[ MUSIC ] I'm Rosemary Baize, and this is my story. When I was very young, I wanted to see the world. So, I wanted to be a truck driver. So, you know, I quickly learned that that was probably not going to work for me. When I was in high school, I decided that I wanted to do something in math and science. In ninth grade -- ninth or tenth grade -- I went into calculus. And I'd always been a really strong student and done very well in a number of areas. I went into calculus, and I struggled. And I got C's, the first C's in my career I'd gotten. And I went and I talked with the teacher at the time, and I said, "You know, I'm really struggling here. What do I need to do?" And I can remember, he said "You have reached your mathematical plateau. You should not pursue math any longer, and do something else with your high school career." And I went home, and I was devastated by this comment. And it just fired up my mother. My mother was furious with it. And she went in and she said, "Look, she's gonna do well, and we're going to help her get to where she wants to go. I'm getting emotional. And so she... My dad, fortunately, he worked at GM. And he had a new hire that was a female engineer. She was a mechanical engineer, and she was probably in her early twenties. And she came over and she tutored me in calculus. And so by the end of the year, I had A's in calculus. And from that point forward I was very strong in math, And I really made it my mission to do well in math. And I think that was kind of the turning point where I decided that was something I wanted to do. And it was somebody telling me that I couldn't do it that really stimulated... So in an odd way, that guy that told me that I'd reached my "mathematical plateau" had a very positive impact on my life because of the people that helped me. So when I was in college, I got an opportunity to interview with multiple companies. And I interviewed with a gentleman from NASA. And I was just impressed by the work that he was doing and the enthusiasm that he brought to the discussion. And that made the difference for me. That was... I started out in the co-op program, and I just loved it. And after I graduated college, I had lots of different offers. But NASA was where I felt I was home. It was really an important place for me to work. I felt like I was making a difference. I feel like the people I get to work with on a daily basis are just exceptional and that everyone that I work with, to a person, is trying to make things better for the Nation and trying to do a good job. Early on in my career, I worked in the Full-Scale Tunnel. And that tunnel -- 30 by 60 foot test chamber -- and we would go and install models in that. And just being in that amazing building and knowing that so many aircraft had gone through there and really been changed by the data that came out of that. It was just a cool thing. I'm the science manager for a climate-focused mission called the Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory, CLARREO. And that mission is focused on getting a more comprehensive and rigorous understanding of climate change. And the way in which is does that is through very highly accurate measurements. There's spectry resolve measurements of the thermal infrared -- the infrared radiation being emitted -- and the reflected solar radiation. So it looks at the energy leaving the planet. And the real key is these high-accuracy measurements. The CLARREO instrument is designed to put measurements that are two to ten times more accurate than anything else we have in orbit. I think that through my career... I didn't end up where I thought I would. I started with aerospace engineering. Then I went and got a Master's Degree in Business Administration. And then from there I wound up in climate science. And I think that the thing that I learned is to keep looking and striving to find that thing that works best for you. And sometimes the path that you take isn't as straightforward as you might think, but... I'm now in climate science, and I think it's where I'm meant to be. And the importance of continuing to strive to find that thing that really fits for you and where you can make a difference and where you can contribute. I have friends of mine who don't like their job, and I find myself wondering, "Why are you staying? Why would you stay?" If you don't like your job, why would you stay? You should continue to move. And they say, "Well, I can't. I can't. I can't." And that disappoints me, because they're meant for something else, and they're missing that opportunity. And what I've been very fortunate in NASA is NASA's allowed me to make those changes and to find that place that really fits for me.

• published: 27 Jan 2014
• views: 392