Mason C Miranda

In what ways do you feel you contribute to the Harvard community?
I have always felt that my role was simple; make technology work for researchers. When I first joined HMS 12 years ago, a high degree of understanding of how computers worked was required to leverage Information Technology resources affectively. My teammates in the Client Services Group have worked hard to lower the burden required in leveraging information technologies and have, hopefully, made them more accessible. By encouraging direct communication, we have built strong relationships with the user community. These direct relationships have allowed us to advocate affectively for our users as well as to ease their burdens while encouraging use of available IT tools and services. In this same way we are continually able to identify new opportunities for the use of technology, and HMS IT services, in research.

What are you most proud of about your work at HMS/HSDM?
What makes me most proud about my work at HMS is that a guy with little science or medical background can in some small way assist in alleviating human suffering.

What is the significance of the object you brought with you to the photo shoot?
My iPad represents how technology can solve problems when applied well. This tool initially aided me in taking notes and in keeping track of support requests when much of my day was spent "on my feet" working in the labs. Later, as my role at HMS evolved, it became a tool for me to be able to respond to issues and requests, from anywhere, thanks to mobile broadband. Lately, it has come to represent the potential benefit of the tablet as a tool for research. Beyond just reading papers, the tablet is becoming a gateway tool for accessing research lab data, and for simplifying the transition to lab data management.