Talithia D. Williams is an American statistician and mathematician at

Harvey Mudd College Harvey Mudd College (HMC) is a private college in Claremont, California, focused on science and engineering. It is part of the Claremont Colleges, which share adjoining campus grounds and resources. The college enrolls 902 undergraduate students ...

who researches the spatiotemporal structure of data. She was the first black woman to achieve tenure at Harvey Mudd College. Williams is an advocate for engaging more African Americans in engineering and science.

Education

Her educational background includes a bachelor's degree in Mathematics from

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...

, Master's degrees in both Mathematics from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

and Statistics from

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

, and a Ph.D. in Statistics from Rice University. Dr. Williams was in one of the first

EDGE Edge or EDGE may refer to: Technology Computing * Edge computing, a network load-balancing system * Edge device, an entry point to a computer network * Adobe Edge, a graphical development application * Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed by ...

cohorts.

Career and research

Williams has worked at the

Jet Propulsion Laboratory The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, United States. Founded in the 1930s by Caltech researchers, JPL is owned by NASA an ...

(JPL), the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collecti ...

(NSA), and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

. She is an associate professor of mathematics and also serves as Associate Dean for Research and Experiential Learning at

. She is Secretary and Treasurer for the

EDGE Foundation The Edge Foundation, Inc. is an association of science and technology intellectuals created in 1988 as an outgrowth of The Reality Club. Its main activities are reflected on the edge.org website, edited by publisher and businessman John Brock ...

which sponsors summer programs for women, and on the boards of the MAA and

SACNAS The 'Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)'' is a society that aims to further the success of Chicano/Hispanic and Native American students in obtaining advanced degrees, careers, leadership positi ...

. Williams has done significant outreach, with the goal of bringing mathematics to life and "rebranding the field of mathematics as anything but dry, technical or male-dominated but instead a logical, productive career path that is crucial to the future of the country." Williams has developed statistical models focused on understanding the structure of spatiotemporal data, with environmental applications. She has partnered with the World Health Organization in developing a cataract model used to predict the cataract surgical rate for countries in Africa. Williams was a host of the six part PBS series NOVA Wonders in April 2018. She is the author of the book '' Power in Numbers: The Rebel Women of Mathematics'' (Race Point Publishing, 2018). Williams was the narrator for the five-part PBS series NOVA Universe Revealed in November 2021.

TED talk

In 2014, Williams gave a highly viewed

TED talk TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...

titled "Own Your Body's Data", discussing the potential insights to be gained from collecting personal health data.

Honors

In 2015 Williams received the MAA Henry L. Alder Award for exemplary teaching by an early career mathematics professor. Williams was honored by the Association for Women in Mathematics and the Mathematical Association of America, when they selected her to be the

AWM/MAA Falconer Lecturer The Etta Z. Falconer Lecture is an award and lecture series which honors "women who have made distinguished contributions to the mathematical sciences or mathematics education". It is sponsored by the Association for Women in Mathematics and the Ma ...

at MathFest 2017 in Chicago, IL. The title of her talk is "Not So Hidden Figures: Unveiling Mathematical Talent." Williams was also recognized by

Mathematically Gifted & Black Mathematically Gifted & Black (MGB) is a website that features the accomplishments of black scholars in mathematical sciences. In addition to highlighting the work and lives of established mathematicians in the African Diaspora, the platform aims ...

as a Black History Month 2017 Honoree. She received the 2022

Joint Policy Board for Mathematics The Joint Policy Board for Mathematics (JPBM) consists of the American Mathematical Society, the American Statistical Association, the Mathematical Association of America, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. The Board has near ...

Communication Award "for bringing mathematics and statistics into the homes of millions through her work as a TV host, renowned speaker, and author."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Talithia 20th-century American mathematicians 21st-century American mathematicians American women mathematicians African-American mathematicians Spelman College alumni Rice University alumni Harvey Mudd College faculty Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century women mathematicians 21st-century women mathematicians 21st-century American women Data activism