The January Review
Welcome to Simon’s monthly newsletter. I am pleased to introduce this new series as a replacement for my previous blog, which I initiated upon launching this website. The decision to transition to a monthly newsletter stemmed from my inability to maintain the weekly schedule I had initially committed to at the beginning of the new year. Balancing life’s demands and occasionally encountering writer’s block made it increasingly challenging to consistently deliver the meaningful content I aspire to offer my valued audience. Consequently, we have opted to revamp the format and will now be sharing monthly updates in the form of newsletters, encompassing updates about my life and the year’s progress. Going forward, the newsletter will follow a structured approach, encompassing the following sections: 1. General Updates, 2. Top Three Highlights of the Month, 3. Lessons Learned this Month, 4. Where is my head at?, and finally, 5. A Quote of the month. Additionally, there may be occasional special editions of the blog that deviate from this monthly framework, addressing specific topics or events. It is my intention to release these brand new monthly newsletters on the first day of each month, and “subscribers” will receive a copy via email. If you are not on the email-list, the newsletter will also be available on this website under the blogs tab. So sit back, relax, and I can’t wait to tell you about my month.
General Updates
Once again, the winds of change have swept me across the country after spending the past six-months on a journey in Switzerland. Change has been a constant companion throughout the past year, bringing both opportunities and challenges. In this blog post, I’ll share my excitement about starting anew in Boston, a city that holds great promise. From personal growth to scientific wonders and legendary sports teams, there’s a lot to look forward to in this premier East Coast destination. Join me as I embark on this new chapter, leaving behind a lackluster European experience and embracing the vibrant possibilities that await.
Boston, a city where brilliant minds converge, has always fascinated me. It has served as a breeding ground for visionaries like Mark Zuckerberg, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and Gilbert Strang, who honed their skills and made significant contributions during their time here. Its world-renowned universities, such as Harvard and MIT, attract exceptional talent and create an intellectually stimulating environment. Similarly, Boston’s sports legacy is awe-inspiring, with legends like Tom Brady, the New England Patriots, the Boston Celtics, and the Boston Bruins etching their names in history. This city has witnessed remarkable sports moments, hosting iconic athletes like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kobe Bryant on their quest for championship glory. While I don’t expect to become a legend overnight, I’m eager to learn from this city’s vibrant culture and use those experiences to propel my own career.
My decision to move to Boston was driven by the opportunity to embark on my first professional journey in the industry. I consider myself fortunate to have found a position at Celsius Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on precision medicine. As a data scientist, I’ll contribute to their groundbreaking efforts in various capacities. The location of the company, nestled in the heart of Kendall Square, further amplifies the excitement. Kendall Square is a bustling hub known for its thriving tech and biotech ecosystem — a Palo Alto of the Silicon Valley for those familiar with California. With prestigious institutions like MIT and Harvard in close proximity, our office becomes a dynamic space brimming with innovation. In the weeks and months ahead, I eagerly anticipate the fresh challenges and opportunities that await me in this thriving city.
As I embark on my Bostonian adventure, I reflect on the inevitability of change and the boundless possibilities it brings. Leaving behind Switzerland and a lackluster European experience, I am eager to embrace the energy and vibrancy of Boston. This city’s intellectual capital, legendary sports legacy, and thriving biotech industry offer a wealth of inspiration and opportunity. With my new role, I’m ready to dive headfirst into this fresh start. With my fresh start in Boston, I anticipate a plethora of new experiences, places to explore, people to meet, and memories to create. From strolling through historic neighborhoods and embracing the vibrant art scene to indulging in local culinary delights and immersing myself in the rich cultural tapestry, Boston offers a multitude of avenues for personal growth. Each day presents an opportunity to learn, connect, and build a life that combines professional success with a sense of fulfillment. I look forward to the foreseeable future in this captivating city, eagerly anticipating the adventures that lie ahead.
