Faces of Photonics: CEO of Datalytica Dr. Misty Blowers

From the US Air Force Research Lab to Vice President of Cybersecurity at ICF to CEO of her own defense consulting company, SPIE Member Dr. Misty Blowers continues to make waves in the defense security world. She has always been unwavering in her dedication to this community, citing her drive toward positive change: "I hope to make a technical contribution that can make the world a better place."

Many would say she's already accomplished this. In 2018, Dr. Blowers was awarded the SPIE Early Career Achievement Award for her dedication to advancing applied machine-learning solutions to help solve real-world problems. Her commitment to the field also shines through in her multiple years serving on SPIE conference committees at SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing (DCS), and her 2016 publication of Evolution of Cyber Operations and Technologies to 2035 (Springer) which she discusses in this interview on Photonics for a Better World.

1. Describe a memorable moment from an SPIE conference.

SPIE supported an idea I had for a conference to bring in student speakers to talk about what they believed the next disruptive technology will be that will change the world. The students did a fantastic job and provoked discussions across a global community of experts. This is happening again this year at SPIE DCS in Baltimore!

OH, SNAP!: Blowers poses with a crocodile at SPIE DCS 2017.

Read the rest of Blowers' interview with SPIE's Faces of Photonics!