Senior Data Scientist at Netflix Discusses the Versatility of a Career in Data Science
Contact:
Gwen O’Brien
Director of Media Relations
Saint Mary’s College
(574) 284-4579
April 8, 2015 (Notre Dame, Ind.)—The Saint Mary’s College’s Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and its new Master of Science in Data Science program, which starts in August, will welcome to the College Douglas Twisselmann, a Senior Data Scientist in the Science and Algorithms group at Netflix. Twisselmann will offer his talk “Data Science at Netflix” at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 15, in Little Theatre of Moreau Center for the Arts. The public is encouraged to attend this free event. Click for a campus map.
The Netflix content team in Beverly Hills is tasked with the challenge of licensing, purchasing, and developing the best TV and movies for its 60+ million users in 40+ countries. This talk will describe what data science is and what the content data science teams do for Netflix. In particular, Twisselmann will talk about the goals of identifying characteristics of an “ideal” content library, predicting demand for content that Netflix does not have, and helping to identify the next original series.
In this role, Twisselmann helps Netflix tackle the challenge of optimizing the TV and movie libraries by innovating mathematical models via the ever-growing cache of data. Doug received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry-materials science at UCLA and his PhD in materials at MIT. How he came to work in data analytics and algorithms at Netflix is a long story.
“Dr. Twisselmann shows the power of mathematics in solving real world problems, in particular, the problem of interpreting massive amounts of data to make informed decisions that would impact a business's future,” said Joanne Snow, chair of the Department of Mathematics.
“I imagine the vast majority of us have a subscription to one of Netflix's services. Beyond that general appeal, anyone interested in mathematics, statistics, and computer science should find the talk very interesting. Personally, I am very excited to hear about the methods he will describe that help Netflix make its decisions.”
Click for more information on the Master of Science in Data Science program.
About Saint Mary’s College: Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Ind., is a four-year, Catholic, residential, women’s liberal arts college offering five bachelor’s degrees and more than 30 major areas of study, such as business, nursing, art, chemistry, and social work. By the fall of 2015 Saint Mary’s College will offer two graduate degrees: a Master of Science and a Doctorate. All programs that fall under these degrees are co-educational and include a Master of Science in Data Science, a Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology, and a Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Founded in 1844 by the Sisters of the Holy Cross, Saint Mary’s College’s mission is to educate students, develop their talents, and prepare them to make a difference in the world. Saint Mary’s College ranks among the top 100 Best National Liberal Arts Colleges for 2015 published by U.S. News & World Report.