Personal History

Childhood Living as an Energetic and Curious Girl in Rural Japan

In the quiet countryside of Japan, I spent my early years as a lively and curious girl. I grew up in the least populated prefecture in Japan, Tottori prefecture. To be honest, I don’t remember much from back then. But I remember I wanted my parents to care for me more than my younger brother, so I tried really hard to get their attention. I wasn’t really into studying or sports like some kids. But I was good at observing and understanding things around me. For example, I liked playing medal games which is a type of arcade game in Japan where we can win metal coins, much like an arcade token. I strategically observed the players and machines to figure out which machine might let me win. Even back then, I enjoyed observing how people acted, guessing what they might be thinking. And I liked thinking about what I should do based on those thoughts, kind of like a puzzle that I enjoyed solving.

A Realization of Environmental Impact on Personal Growth During Adolescence

As I grew older, I realized that the environment around me had a big impact on how I grew up. This became clear during my teenage years. I got really into playing field hockey (not ice hockey!). It all started when I was in elementary school. My best friend joined the hockey team, so I decided to join too. Where I lived, in Tottori Prefecture, hockey wasn’t super popular. We didn’t have a strong team like some other places. There were schools in the neighboring Shimane Prefecture that were really good at hockey. This made me feel unsure about my own skills, and I didn’t think I could beat those strong teams in competitions. Still, I really wanted to get better, so I practiced a lot every day. But from elementary school to my second year of middle school, I didn’t feel like I was ready to compete on a national level.

Then something important happened. I met a teacher named Michihata. He completely changed my life. In my third year of middle school, he came to my school from a strong hockey school in Shimane. From that moment, everything changed. He taught me how to approach hockey differently, how to practice better, and even how to live my daily life in a new way. Even though my teammates were the same, his influence made us all think and play differently. I started practicing in the mornings and evenings on top of my regular practice. After about six months of this intense practice and learning, my confidence grew. I felt like I could compete with the best in the country. Even though I didn’t do well in a big tournament that summer, the experience of practicing so hard and the changes in my life taught me something really important: where you are and who you’re with can make a huge difference in your own growth.

When it was time to think about going to university, things got intense. Even though I had been focused on hockey for a long time, I needed to consider my future. While my friends had been preparing for university for a while, I had mostly been playing hockey. I didn’t have much time left – I only had a few months for the preparation. My teacher told me it might be tough for me to get into the university I wanted. But I didn’t want to give up. So, after stopping playing hockey, I started studying really hard from morning to night. I liked math the most, so I focused on that. I even chose a university major in math. In Japan, students can only take national university entrance exams twice. I decided to apply to Nara Women’s University for their math program, even though my teacher said it was a difficult choice. I worked really hard, and I did well enough on the exams to get into my first-choice university (I later found out I barely passed – if I had made one more mistake, I might not have been admitted).

Struggling with Math, Embracing Lacrosse During University Years

University life brought changes. I stopped liking math even though I loved it before. I went to Nara Women’s University, where I saw many women liking math and science, just like me. I felt more accepted and began studying math with women who shared my interests. But university math became extensively hard. I used to enjoy math, solving problems with numbers and equations, but now it was about proving theories and using abstract ideas. I started struggling with it because I could not find the connection between math and real life and could not understand the meaning and value of learning it.

At university, there was no hockey team, so I started playing lacrosse. It was a fun experience with great friends, and we even won a big competition. My university life was split between studying math which I didn’t like much and enjoying lacrosse.

As university ended, I had to look for a job. I didn’t have a strong interest in anything specific, but I wanted to find a job where I could use my math skills. I came across a job as a systems engineer, that uses logical thinking I learned from math. Many graduates from the math department went into this field. Inspired by them, I applied for jobs as an SE and got offers from some companies (though I didn’t get into my top choice).

Discovering the Enjoyment of Data Science, Questioning Purpose of Job, and Kindling Interest in International Adventures while Working as a Data Scientist

Upon joining as an SE to my first company, I discovered my role was in a new field (at that time) called Data Science. My job was to create bidding algorithms for an online advertising system known as Demand Side Platform (DSP). This job required skills in data analysis and machine learning. Due to my math background, the company thought I could excel in Data Science. It was a completely new experience, but this shift was transformative. Despite my prior struggle with math, this role required focused, practical math study. Data Science applied math to real issues, which I found thrilling. Unveiling insights from data felt like discovering treasures in a mountain.

While working as a Data Scientist, I got the opportunity to represent my department at an international digital marketing conference held in Japan, which exposed me to the broader world. Listening to speakers from overseas made me realize there was so much more to explore, motivating me to learn English and engage with international perspectives.

This realization made me decide to move to an environment where I can use English more frequently and interact with international employees. I moved to Rakuten, where I continued working as a Data Scientist. My role involved analyzing data from merchants on Rakuten’s e-commerce platform to devise strategies for boosting their sales. The main reason for joining Rakuten was its unique environment. English was the internal official language, and the company had a strong international presence. This transition sparked my dedication to learning English seriously and aspiring to be globally relevant in my career.

However, over time, I started questioning the meaning of my work. My daily tasks were demanding, and I struggled with a misalignment between the company’s goals and my personal interests. Company reputation eclipsed my personal identity, leaving me feeling undervalued. This dilemma led me to introspect about my true passions and what I really wanted to do.

Exploring options, I considered entrepreneurship and applied for Tottori Startup Camp, an event supporting aspiring entrepreneurs in my hometown. Despite trying this route, I felt lacking in a clear sense of self and purpose, which affected my commitment to any business idea. At the event, I had a chance encounter with Hiromi Okuda, a Japanese female entrepreneur. She encouraged me to reevaluate myself and find what I truly wanted. For that, she offered an opportunity for training in Silicon Valley. Feeling that this was the opportunity I had been seeking, I promptly decided to participate, despite the significant cost (about double my monthly salary at the time). This decision marked a significant turning point in my life’s journey.

