Daniel Kaiser

Hello! My name is Daniel Kaiser and I am a PhD student at Indiana University.

Who I am within Science

Within the realm of science, my research focuses on the handling of multiplex relational data. Primarily I work on the inference of multiplex network data from an aggregate network. I do maintain some other projects, however, which you can read more about on my Projects page.

There is, of course, more to “doing science” than research alone. In university labs alone there are expectations to spend time on administrative tasks, teaching, and a myriad of other tasks generally considered “service.” While I put in my time teaching, managing administrative events, reviewing other’s work, I find I have a real passion for mentoring. It is well-known that a supportive mentor can provide a radically different experience for a mentee than a non-supportive one, even if they are less “famous” in their field. With an ever increasing amount of people pursuing doctorates but stagnating university positions, advisors in academic positions are often too busy fighting to stay afloat in academia’s competitive on market to spend quality time mentoring the next generation of scientists. While I don’t pretend to be immune from “being too busy,” I devote time to mentor a variety of undergraduate students in research and computational sciences. You can read all about my mentees, what we have worked on together, and where they are now on my Mentoring page.

Who I am aside from Science

Of course, while I am passionate about my scientific work I do have a personality beyond research! When I’m not in the lab, I enjoy exploring local parks and forests, playing video games, leather-craft and some electronics tinkering, and hanging out with my #1 coauthor, Salem my cat.

I am also an avid believer in the role of scientists in society extending beyond research. Scientists are citizens of the society in which they live and work and, while the research they produce is valuable, they have a responsibility to engage socially as well. The image of a scientist as an aloft, pretentious entity separate from the rest of humanity, sitting in their ivory tower may seem humurous and out-dated to those of us working in contemporary research labs, but for many people this is the primary image they have of a scientist.

While I encourage you to explore ways to get involved in your local community, it is important to spend time addressing systematic injustices as well. Dr. Phil Chodrow maintains a list of resources on STEM topics and social justice to help one become informed and involved with combating social injustices in STEM fields and I would highly recommend you peruse some of the resources available on his website.