Women in Data Science Conference
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1 day for data lovers to unite.
Data Science Tackles the Tough Questions
Data – Your Friendly, Environmental Watchdog
Congratulations to the 2019 WiDS Datathon Winners!

THE CHALLENGE:
Train a model that takes as input a satellite image and outputs a prediction of how likely it is that the image contains an oil palm plantation.
THE PARTICIPANTS:
Students, faculty, government workers, members of NGOs, or industry members. Teams must be between 1 – 4 people, with half of each team being women (self-identified as female).
THE PRIZES:
Gaming consoles, e-readers, and more! Check out the lineup here (hint: our 4TB My Passport Ultra made the list!)

If you’ve ever used cooking oil, tasted ice cream, or washed your hands with soap, there’s a good chance that you’ve used palm oil. In fact, it is estimated that the typical person consumes 17 pounds of palm oil each year.
The challenge of palm oil, however, is in growing it. Oil palm is limited to growing in tropical environments. This could lead to deforestation, higher carbon emissions, and loss of biodiversity. Can we use data to help save the environment from destruction?