Deciding to go to the US through Women’s Startup Lab training

In January 2018, I traveled to Silicon Valley for the first time to attend the training. At that point, I was more worried about my limited English skills than excited about the experience of being in the U.S. I joined a group of 10 participants, including myself, for the training. During the training, we delved deep into our lives, reflecting on everything from childhood onward, aiming to discover our core essence. Night after night, I remember lying in bed, puzzled about what truly constituted my core being. Local entrepreneurs also participated as mentors in the training. Though I might not have fully grasped their discussions at the time, their enthusiasm and powerful words left an impression on me, providing a surge of energy. Although I didn’t fully uncover my core through this training, I returned with something even more valuable. It was the resounding desire to go to America.

I yearned to live in this thrilling environment, communicate with the people there, and witness entirely new aspects of the world. My excitement was unrelenting, leading me to decide that I absolutely had to find a way to go to America.

While the decision to go to America was made, how to go about it and what to do there remained unclear to me. My eagerness to go was pushing me forward without a clear plan. My initial idea was to utilize the network of the global company Rakuten to secure a position at Rakuten’s U.S. branch. However, given my English proficiency at the time and the positions available, I couldn’t find a job in the U.S. that was both enjoyable and aligned with my interests. I was considering waiting for any opportunity to arise, perhaps starting with any job in the U.S. and then progressing within the company. But I felt that this path would take too much time. Instead, I believed that by investing in myself and honing the skills I wanted, I could more quickly achieve what I desired in America. Thus, I arrived at the conclusion of pursuing studies in the U.S. By studying and getting admitted to a university, I could pave my way to America, choosing a field that genuinely interested me and gaining expertise in a short time. This decision was reached a few days after returning from the U.S. training, and I submitted my resignation letter to Rakuten the next day. While some might see this as a hasty decision, I believed that by creating an unwavering environment, I could strengthen and clarify my determination, committing myself to succeed in the upcoming admissions process.

Starting in March 2018 after leaving Rakuten, I dedicated myself to studying English for the American graduate school admission. From morning till night, I focused on preparing for the TOEFL, aiming to score at least 100 points as quickly as possible. English had never been my favorite subject; during university, I used to joke that I would finish life without studying English. Studying English daily was challenging for me, but I steadily improved my scores.

Another challenge was selecting a field of study that would align with my goals. Although I wanted to go to America, I hadn’t yet clarified what I wanted to learn or do. My experiences in data science and interactions with a supervisor at Rakuten played a significant role in helping me decide.

As I delved into machine learning and AI as a data scientist, I often became disillusioned with AI. At the time, the world was buzzing about how AI, exemplified by AlphaGo, would soon surpass human intelligence. However, in practice, AI was nowhere near capable of independently conducting data analysis tasks I did daily at Rakuten. I began to appreciate human intelligence, cognition, and learning abilities. This realization ignited my curiosity to understand how humans think and learn, and sparked the idea that creating AI capable of human-like thinking and learning could be fascinating.

Another realization stemmed from my supervisor at Rakuten, who was exceptionally intelligent in various ways. In meetings, I’d present data analysis results and my interpretation. He would then respond with incredibly deep and interesting insights. Despite looking at the same data and graphs, he consistently derived fascinating observations and provided clear explanations. This disparity intrigued me.

However, I noticed that he had acquired his skills gradually over time through experience and couldn’t easily explain his thought processes. His knowledge was internal and inaccessible. I wanted to understand how his brain worked and learn his skills from him. But it was just impossible without understanding the process within our brain.

These two interests converged in the field of computational cognitive science, a branch of psychology. This field uses machine learning and data science to understand cognitive processes, including human learning, and bridges this understanding to the development of AI. This field resonated perfectly with my interests in human learning processes, data analysis expertise, and a vision of connecting it to machine learning. Therefore, I decided to pursue cognitive science studies by studying abroad.

After applying to several American universities, I ultimately decided to enroll in the Master’s program in psychology at New York University, starting in the fall of 2019.

Discovering My Passion for Neuroscience during My Journey at New York University

During my pursuit of a psychology degree, an epiphany struck me: the intersection of my interests and expertise lay within the field of neuroscience.

The initial phase of my NYU journey was marked by the challenge of adapting to English-taught courses. However, in addition to this linguistic struggle, there was another challenge that awaited – the quest for a research laboratory. NYU’s Psychology Master program offered flexibility, allowing students to complete their degrees through coursework and exams alone. Yet, my passion for cognitive science research drove me to seek hands-on involvement. Determined to immerse myself in the field, I reached out to professors to find a suitable lab.

This challenge wasn’t without its hurdles. As a student new to both the English and American cultures, articulating my interests proved to be an uphill battle. The complexity deepened as I delved into the intricacies of each lab’s research focus – a challenge compounded by my limited experience in the field. Furthermore, the scarcity of labs open to master’s students, coupled with my desire for alignment with my research interests, intensified the challenge.

After experiencing several failures, something significant happened – I got the chance to meet Prof. Roozbeh Kiani, and this was a pivotal moment for me. His lab studies information processing in the brains of monkeys. I was presented with a unique opportunity to delve into behavioral analysis, specifically related to decision-making processes in monkeys. Even though I first thought about studying human behavior, I decided to go in this new direction. This decision marked a turning point, influencing my trajectory. I’m really grateful to Roozbeh for giving me a chance to be in his lab, even though my English wasn’t very good back then.

Coming soon!

Reaching the Environment that I have sought for a long time as a CMU PhD student

Coming soon!