Recommended Reading from Eight Pharmaceutical Experts This Summer

Summer reading isn’t reserved for school-aged children, as adults and professionals alike can gain knowledge and insights from consistently reading material during the hottest months of the year. With Book Lover’s Day last week, we asked eight colleagues from varying departments and levels within the organization to share what they’re reading this summer.

R for Data Science, by Garret Grolemund & Hadley Wickham

Richard Bryant, Senior Data Scientist at MMS, says, “Despite receiving my Master’s degree in statistics from the University of Michigan, I still continued to learn with on-the-job experience and reading. In my free time, I picked up R for Data Science and gained valuable insights. This book taught me how to use a collection of R packages to quickly and efficiently perform certain data science tasks. The exercises throughout the text was also very helpful!”

Connecting the Dots, by Rashmi Bansal

Susmita Sahu, Manager, Medical Writing at MMS, says, “Connect the Dots” by Rashmi Bansal – a book that was never on my reading list!! An inverted title and a quote from Steve Jobs caught my attention.  The book narrates ventures of unlikely entrepreneurs – people who dared to follow their passions, instincts, convictions, or just their zeal to do something different.  Each story is insightful, motivating, unique, yet as narrations unfold, I realize the connecting dots are the same!! As the author notes… we are a culmination of our experiences, so do more, take up challenges, dive in, give your best, have faith, and things will work out.”

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Website

Caitlin Breakey, Compliance Specialist, at MMS, says, “In our industry, regulatory updates happen frequently and staying on top of the news can be overwhelming. Two websites I regularly check for important updates are the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society (RAPS). These leading organizations provide news in a timely manner, and I am able to share their news with my team easily. I highly recommend checking these websites often.”

Deep Nutrition, by Dr. Catherine Shanahan

Andrew Biehl, Senior Safety Writer at MMS, says, “I have always been fascinated with nutrition and finding that miracle diet plan that is easy to follow, improves my health, weight, and of course- taste good. I’ve recently stumbled on Dr. Cate from listening to a podcast and have been hooked. Her philosophy and research on food has resulted in what she calls the “human diet” (not to be confused with just another “healthy diet”).”

 The PHUSE Blog

Chris Hurley, Associate Director of Data Sciences at MMS, says, “PHUSE is a global membership organization and platform for the discussion of topics encompassing the work of data managers, biostatisticians, statistical programmers, and eClinical IT professionals. The PHUSE blog keeps me updated on organizational news, key event takeaways, and industry trends. Published once a week, this blog perfect for those in the life sciences or pharmaceutical industries.”

How to Read the Constitution – and Why, by Kim Wehle

Mohamad Zahreddine, Chief Information Officer, says, “Many, including me, thought that they understood how the constitution works and believed that it provided clear and explicit definition of the role of government. The protections that people believed the constitution offered are being challenged and the spirit of the constitution is being reshaped. People from all sides of the political spectrum are very nervous. The constitution is open for interpretation and re-interpretation, and settled law is never really settled. It is hard to say if this is all good, or bad, but for sure it is a defining period of our history.”

Expert Insights Blog

Aaron Robert, Marketing & Communications Associate at MMS, says, “Beginning in May, MMS began compiling important industry news from trade publications and blogs. This is a useful resource, as I am able to understand the global pharmaceutical industry, monitor key trends, and read updates from top regulatory bodies. Seeing the “big picture” and how MMS fits in this space is important as a communications professional.”

CCNA Routing and Switching

Jon Meaney, Systems Administrator at MMS, says, “I am currently reading the official certification guide for Cisco’s ICND2 200-105 exam, “CCNA Routing and Switching.” This book takes an in-depth look at important networking concepts such as, Ethernet LANs, dynamic routing protocols, wide area networks, and quality of service. It provides the reader with an explanation of the above and also shows how implementation takes place on Cisco hardware. Having a solid understanding of this is essential to growing a career in Information Technology and is particularly beneficial in troubleshooting problems received at any helpdesk.”