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HI! MY NAME IS REBECCA JUNELL,
I WORK AT STENNIS SPACE CENTER AND THIS IS MY STORY.
I GREW UP AS A VERY, VERY BIG READER.
SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY, THINGS LIKE
ORSON SCOTT CARD, ENDER'S GAME, A LOT OF THE THINGS
THAT ARE, I GUESS, IN SUMMER READING NOW.
IN FACT, ORSON SCOTT CARD WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITES.
IT WAS, I THINK, REQUIRED SUMMER READING
IN NINTH GRADE AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT.
IT WAS AN EXAMPLE OF WHY YOU CAN ENJOY THIS.
AND READING SCIENCE FICTION LIKE THAT GAVE ME A...
A...
IT WAS ALL STORIES, IT WASN'T REALITY,
BUT IT WAS ENOUGH OF A TASTE TO ENJOY MORE
OF WHAT I WOULD BE LEARNING IN SCHOOL.
THE GROUP THAT I AM WORKING IN NOW
IS AN ANALYSIS GROUP. WE...
WE PERFORM ANALYSIS AND WE SOLVE PROBLEMS
TO GIVE PEOPLE INFORMATION SO THAT THEY CAN DESIGN
THE SYSTEMS THAT WE WORK WITH HERE OR SO THAT WE CAN
SOLVE A PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE RUN INTO
WHILE WE'VE BEEN TESTING; AND THAT'S WHAT TESTING IS FOR.
I DO ENJOY THE ANALYSIS BUT BEYOND THE ANALYSIS
SOMETHING THAT I FOUND THAT I REALLY LIKE
IS THE PEOPLE INTERACTION.
YOU CAN'T SOLVE A PROBLEM WITHOUT PULLING PEOPLE
TOGETHER, WITHOUT GETTING INFORMATION FROM SEVERAL
DIFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW FROM SEVERAL DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES.
AND WORKING WITH PEOPLE TO SMOOTH THE WAY
AND TO GET THE RIGHT PEOPLE TALKING TO THE RIGHT OTHER
PEOPLE IS SOMETHING THAT I REALLY ENJOY
AND I THINK I'D RATHER BE KNOWN FOR PULLING THAT
INFORMATION TOGETHER MORE SO THAN BEING ABLE TO PULL
A NUMBER OUT OF SOFTWARE.
KEEP YOUR BOOKS!
THERE IS ... I HAVE A BOOKSHELF
BACK AT MY OFFICE OVER AT THE BUILDING WHERE I WORK HERE
AND IF YOU WERE TO LOOK AT THAT BOOKSHELF
YOU WOULD SEE THE LIST OF TEXTBOOKS THAT I'VE KEPT
FROM MY MECHANICAL ENGINEERING DEGREE.
ALMOST ALL OF THEM HAVE A "USED" STICKER ON THE
BINDER... ON THE...
ON THE END OF THE BOOK BUT I'VE GONE BACK
TO THOSE SO MANY TIMES WHEN I WAS IN COLLEGE
I REMEMBER PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT SAVING SOME MONEY
AND SELLING THEIR BOOKS BACK.
BUT THEY HAVE BEEN SUCH A GREAT RESOURCE IT IS...
WHEN YOU TAKE THOSE CLASSES YOU'RE NOT GOING
TO REMEMBER EVERYTHING.
BUT YOU ARE GOING TO REMEMBER HOW TO FIND INFORMATION
AND IF YOU HAVE THAT TOOL TO LOOK IN,
THAT'S GOING TO BE A RESOURCE THAT YOU CAN USE MUCH LATER.
SO MAYBE IT ALL SOUNDS SIMPLE
BUT DON'T SELL YOUR BOOKS BACK.
I HAD INSPIRATION TO GO INTO THE CAREER THAT I AM IN NOW
FROM A NUMBER OF PEOPLE, FROM MY MOM,
MY DAD AND MY STEPFATHER TO NAME A FEW.
THEY SHOWED ME THAT SCIENCE AND WORKING WITH...
WORKING WITH JOBS LIKE MANUFACTURING AND PHYSICS
AND COMPUTERS COULD BE FUN.
IT COULD BE SOMETHING YOU COULD BE PASSIONATE ABOUT.
IT WAS NOT DRY, IT WAS NOT, IT WAS NOT SOMETHING
THAT YOU DO JUST FOR THE MONEY.
IT WAS SOMETHING THAT YOU DID FOR WORKING
WITH PEOPLE, FOR DOING SOMETHING THAT YOU ENJOYED
AND FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE.
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