mathematics is the ability to tackle challenges without giving up, thinking, "I should be able to understand this because I studied so much math." Furthermore, my university professors, upperclassmen, classmates, and underclassmen are all precious connections that continue to support me both professionally and personally. Reflecting on this, I am grateful for having had such a university experience, and I am strongly determined to continue learning and taking on challenges in the wide range of duties I can engage in at Nissan, just as I did during my time at university.