The most beautiful thing about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) is that there isn’t a language barrier. The laws of physics, the chemical makeup of water, the sum of adding two numbers, etc. will be the same no matter the country, continent, or hemisphere.
This summer I’ve been performing computer science research at L’Institut Nationale des Sciences Appliquées de Strasbourg in France. My lab in particular creates programs to classify satellite-images of the earth’s surface. I came into the summer not knowing what to expect but I was confident in my abilities.
There’s a limited number of programming languages used around the world, and logic behind computing algorithms remains the same globally. Despite beginning the summer with very limited French I rarely had trouble communicating in the lab. Of course, speaking with people on the street in everyday conversation was a completely different struggle. Being immersed in a new place alone and living day to day with a new language for ten weeks was an unforgettable experience of self-reflection, growth, and discovery.
Being in Europe also gave me the opportunity to travel to several different countries. Still I found myself extremely overwhelmed at times. Fortunately my research provided a strong sense of familiarity and comfort in a way that I could have never anticipated. My time in France strengthened my love for science, and I hope I can encourage women and people of color to pursue STEM and international travel.
