We live in a time which combines worrying threats to biodiversity and human health, with the rapid development of technologies to improve our understanding of the natural world. I'm a scientist with a broad range of interests, but underpinning them all is a desire to use my time on this earth to generate new and useful knowledge for the benefit of humanity and biodiversity.
The main focus of my research to date has been the study of ecological interactions, and how they are altered by human actions. This has typically relied on my experience in molecular ecology, data processing, and fieldwork.
I began my research career as an undergraduate using typical animal-handling techniques in remote rainforest, and over time I became impressed with the possibilities that techniques such as DNA metabarcoding offered ecology. After finishing my undergraduate degree I undertook a strictly laboratory-based research masters degree, spending a year in the lab using DNA barcoding and confocal microscopy to study the little known bioluminescent plankton order Pyrosoma. After this I then worked as a research assistant for the Bats in Churches project, using radio tracking to find bat roosts.
This combination of tropical ecology, dietary study, DNA barcoding and bat research then led me onto my PhD, using DNA metabarcoding to study the diet and network ecology of insectivorous bats in different habitat types in Malaysian Borneo so as to better conserve them in future. This included 10 months of leading a team through intense remote fieldwork, while also going from being a novice programmer to writing analytical packages and pipelines in multiple programming languages.
I am now undertaking Postdoctoral Research position at the University of Oxford, using DNA metabarcoding and ecological network analysis to understand the ecology of Anopholes gambiae, the main vector of malaria.
The main focus of my research to date has been the study of ecological interactions, and how they are altered by human actions. This has typically relied on my experience in molecular ecology, data processing, and fieldwork.
I began my research career as an undergraduate using typical animal-handling techniques in remote rainforest, and over time I became impressed with the possibilities that techniques such as DNA metabarcoding offered ecology. After finishing my undergraduate degree I undertook a strictly laboratory-based research masters degree, spending a year in the lab using DNA barcoding and confocal microscopy to study the little known bioluminescent plankton order Pyrosoma. After this I then worked as a research assistant for the Bats in Churches project, using radio tracking to find bat roosts.
This combination of tropical ecology, dietary study, DNA barcoding and bat research then led me onto my PhD, using DNA metabarcoding to study the diet and network ecology of insectivorous bats in different habitat types in Malaysian Borneo so as to better conserve them in future. This included 10 months of leading a team through intense remote fieldwork, while also going from being a novice programmer to writing analytical packages and pipelines in multiple programming languages.
I am now undertaking Postdoctoral Research position at the University of Oxford, using DNA metabarcoding and ecological network analysis to understand the ecology of Anopholes gambiae, the main vector of malaria.