Dr. Elaina Hyde, astrophysicist
"Never, never wait -- that's the thing in science... you have to be talking to people all the time because you never know where that next great opportunity is going to come from. It helps to be stubborn."
Dr. Hyde has four undergraduate degrees in astronomy, physics, optical engineering and planetary sciences; two masters degrees in engineering and astronomy and astrophysics; and a Ph.D. in astronomy and physics! She has been featured in the Portland Tribune for her accomplishments, travels and experiences - below is a synopsis of the article:
Westen Sydney, located in Sydney Australia is, quite literally, half a world away from Eagle Creek - a fact that does not escape Astrophysicist Dr. Elaina Hyde, who followed a passion for science, that began in Estacada, to Portland State University and then to Arizona, before heading to Europe, and continues as Dr. Hyde conducts research and studies for a PhD in Australia.
'It's just more bizarre than you can imagine,' said Dr. Hyde, who speaks four languages, of her experience abroad. 'I never would have expected that Germany would be so different than the US or that the Netherlands would be so different from Germany or Australia.'
On Sunday, Jan. 2, Elaina, back on the West Coast of the United States for an astrophysics conference in Seattle, took time out of her visit home to offer a presentation on her research in the Floral Room at the Estacada Library - giving a little bit back to the community that, she says, nourished her as a child.
'The Estacada art community was a big source of inspiration to me,' said Elaina. 'I still do art work and I take my little sketch pad with me up to the mountain, and I think it's really great to give myself that outlet. I think it makes my science better.'
About two dozen people spent a little under two hours listening to Elaina talk about her ongoing original research in Galactic Archeology. Elaina spoke with passion about the places she has traveled, and the experiences she has had. However that passion pales in comparison to the zeal she clearly feels for science. She talks about her life and how a love for science, astrophysics and astronomy has propelled her physical body around the world as she works to understand what is happening to galactic bodies hundreds of thousands or even millions of light years away.
Beginning her sophomore year in high school Elaina knew that her future would require hard work, dedication and a broader horizon.
'I realized,' said Dr. Hyde, 'that if I wanted to do science, I would have to start looking a bit farther out. So I left Estacada High.' At first Elaina studied at Mount Hood Community College, then added classes to her schedule from Portland Community College before transferring to Portland State University. She paid for her education with financial aid, odd jobs and student jobs on campus. Science and math inspired her, 'I was at PSU' said Hyde, 'when I had my first-ever calculus class and I was like 'whoa, what's this?' It knocked my socks off and then I started looking at astronomy.'
From there she began exploring degree programs across the nation. 'I got into Harvard,' said Dr. Hyde, 'and I thought, 'I can go here, I can go there, I can go wherever I want. But where are the telescopes?' Because I really wanted to look at real time astronomy - and Arizona was the place to go.'
Once at the University of Arizona, Dr. Hyde dove into academia. Eventually she graduated with four separate degrees in astronomy, physics, optical engineering and planetary sciences. Upon graduation, Dr. Hyde was immediately accepted into the Max-Plank institute in Germany, where she earned a master's degree in engineering.
'I sort of realized that [engineering] wasn't the direction I wanted to go, so even though I finished and it was fun, at the end I was looking at how I get back into astronomy and observations,' said Dr. Hyde.
Her dive back into astronomy came with a boost from the Marie Curie Fellowship that allowed Dr. Hyde to move to Amsterdam and begin a second master's program in Astronomy and Astrophysics.
'You apply to lots of places and get lots of replies back,' said Dr. Hyde of her academic journey, 'and it's not always the place you think first that you end up going to.' When asked how she landed in a PhD program in Australia, Dr. Hyde laughs. 'I ended up in the place -- Australia -- that would let me determine my own research.'
Elaina's mother, Mary Hyde, continues to live in Eagle Creek and - after a planned January visit to Australia - will have visited every country in which her oldest daughter has lived. When asked about Elaina's childhood and education, Mary said, 'When you watch somebody doing something they love, you know it's healthy; they're learning, and I just don't break things up into classifications, so art is math and math is art -- when you're creating things you're always learning.'
Elaina, who has been published in academic journals over a dozen times, talks about her mother's return to college -- after Elaina had left for Arizona -- as being a great inspiration. 'One of the reasons I got into science was because my Mom was so interested in science and reading and discovering new things.'
'I'm not quite sure where I'm going to go from here,' said Dr. Hyde, who recently finished a Ph.D. in Galactic Archeology, 'but I know it will be in the realm of galactic archeology.'
To those considering a degree and career in science, Dr. Hyde advised, 'Never, never wait -- that's the thing in science. You're constantly applying to things that you think are interesting, and you are constantly hearing back from people about what's changed. It's a very dynamic, changing environment, so you have to be talking to people all the time because you never know where that next great opportunity is going to come from. It helps to be stubborn.'
'Talk to people that you won't normally talk to and don't give up,' added Dr. Hyde with emphasis. 'It is possible even if you don't have money.'
Said Mary Hyde of her daughter's journey: 'You don't always know when you're going somewhere. You just take a first step.'
