Mayly Sánchez facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mayly Sánchez
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| Born |
Mayly Carolina Sánchez
June 26, 1972 |
| Nationality | Venezuela, United States |
| Alma mater | Universidad de Los Andes, ULA International Centre for Theoretical Physics Tufts University |
| Occupation | Researcher, academic |
| Years active | 2003- |
| Employer | Florida State University |
| Known for | Experimental work with neutrinos |
Mayly Sánchez is a scientist from Venezuela who studies tiny particles called neutrinos. She works as a professor at Iowa State University.
In 2011, she received a very important award called the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). This is the highest award the United States gives to young scientists. She earned it for her amazing work with neutrinos and for encouraging more girls and women to study science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). In 2013, the BBC recognized her as one of the top ten women scientists in Latin America.
Contents
Early Life and Growing Up
Mayly Sánchez was born in Caracas, Venezuela, on June 26, 1972. She loved science from a young age.
Discovering a Passion for Science
Her interest in science started when she watched a TV show called "Cosmos" in the 1980s. This show made her very excited about astronomy, which is the study of stars and planets. For her 12th birthday, she even asked for books about astronomy!
Her uncle told her that if she wanted to learn more about astronomy, she would also need to study physics. Physics is the study of how the universe works, from the smallest particles to the biggest galaxies.
Moving and High School Years
When she was 13, Mayly and her family moved to Mérida, Venezuela. She went to an all-girls Catholic school called Colegio Fátima. During high school, her focus slowly changed from astronomy to physics. Her math and physics teachers helped her discover this new interest.
Education and Advanced Studies
After high school, Mayly continued her studies at the Universidad de Los Andes (ULA) in Mérida. She earned her bachelor's degree in physics in 1995.
Focusing on Fundamental Physics
At ULA, her interest became even more specific. She started focusing on fundamental physics, which looks at the basic building blocks of the universe. After this, she won a scholarship to study at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy. There, she earned a special diploma in high energy physics in 1996.
Studying Neutrinos in the United States
After her year in Italy, Mayly moved to Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. She went to Tufts University to get her master's degree in physics, which she completed in 1998. She then continued her studies and earned her PhD in physics in 2003.
During this time, her passion became even more focused: she decided to study neutrinos. Neutrinos are tiny, almost massless particles that are very hard to detect. Her PhD paper was about how atmospheric neutrinos change as they travel.
Career and Research
After finishing her PhD, Mayly Sánchez worked as a researcher at Harvard University. She kept working on experimental physics, especially with fundamental particles like neutrinos.
Joining Important Experiments
She also joined the MINOS (Main Injector Neutrino Oscillation Search) team at Fermilab. In 2007, she became an assistant physicist at the US Energy Department's Argonne National Laboratory. She still works there today.
In 2009, she also joined the faculty at Iowa State University. She is now a Professor of Physics and Astronomy there. In 2013, she earned tenure, which means she has a permanent teaching position.
Mentoring Future Scientists
Mayly is also a mentor for many female students. She leads the Iowa State University Undergraduate Women in Physics group. She also helps organize the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics. She inspires young women to pursue careers in science.
Exploring the Universe with Neutrinos
Her research is a big part of the Long Baseline Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). This project plans to send a strong beam of neutrinos from the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois, to a detector deep underground in the Homestake Mine in South Dakota.
This experiment will help scientists understand how the universe was formed. It will also help them learn why neutrinos change their form, especially when they travel through rock. Mayly Sánchez also works on the Main Injector Neutrino Oscillation Search and NOνA experiments. These experiments study how neutrinos change as they travel from Fermilab to detectors in northern Minnesota. She is also a spokesperson for the Accelerator Neutrino Neutron Interaction Experiment (ANNIE) at Fermilab.
Developing New Technologies
Mayly's current work also includes making better photodetectors. These are special devices used to find neutrinos. But they can also be used in other areas, like medical imaging (taking pictures inside the body). Her goal is to make these detectors cheaper and work even better.
Awards and Recognition
Mayly Sánchez has received many important awards for her contributions to science:
- 2020 Fellow of the American Physical Society
- 2016 Fermi National Laboratory Intensity Frontier Fellowship
- 2013 BBC's Top 10 Latina Scientists
- 2012 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)
- 2012 Official Recognition from the Office of the Governor of the State of Iowa.
- 2012 Iowa State University Award for Early Achievement in Research.
- 2011 National Science Foundation CAREER Award.
- 2009 Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Award Corporation (HENAAC) Outstanding Technical Achievement Award.
See also
In Spanish: Mayly Sánchez para niños