Top Three Highlights of the Month
1. New Job
Undoubtedly, the highlight of this month for me has been embarking on a new journey at Celsius. After an unsuccessful attempt in Switzerland, there was nothing I desired more than returning to the United States. Thankfully, after submitting applications to over 100 different positions, I was fortunate enough to hear back from Celsius and ultimately secure the job. The interview process at Celsius was lengthy, and for a considerable period of time, I doubted whether I would land the role. Fortunately, everything fell into place, leading me to find myself in the city of Boston.
At Celsius, my role as a data scientist involves supporting the company’s pioneering efforts in precision medicine. As a small pharmaceutical company dedicated to addressing inflammatory diseases, we have set our sights on developing a drug for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), encompassing Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease. I am thrilled to embark on this new chapter at Celsius since, up until now, my professional career has revolved solely around academia and the brilliant laboratories I’ve had the privilege to work in. However, it was about time for me to explore the industry and seize its myriad opportunities.
The transition into the industry has been remarkable, thanks to the numerous benefits provided by the company. Among my favorite perks are the provision of multiple free meals per week, free transportation, and an abundant supply of snacks available at the office. Additionally, the industry graciously provides work computers, adding to the collection of multiple computers I already possess at home. Nevertheless, the work environment in the industry differs significantly from my previous experience in academic labs. In academia, I enjoyed a greater degree of independence, whereas in the industry, constant check-ins and daily meetings have stripped away some of that autonomy. I recall having, at most, two meetings per week in an academic lab to discuss progress, but in the industry, that number has grown nearly fivefold, with a meeting almost guaranteed every day. This increased obligation made it challenging to adapt, as finding time for focused, productive work outside of these meetings became essential. Additionally, the industry places a high demand for consistent results, given its competitive nature, particularly in the pharmaceutical market. It’s entirely possible that major companies like Pfizer, Biogen, and Amgen are working on similar disease groups with even greater resources. These changes became evident rather quickly, but they have only fueled my motivation to work harder and contribute to the company’s success.
At Celsius, my primary objective is to contribute to the validation experiments involving a target (shhh, it’s a secret) that the company had discovered before my arrival. As mentioned earlier, our focus revolves around IBD, and one of the most significant challenges associated with this disease is the lack of treatment options for nearly 60% of patients. This challenge stems from a concept known as cellular heterogeneity, where the cellular abundance in a patient’s genetics can vary from that of another patient. Consequently, a medication may only prove effective for a subset of patients with similar genetic profiles. As a result, the Crohn’s and Colitis foundations have proposed numerous scientific initiatives to expedite the development of new therapeutics for these patients. In my precision medicine validation experiment, I am working with bulk deconvolution. Bulk deconvolution is a computational method utilized in transcriptomics to deduce the relative proportions and gene expression profiles of different cell types within a bulk RNA-seq sample. In bulk RNA-seq, the gene expression data represents a mixture of multiple cell types, making it challenging to dissect the individual contributions of each cell population. An analogy that helps elucidate the process is quantifying the abundance of individual fruits comprising a given amount of fruit smoothies. By deconvolving the bulk data, researchers can gain valuable insights into the cellular composition and understand the specific gene expression patterns associated with different cell types, thereby providing a valuable tool for studying complex biological systems and disease processes.
Outside of work, I have had the opportunity to gain valuable experiences. Unlike college, where one is predominantly surrounded by peers, the industry exposes me to professionals, or as I affectionately refer to them, adults. Initially, this was a foreign concept to me, considering I am only 21 years old among colleagues whose median age is approximately 35! However, I have come to appreciate that age often brings wisdom, and I can attest to the valuable life perspectives I have gained by being surrounded by these individuals. Nonetheless, being around adults has also presented some peculiar moments. For instance, during our holiday party, it felt odd to indulge in festivities (getting drunk) and merriment with a group of older individuals. Yet, I have learned that overthinking such situations is futile, and it is easier to simply embrace life as it unfolds. And that’s precisely what I have been doing! I eagerly look forward to the future and the exciting prospects that await me at Celisus!
