Meet the scientists!

I am an Epidemiologist, which is a complicated way of saying I look at large groups of people (like populations) to work out what things can affect different illnesses or people’s general health. Work by Epidemiologists is often in newspapers, as the results apply to us all.

In Bristol where I work, there is a large group of mothers and children who have been followed by scientists since the mothers were pregnant. It’s called Children of the 90s (http://www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/) or ALSPAC, and the information collected from it is being used by hundreds of scientists to look at lots of different things, from how much exercise keeps you healthy, to how much weight it is good to put on when you’re pregnant.

I will be using information collected when the children were about your age (between 10 and 20 years old) to try and work out whether those who use cannabis are also more likely to be depressed, or get psychosis, an illness where your mind loses contact with reality. I will also be able to use information stored in a person’s cells (called DNA) which contain a person’s building blocks (called genes) that make them who they are. If people with slightly different DNA have different reactions to smoking cannabis, then genes may also be important.

As I’m a PhD student, I do a lot of work by myself. I share a lovely office with a couple of other PhD students, so we often talk about what we’re up to together, over a cup of tea, or lunch. Because I don’t collect the data I use myself, I do a lot of statistics, so most days I am sat at a computer writing computer code to look at my data. I am proof you don’t need entirely science A-levels to be a scientist. Mathematics is important too, I didn’t do Chemistry or Physics A-Level (in fact I did English!).

I often get to go on training courses. They are a perk of being a student – they’re really useful for my studies, and quite often really fun too, plus you get to meet lots of people. Some are run in the department where I work, and some mean a trip which is always good!

I also have regular meetings (about once a week) with my supervisors. They are professors or doctors who oversee my work, making sure I’m not struggling and that I’m happy and getting on well. These normally involve cups of tea and chats, so they’re not too scary! If I have questions about how to do the research they are really helpful.

Finally, on a really good day I’ll be at a conference! These can see me going all over the country, and the world, and meeting other scientists working on similar things to me. Often they are the highlight of a scientist’s calendar!

When I get home from work it’s usually time to meet up with my band and play some music, or sometimes play a gig. If not I’ll go for a run (except I’ve hurt my shins at the moment) or to a dance class, read a book, and maybe play Mario on my Wii!

I would like to buy the stuff I’d need to make podcasts about the effects that different drugs can have on you (including smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol). Once I’d got the microphone I could use the rest of the money to go and interview experts about each drug, and maybe get kids to talk about their experiences with drugs. I think it would be good for kids to be able to find out about drugs from the scientists who are researching them.

What do you think of this idea? I’d love to hear your ideas too, this is just to get the ball rolling!