Author: Arista Thurman

By Anna Marie Tomczyk • September 5, 2017

At the age of 17, Whitney Ford, a senior at Plainfield East High School, is already steps ahead of her peers in honing her research skills, thanks to a mentorship program supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory.

The opportunity, known as the Argonne Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) High School Research Program, enabled Ford to study deep learning methods to identify an individual’s gender using a photo of their iris.

“They will start this program in high school, and from there we can continue supporting them through their Ph.D. They can return as college interns here or go to another lab. And one day, they may even work here,” – Maria Curry-Nkansah, chief operations officer, Argonne’s Physical Sciences and Engineering Directorate.

“Not only has the program helped me with my research, but it has also helped me improve my public speaking skills and build my confidence. I am really confident now,” Ford said.

Full article can be found at  http://www.anl.gov/articles/olympics-mind

» Continue reading “Sixth Annual Taste, AAA-ERG”

On Thursday, July 6, 2017 AAA-ERG will host an enriching BrownBag lunch entitled, “Winning at LinkedIn.”

Justin Breaux will be presenting “Winning at LinkedIn”, on Thursday, July 6, 2017. The BrownBag workshop will include, learning how to build a professional profile, in order to connect to people that matter to you on the world’s largest professional networking site. To have a more interactive workshop, please send your insightful questions to Justin Breaux (jbreaux@anl.gov), by Monday, July 3, 2017. » Continue reading “Winning at LinkedIn”

By Eva Stringer, Argonne African American Employee Resource Group (AAAERG)

Last month, I saw the film “Hidden Figures” with colleagues during a movie night sponsored by the Argonne African American Employee Resource Group (AAAERG) and Women in Science and Technology (WIST). The film is about three female African-American mathematicians working for NASA in the 1950s. This was a time when segregation was prevalent all over the country and African-American women did not have equal standing in the workforce. The film focused on Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan’s contributions to science and NASA’s mission. Their considerable achievements stood out like a beacon, particularly considering the social disparities they had to navigate at that time. » Continue reading “February is Black History Month: Hidden figures throughout history”