Daniel Perrefort

Quality-driven software design and engineering professional with 7+ years of experience in continuous integration, unit testing, standards for writing quality software, git/GitHub, and new feature development.

Currently leading software design, development, and deployment for a University super-computing center. Proficient in leading projects and coordinating with departments in systems design, programming product definition, release documentation, and data transmission.

Current Affiliations

Faculty Consultant: University of Pittsburgh, Center for Research Computing
Research Assistant Professor: University of Pittsburgh, Physics Department
Collaboration Member: Dark Energy Science Collaboration

Experience

Design and Delivery

Extensive experience developing software to meet detailed project requirements and satisfy design conditions.

Diverse Project Experience

Experienced developing in diverse software ecosystems to build web, API, and command-line based software tools.

Data-Driven Communication

Expert in maximizing data-driven communication to collaborate effectively with diverse, cross-disciplinary teams.

Test Driven Development

Well versed in writing and debugging comprehensive test suites using multiple testing frameworks.

Continuous Integration

Designs and deploys CI/CD solutions at scale in large collaborative to streamline the development lifecycle.

Resume

For a printable, single-page copy, please see my resume. For a more complete professional overview, please see my CV.

Professional Experience

Research Assistant Professor

2021 - Present

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

Accelerate user engagement by designing, implementing, and deploying back-end software solutions to support 3 new customer services, earning recognition for resourcefulness and productivity
Blueprint and teach three-hour workshops on software engineering principles, including git/Github, software design, CI/CD, and software testing
Train and mentor 4 junior team members on software development fundamentals, including object-oriented design, version control systems, and common software quality standards
Revitalize team roadblocks into opportunities by leading 4 projects to catalog and pay off 40% of total long-standing technical debt in 1 year
Spearhead the team-wide adoption of modern software development workflows and tools while working to improve overall software quality, achieving institutional versatility in the industry
Consult in conjunction with 12 faculty and engineers to build a high quality HPC service platform

Graduate Research Assistant

August 2015 - May 2021

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

Directed the development of object-oriented software tools designed to streamline workflows and simplify data processing, reducing project onboarding time by over 40%
Maximized on data-driven communication to collaborate effectively with teams having diverse levels of expertise and experience
Coordinated with solutions architects from a world-leading software company to build scalable, cloud-based systems for globally publishing scientific data streams
Collaborated in diverse software ecosystems to build web, API, and command-line software tools
Optimized scientific software projects at both the development operations and source code levels by offering personalized project consultations and code reviews for junior researchers

Dark Energy Science Collaboration

August 2015 - Present

Remote

Lead 4 research projects to design data-driven procedures to support the world’s largest optical telescope
Collaborate with peer researchers to publish 7 research papers, including 2 first author publications
Serve on the membership and mentorship committees to facilitate organizational outreach and team building

Education

Ph.D. in Astrophysics and Cosmology

2015 - 2021

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

Master of Science in Physics

2015 - 2017

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Bachelor of Science in Physics

2011 - 2014

University of Connecticut, Storrs CT

Professional Organizations

Dark Energy Science Collaboration

2016 - Present

Full Member

Planning projects, managing junior personnel, building software, and analyzing data to support the world’s largest optical telescope.

Mentorship Committee: 2022 - Present
Membership Committee: 2022 - Present

UConn Student Leadership Board

2022 - Present

Alumni Mentor

Mentor UConn undergraduate students on professional networking and career goals.

Alumni Mentor: 2022 - Present
Board Member: 2014 - 2015

Recent Talks

An incomplete sampling of recent talks I have given on various topics.

- Sept 29, 2022 Version Control with Git and Data Management Perspectives
- Center for Research Computing, University of Pittsburgh
- March 16, 2021 Best Practices for Writing Intermediate Level Python
- Center for Research Computing, Virtual
- Sept 29, 2021 Introduction to Version Control
- Center for Research Computing, Virtual
- Aug 11, 2020 Identifying 91bg-like Supernovae with Rubin-LSST
- Rubin Observatory Project and Community Workshop, Virtual
- June 3, 2020 Good Coding Practices
- Pitt Summer Bootcamp, Virtual
- Apr 3, 2020 Supernova Classification: How to Find What You’re Looking For
- Astro-Lunch Seminar Series, University of Pittsburgh
- Feb 4, 2020 A Crash Course in Software Verification and Unit Tests
- Astro-Snacks Workshop, University of Pittsburgh
- Nov 20, 2020 Things that go Bump in the Night: How to Find Space Stuff
- Pitt Astronomy on Tap
- Sep 26, 2019 Photometric 91bg Classification using Light-Curve Morphology
- Midwest Workshop on Supernovae and Transients, Ohio State University
- Feb 4, 2019 Exploring LSST Calibration Strategies with GPS Satellites and Atmospheric Modeling
- Astro-Lunch Seminar Series, University of Connecticut

Travel

I get to work with an amazing team of individuals from around the globe. Here are a few recent workshops I've attended along with their official workshop photos (where available).

2022

November: Super Computing 2022
August: Rubin Observatory Project and Community Workshop
August: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Bi-Annual Meeting
February: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Bi-Annual Meeting

2021

November: Super Computing 2021
November: LSST Broker Technical Workshop
August: Rubin Observatory Project and Community Workshop
July: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Bi-Annual Meeting
Apr: LSSTC Enabling Science Broker Workshop - Part II
Feb: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Bi-Annual Meeting

2020

Oct: LSSTC Enabling Science Broker Workshop - Part I
August: Rubin Observatory Project and Community Workshop
July: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Bi-Annual Meeting
Jan: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Meeting

2019

Sep: TOM Toolkit Workshop
Sep: Midwest Workshop on Supernovae and Transients
Aug: LSST Project and Community Workshop
Jul: Coordinated Theoretical-Experimental Project on QCD
Jul: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Meeting
May: PITT-PACC Phenomenology Symposium
Feb: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Meeting
Feb: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Broker Workshop
Feb: UConn Astro-Lunch Seminar Series
Jan: The Future of SN Host Galaxy Studies

2018

Oct: LSST / DESC Calibration Workshop
Sep: Phipps Science Communication Workshop
Jul: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Meeting
Jun: Data Visualization and Exploration in the LSST Era
May: PITT-PACC Phenomenology Symposium
May: LSST Data Science Fellowship Workshop
Apr: New Advances in NIR Type Ia Supernova Science
Feb: Dark Energy Science Collaboration Meeting

2017

Jul: Sci-Coder Development Workshop
Jun: Summer School in Statistics for Astronomers
May: PITT-PACC Phenomenology Symposium