RahanArasteh
Data science and analytics at a bank in the Flatiron District, a Penn master’s in the evenings, and the rest of it spent on two cameras, too many soccer jerseys, college sports, and a passport that keeps picking up stamps.
Then and now
What I’m doing now
Business and data analyst at Capital One since 2023. Most of my week is SQL: building the pipelines that turn very large tables into something a team can act on, designing the tests that say whether it worked, and translating between the business side and the data scientists.
Part-time and online, I’m working through Penn Engineering’s MSE in Data Science. Three units (four courses) down, seven to go; done in 2028 if I keep the pace. It is slower than a full-time program and considerably harder to explain at parties (people tend to look at me like I’m insane).
- BS
- Vanderbilt University Human & Organizational Development · Political Science (honors)
- Minors
- Data Science & Spanish
- Toolkit
- SQL · Python · Snowflake A/B testing · pipeline automation · Git · ML Modeling
What I watch
I support three clubs (all since childhood) and I’ve made peace with it: Persepolis, Arsenal and Barcelona. Everything else on this wall is admiration rather than allegiance: a good jersey is a good jersey. Arsenal is the one that costs me sleep.
The other half of the year is college sports. Vanderbilt makes me pull my hair out — although, lately? Maybe not? And Penn gets some attention from me too!
Also in the drawer: a 1994 USA retro tracksuit and a Trionda Pro match ball. And for what it’s worth, I still think FIFA 13 was the peak.
Cameras
Canon Rebel 2000
The one I reach for. It’s only slightly nostalgia — the pictures come out better on film, and thirty-six frames makes you slower about taking them.
Canon EOS R100
Sometimes I just need digital or, really, I can’t afford to waste a roll.
iPhone 15 Pro Max
Always on me, and its telephoto and ultrawide are doing the work until I buy proper lenses for the Canons.
Recent frames
Where I’ve been
Five home bases so far, and the trips I took out from each. My passport is always in the middle of collecting new stamps and looks a little worse for wear. Numbers are repeat visits within that stretch.
- Caspian Coast×countless
- Mashhad×??
- Kish Island
- Qazvin
- Kuala Lumpur
- Dubai
- Ankara
- Las Vegas×4–5
- Solvang
- San Francisco
- Tehran×3
- San Diego×2–3
- Cancún
- Ensenada
- Niagara Falls
- New York
- Washington, DC
- Bratislava
- Vienna
- Budapest
- Berlin
- Vancouver×2
- Chicago
- Boston
- Providence
- Nashville
- Philadelphia
- Chicago×2
- Cabo
- Raleigh-Durham×2
- Dallas×lost count
- Karachi
- Tehran
- Hamadan
- Isfahan
- Kashan
- Mashhad
- Montreal
- Washington, DC
- Paris×2
- Barcelona
- Istanbul×3
- London×2
- Nashville×3
- Nassau
- Atlanta
- Rome
- Chicago×2
- Copenhagen
- Vancouver
- Athens×2
- Belgrade
- Cancún
- Edinburgh
- Hong Kong
- Hanoi
- Bangkok
- Philadelphia
- Madrid
- Sevilla
- Dallas×lost count
- New York×2
- Montreal
- Washington, DC
- Buenos Aires
- Montevideo
- Sevilla
- Málaga
- Algarve
- Porto
- Philadelphia
Systems, ranked
Unsurprisingly, I am also a massive fan of public transit. Whenever I go on a trip, I plan around the local transit map. Even just an afternoon riding a system end to end feels like a day well-spent to me. You learn a lot about what a city thinks of its people by how it moves them. Here's my ranking of my personal top 12:
- 03 U The UndergroundLondon
- 04 M MétroParis
- 05 M MetroMadrid
- 06 MTR MTRHong Kong
- 07 M MetroCopenhagen
- 08 M MetroIstanbul
- 09 L CTAChicago
- 10 M MetroRome
- 11 M TMBBarcelona
- 12 BA SubteBuenos Aires
Plenty of others came with the trips: Tehran, Vienna, Budapest, Berlin, Montreal, Vancouver, Athens, Edinburgh, Hanoi, Sevilla, Bangkok. They just didn’t make the twelve.
Languages
Everyday
Minored in it, still use it
Family