Profile
Abi Frith
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About Me:
I am a Yorkshire chemist who has crossed the Pennines to live in Lancashire after living in Yorkshire all my life! I live in a beautiful little house on the edge of the sprawling countryside and love having all my friends and family around for big walks and cosy evenings in.
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After moving 11 times in the past 10 years for studying and work at universities, I’m really enjoying settling down in Lancaster. I live between the Lakes, the Peak District and the Forest of Bowland, so I enjoy getting out in nature and enjoying my surroundings.
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My pronouns are:
she/her
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My Work:
I am an inorganic chemist, looking at how metals interact with organic molecules (called “ligands”) and DNA to help treat cancer and to act at catalysts to make reactions more efficient.
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I am a Senior Research Associate in Chemistry at Lancaster University. I work alongside academics, PhD and Masters students conducting research in the chemistry labs. I am currently working to coordinate metal-based molecules to DNA for use as catalysts, which make industrial reactions more efficient.
Each research group specialises in different research topics, which makes it really interesting when we come together to discuss ideas about our work and offer advice. Research groups consist of a principal investigator and usually research associates like myself and students studying for their PhDs, Masters and Bachelor’s degrees. This means we get to work individually on different aspects of the project and come together to work as a team, which I really enjoy. I also get to help supervise student projects, which I love, as teaching is a passion of mine.
Research associates tend to have short contracts, which gives you the opportunity to work in several different settings with different groups, which widens your experiences and widens your community within chemistry.
I most enjoy working in the lab, being able to do a practical, hands-on job and I love that I get to share the expertise and experiences I learn along the way with others.
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My Typical Day:
I get into work for 8am, and have a quick cuppa whilst I prep for my reactions that day – such as checking my safety sheets and lab book. I then head to the lab around 8:30am and start setting up my reactions. Hopefully I get these on by lunchtime, get a bite to eat whilst listening to a podcast and head back to the lab! In the afternoon I work-up reactions that have finished running, analyse them and write up the results. I plan the reactions for the next day and head home around 4:30pm.
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In the morning I have to switch on my vacuum pump for a while before I can use it as it takes a bit of time to draw air into the pump to flush out any unwanted solvents. I go down to the outside dewars and fill our onion dewar (guess what that’s shaped like…) with liquid nitrogen. I then switch on my line, add the liquid nitrogen and I’m good to go! This allows me to run reactions without any air or moisture present, instead I use nitrogen or argon gas to protect my reactions from degrading. I then spend the morning setting up my reactions, which can run for a few hours or a few days!
In the afternoon the reactions that are finished are worked up – using separation techniques such as filtering, recrystallising and liquid separation. We then have to analyse our products, which can be anything from gooey brown messes to pretty pink crystals! We use lots of techniques for this which I am happy to talk to you about.
Depending on my results, I either repeat a reaction to check my method was reliable, change an independent variable like concentration, mass, temperature, time, pH, or move on to another reaction. I spend the rest of the afternoon writing up my results from the day’s reactions and planning tomorrow’s reactions – which involves checking how safe the chemicals are.
I also supervise PhD and Masters students in the lab, so I make sure I check on them throughout the day to see if they need any help with their projects too.
I then finish my day creating a plan for tomorrow and walk home listening to a podcast or ringing my friends.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
With the prize money I would probably organise some events with local schools or guide/scout units to encourage more students to think about a career in STEM. When I was at school I didn’t know what jobs scientists could have (or what scientists did!) and planned to go into Medicine instead. It’s only when I was applying for university and got into Chemistry did I realise how many possibilities there were for a job in science!
So I would like to go around schools talking about the different jobs people do in STEM, or see if they can come and visit us in the Chemistry department to see what we’re up to and plan some experiments together like scientists!
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Education:
I went to secondary school in a small village between Doncaster and Scunthorpe in South Yorkshire/North Lincolnshire called South Axholme Academy. Whilst at school I loved science and maths and thought I would go to do Medicine at university (because I didn’t really know what else people did for a living when you love science). I got 11 A* and 1 A at GCSE and then went on to do my A-levels at John Leggott College in Scunthorpe, where I got AAA in Chemistry, Physics and Maths and an AS in Further Maths.
I applied for Medicine at 4 different places, including Oxford and was rejected for all 4 without an interview. That hurt. But now I’m glad as I don’t think Medicine was really for me, I just thought that was my only option to work in science and help people – I was wrong! I then used my final option to apply for Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Leeds, which I got.
I LOVED my time at Leeds, I definitely found my tribe being at university and collected two life long friends from my uni experience. I got a First in my Medicinal Chemistry BSc and applied this time for graduate Medicine. You guessed it, whilst juggling labs, exams and reports I took 3 Medicine entrance exams and reapplied for Medicine – and didn’t get in, again.
I realised that I didn’t need to get into Medicine to make me happy and I was really enjoying learning about how chemistry can help people around us and develop drugs for cancer and other diseases. So I stayed for my Masters in Chemical Biology and Drug Design and LOVED being in the lab and designing metal-based drugs for cancer therapies.
With my new found love for lab work I applied for a PhD at the University of Leeds with one of my lecturers and spent 4 years working on silver molecules (we call them “complexes”) for use as anticancer drugs and catalysts (to make reactions more efficient). I completed my PhD and became a Doctor of Chemistry.
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Qualifications:
GCSEs: 11 A* and 1 A (including Triple Science, Further Maths, French, RE, Psychology, English, English Lit)
A-levels: AAA in Chemistry, Physics and Maths and an AS in Further Maths
First in Bachelors of Science (BSc) in Medicinal Chemistry
Distinction in Masters of Science (MSc) in Chemical Biology and Drug Design
PhD in Chemistry in “Silver N-Heterocyclic Carbenes for Biomedical and Catalytic Applications”.
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Work History:
During my PhD, as we don’t get paid much whilst we study/learn, I worked as a science and maths tutor, and drove home every weekend to work in my parents shoe shop.
I also volunteered from around 16 with Girl Guiding UK and still do today.
After my PhD I took a Research Associate position at the University of York, which is a type of postdoctoral researcher (as I am working in a position after completing a PhD, I am post-doctoral training). I would work in a lab like I do now and supervise and manage PhD and Masters students in the lab. During this job I synthesised catalysts using electrochemistry, with metals that are more sustainable (such as manganese).
I then moved to my current position at Lancaster University as a Senior Research Associate.
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Current Job:
I am currently working as a Senior Research Associate which is a type of postdoctoral researcher (as I am working in a position after completing a PhD, I am post-doctoral training).
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Employer:
I work in the Chemistry Department at Lancaster University.
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
dungaree-loving chemist
What did you want to be after you left school?
A surgeon
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Nope, I was terrified of getting into trouble!
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
Maybe a science communicator?
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Bon Jovi - any 80s rock bands really!
What's your favourite food?
A nice warming stew or goulash...
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
To believe in myself and my abilities, to be physically stronger and to have more time for my hobbies!
Tell us a joke.
You can't run through a campsite. You can only ran...because it's past tents...
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