互聯網公司的熱門好工作：數據科學家

When was the last time you picked up your phone and scrolled through your Instagram feed? Checked out a story on Snapchat? Bought something from Amazon?

你上一次拿起手機瀏覽Instagram是什麼時候？看了Snapchat上的一篇報道？從亞馬遜買東西了嗎?

Well, what you might not have realized is the driver of every one of those applications is data.

你可能還沒有意識到這些應用程序的驅動力都是數據。

And, in order to stay relevant, companies are using said data to predict what will be the next big thing. The people at the center of all that action? Data scientists.

而且，爲了保持相關性，各公司會使用這些數據來預測下一個大事件。所有這些行動的中心人物是誰？數據科學家。

So, it’s no wonder that a 2012 report in the Harvard Business Review dubbed the profession “the sexiest job of the 21st century.”

因此，難怪2012年《哈佛商業評論》的一份報告稱這一職業爲“21世紀最迷人的工作”。

It is forecasted that demand for data scientists will soar by 28% by 2020, as companies collect data from a wide variety of sources and need to analyze them to provide better outcomes: clicks online, household water meters, food shopping purchases, health records. But, simply gathering data isn’t enough. Somebody needs to make sense of all those numbers and find patterns to work with. Which is what data scientists do, they analyze data for patterns and use history as a predictor for future outcomes.

據預測，到2020年，對數據科學家的需求將猛增28%，因爲公司從各種各樣的來源收集數據，包括在線點擊、家用水錶記錄、食品購買記錄和健康記錄等，並需要對收集到的數據進行分析，希望可以提供更好的結果。但是，僅僅收集數據是不夠的。需要有人弄清楚所有這些數據並找到可以使用的模型。這就是數據科學家所做的工作，他們分析數據的模型，並用歷史數據作爲未來結果的預測指標。

So, now that we’re clear on what a data scientist does and how sexy it is, how do you become one?

那麼，既然我們已經清楚了數據科學家的工作是什麼，以及它有多迷人，那麼你要如何才能成爲一名數據科學家呢?

Must Love Data

必須熱愛數據

It might sound obvious, but to be a data scientist, you have to love data, says Mary L., Data Scientist at New York Life. Mary was always good at math and admits she was “basically married to the math department” in high school.

紐約人壽的數據科學家瑪麗說，這聽起來很明顯，但要成爲一名數據科學家，你必須熱愛數據。瑪麗一直都很擅長數學, 她曾經說過，在高中時 "基本上嫁給了數學系"

Jeremy B., from New York Life’s Enterprise Data Management team, says his passion for data started when he began predicting problems in a prior company’s platform so that issues could be fixed proactively.

來自紐約人壽企業數據管理團隊的傑瑞米說，他對數據的熱情始於他爲了能夠主動地解決問題而開始預測前一家公司平臺上的問題的時候。 

While Mary appreciates that her colleagues are from different cultures and training backgrounds from financial mathematics to actuarial science, they are all united by their love of data. Mary herself was a statistician long before the term data scientist became popular and she suggests that being comfortable working with data is arguably the most important aspect of the job.

儘管瑪麗意識到她的同事來自不同的文化和培訓背景，從金融數學到精算科學，但他們都因熱愛數據而團結在一起。早在“數據科學家”這個術語流行起來之前瑪麗就是一名統計學家。她認爲舒適地處理數據可以說是這項工作最重要的方面。

However, Jeremy advises potential would-be data scientists to add programming to their toolset if they can: “there are skills that could be refined and developed around programming, whether that’s [by learning] different languages like Java or Python or even the ability to go through and write standard SQL queries.”

不過，傑里米建議那些潛在的數據科學家在可能的情況下將編程添加到他們的工具集中：“有一些技能可以圍繞編程進行改進和開發，不管是是(通過學習)Java或Python等不同的語言，或者甚至通過閱讀和編寫標準SQL查詢的能力。” 

Standing out in a pool of applicants is always a good thing and that holds true for jobs in data science, too.

在衆多申請者中脫穎而出總是件好事，數據科學領域的工作也是如此。

Jeremy points out that because data science is still a nascent field, there is no standard for what one needs to know to be successful in the industry. “What we’re really looking for is people who are intellectually curious,” he says, “folks who are willing to dig deeper, who continue to want to make themselves and the company better through advances in data technologies.”

傑里米指出，因爲數據科學仍然是一個新興領域，所以沒有標準來衡量一個人需要知道什麼才能在這個行業中取得成功。他說:“我們真正要找的是那些有求知慾的人，那些願意深入挖掘的人，那些繼續希望通過數據技術的進步，讓自己和公司變得更好的人。”

At New York Life, for example, since data scientists work with colleagues who have different backgrounds, they bring their own perspectives to the table, which is always valued, Raul H., from the Customer Relationship Management team at New York Life says. At the end of the day, it “comes down to having a passion for data and actually wanting to dig in, pull data sets apart, and really become an expert on the data set that you’re evaluating,” Jeremy adds.

例如，紐約人壽的客戶關係管理團隊的勞爾說，在紐約人壽，數據科學家與有着不同背景的同事一起工作，他們會把自己的觀點帶到桌面上，這一直以來都受到重視。在一天結束的時候，傑里米補充說道，這“歸結爲對數據的熱愛，並且實際上想要深入挖掘，把數據集分開，真正成爲你正在評估的數據集的專家，”。

The bottom line: Much like other jobs, you can stand out by showing you’re a team player and are willing to get down in the trenches and get your hands dirty.

總而言之：就像其他工作一樣，你可以通過表現出你是一個有團隊精神的人，並且願意深入戰壕，弄髒雙手，從而脫穎而出。

Above all, you must have a passion for data. It’s the only way to mold your career in a booming, evolving and yes, sexy, field. 

最重要的是，你必須對數據充滿熱情。這是在一個蓬勃發展，迷人的領域裏塑造你的職業生涯的唯一途徑。

（翻譯：雅蘭）