2. Laur
One of the highlights of this month was meeting Lauren Takenaga, who became my first true friend in Boston. Part of the reason I considered my time in Switzerland a failure was due to the social struggles I faced. Europeans were different from Americans and not accustomed to the open nature of Americans in general. Therefore, it didn’t take long for me to meet Lauren. However, finding friends was quite challenging, as I was no longer in an environment where I could easily meet people my age. While Boston was a “young city” with many students nearby, I wasn’t naturally placed in situations to meet such individuals. Consequently, I turned to dating apps as a means of making friends, which might seem strange to the older generation but was essentially my only way of meeting new people. Lauren happened to be one of the first people I met on the Hinge dating app, and that’s how our story began. One of my favorite qualities about Lauren was her ambition to genuinely get to know someone she had only met days before on our silly app. Our friendship turned out to be mutually beneficial, and we were both delighted to have met each other. But before delving further into Lauren’s background, let’s explore her story.
Lauren is a current masters student at UMass Amherst, where she is completing a 4+1 program in finance. She is one of the 3rd or 4th generation Japanese, and was quite the intelligent girl. Similar to me, she graduated early and was in the process of completing her master’s degree, which, unfortunately, had been largely impacted by COVID-19. For these reasons she was therefore completing the masters portion online. But this ended up being beneficial for the both of us since Amherst is roughly 2 hours away from Boston but at her home in Acton, Massachusettes, it is like 35 minutes from Boston. Given the alignment of various factors, including proximity being a significant contributor to the dating app algorithm, it was possible for us to meet. It is often funny how life works at times, and how very different things can turn out if things were even slightly off. Anyhow, since she was at home, she often felt a bit bored, which provided an opportunity for her to visit Boston, and hence, we could hang out frequently. That’s essentially how everything fell into place.
When I first met Lauren, she invited me to hang out with all her college friends during their winter break. On that night, she picked me up from my house, and we ventured to Downtown Boston, where we eventually went clubbing. However, before hitting the clubs, we embarked on a significant bar-hopping adventure. During that time, we got to know each other better and discovered how remarkably similar we were. Finding common ground among friends is always wonderful, and it strengthened our connection. Looking back, that night was a lot of fun because not only was Lauren a fantastic person, but she also reintroduced me to the social life I had been missing for so long. I remember on our first outing together, she generously bought drinks for our entire group, and when I shared the details of my weekend with my coworkers, they jokingly referred to her as a “sugar momma.” Nonetheless, Lauren and I continue to spend time together, and even tried dating for a little. Though that didn’t totally work out, we decided to remain friends, and I was lucky to have met a gem of a friend to begin my tenure in Boston.
3. Visiting Philippa in Hamburg
The final highlight of the month was my visit to Philippa in their home country of Germany, just before I moved to Boston. Philippa had been one of my closest friends during the summer, and it felt surreal to stay with their parents in Hamburg, Germany. Unfortunately, at that time, I had a rough start to the new year after experiencing heartbreak in New York, so I wasn’t feeling like myself. Nonetheless, seeing one of my dear friends after over six months was a heartwarming experience. I remember when I initially planned the trip, I accidentally scheduled my plane ticket a day earlier than intended, so I ended up arriving in Hamburg way too early. To avoid inconveniencing Philippa’s family, I booked a hotel and ended up spending an entire day doing absolutely nothing. If you’re reading this, Philippa, yes, I know it’s embarrassing…
After that day passed, I “landed” in Hamburg again and was picked up by Philippa and their dad at the airport. They took me around the city, and I got a good sense of its charm. Despite its northern location, I was surprised that it wasn’t as cold as I had expected. However, during my stay, it rained significantly throughout, which was unfortunate. Another narrative at the time was that I had my entire life packed into two massive suitcases since I had just left Switzerland and was in the process of moving to Boston, with New York City and Hamburg being small detours on my way to New England. It was a busy time in my life, but this was the only opportunity I had in my schedule. One of the first conversations I remember having with Philippa and their parents was that I was the second friend to visit them in both Berkeley and Hamburg. This made logistical sense since traveling to a small German city wasn’t easy for their friends on the West Coast. Even for me, finding a direct route to Hamburg was a challenge, but it wasn’t so bad because I was conveniently in Europe at the time.
