Bliss, who earned her Ph.D. in mathematical sciences and a certificate in complex systems from the University of Vermont, received the inaugural Complex Systems graduate fellowship at U VM. Since then, her research has delved into topics as wide-ranging as developing statistical techniques to deal with missing data in complex networks to examining emotions in social networks.

The opening of U VM’s Vermont Complex Systems Center several years ago provided her with “a wonderful opportunity to learn the skills and techniques to conduct research in many fields – ranging from computational social sciences to problems in ecology and natural resource management – all through the lens of quantitative and computational thinking,” she notes.

Her path to complex systems and mathematics came after Bliss had studied coastal ecology and marine science, as well as several years spent teaching in countries including Venezuela and Costa Rica.

In her new role as a lecturer at CEMS, Bliss says she wants to excite students about working with data, manipulating models, and searching for patterns, no matter what field they pursue. She’s also working on research into how social networks evolve in Massive Open Online Courses and how the nature of discourse changes throughout the duration of the course.

“One of the best aspects of teaching is that we are always learning – learning more about our fields of expertise as new developments are published, and learning more about the art of teaching,” she adds

(This story was from the Fall 2015 issue of SUMMIT. You can read more here.)