Some highlights of the trip included biking from their house and exploring the entire city of Hamburg. We covered over 20 km that day, and it was truly enjoyable to experience the city with a local guide. Philippa showed me their favorite spots and provided historical context along the way. On that same trip, we stopped at a fish sandwich stand, as Hamburg is known for its seafood being close to the North Sea. The sandwiches were incredibly delicious and surprisingly really cheap. Overall, Germany was relatively inexpensive compared to other European countries, allowing me to fully enjoy what it had to offer. We continued biking and walking around the city for most of the day, even venturing to the nearby town of Treppenviertel, which was by the water. Another highlight of the trip was our attempt at ice skating, which ended in comical failures but was followed by rewarding ourselves with some German brews on our way home. Given Germany’s reputation for Oktoberfest, it was safe to assume they had excellent beers as well. Lastly, being able to catch up on life during our downtime was a cherished experience. Since it rained heavily at times, we spent a lot of time at home indoors, listening to music on their record player, and discussing how much our lives had changed since the summer. My entire stay in Hamburg was truly amazing, providing a fantastic final experience in Europe before embarking on my next journey in Boston. Philippa and their parents were exceptional hosts, and I am immensely grateful for their hospitality and the wonderful conversations I had with my friend’s parents. So, thank you, Philippa!
One thing I learned this Month
Appreciating and not holding onto the Past
As mentioned frequently in this newsletter, change can be challenging. Humans are creatures of habit, finding comfort in the familiar. When change occurs, our routines are disrupted, requiring us to step outside our comfort zones. The unknown can be intimidating, causing us to resist letting go of what we are accustomed to, even if it no longer serves us well. Personally, I find change difficult because I tend to form emotional attachments to people, places, or situations, making it hard to embrace and let go. I fear losing connections and cherished memories associated with familiar aspects of my life.
At the beginning of the year, I learned the importance of appreciating the people in the present moment and not clinging onto them beyond the time we share together. It became particularly challenging when the person held great significance to me. I visited her during the winter, as she meant the world to me. However, when the day finally arrived, I could hardly recognize her, and it was difficult to accept. A few months ago, everything was perfect, but now we were strangers once again. Although this experience feels somewhat dark, it was an important lesson that I learned early in the year. Sometimes, I wish I had never seen this new version of her so that nothing from the past would be tainted. Despite the difficulty, it was a valuable lesson that will guide me as I move forward.
Quote of the Month
“You can’t win the lottery, if you don’t buy the ticket”
This quote deeply resonates with my journey this year. For the longest time, I lived my life in a particular way, avoiding change and risk like it was an allergy. However, since the Covid pandemic, I have undergone a profound transformation, becoming someone who feels restless when my life becomes stagnant. Therefore, since graduating from college, I have made a conscious effort to embrace new experiences and explore more of the world. One of the privelages of being young is the freedom to make mistakes and make the wrong decisions. This year, in particular, I ventured into new endeavors with the belief that they would be amazing, only to realize that some things didn’t quite work out as intended. And honestly, that’s perfectly alright. Without taking those initial steps, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet the remarkable people I did or visit the extraordinary places I’ve been to. Looking back, it feels like winning the lottery simply because I had the courage to purchase a ticket. Although I was filled with apprehension about the potential pitfalls, I was also rewarded with countless unexpected blessings. Therefore, this month’s quote serves as a reminder to share these profound emotions and convey the importance of taking that first step beyond our comfort zones.
Contact
Simon Lee
simonlee711@gmail.com