Profile
Louisse Mirabueno
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About Me:
Hi everyone! My name is Louisse. I live in Cambridge with my husband Mark. I like to sing (I spend a lot of time having karaoke evening with friends) and do Krav Maga once a week.
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I’m glad you want to learn more about me! I’m 30 years old. I was born in the Philippines, grew up in Germany and Switzerland (I moved a lot…) and went to Uni in Ireland and England. For now, I think I will stay in England for a while. England is especially great for us scientists, because there are so many exciting projects and companies that we can work in. I really love music. In the before-times, my partner Mark and I used to go to gigs regularly (I like anything from folk to rock to R’nB). We are slowly getting back into that now. I love the musical Hamilton and went to see it twice in London. It’s been a while… I should try and get tickets again 😂 I also love to sing, but I’m not particurly good at it 😅 that’s why I enjoy karaoke, because no one cares how you sound! I have been practising Krav Maga for a while now. I started it mainly because of the movie John Wick and thought the main character had some kick-ass moves!
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My pronouns are:
she/her
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My Work:
I travel around the world teaching scientists how they can use the Ensembl Genome Browser in their research. It’s like a Google but for your genome, so you can find out lots of information about genes in different animals, plants, bacteria and more!
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What’s a genome you ask? It’s basically what makes us us. You can see it as sort of an encyclopaedia of yourself, or the recipe what makes you you. Scientists look at the genome to, for example, find genes that can tell us more about us, for example our eye colour, or even diseases. We all have mutations in our genomes, so changes that not everyone else has, and that makes us so unique! Unfortunately, some of those mutations are not good, and they can lead to diseases like cancer. What I do is, I teach other scientists how they can use Ensembl (it’s like an internet browser for your genome) in their research.
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My Typical Day:
I usually wake up at 06:00 and start work at 08:00. I’m on the computer for most of the day. My days vary, but most of my work time I spend preparing for workshops for other scientists. I have lunch with colleagues, and sometimes also alone, because that silence is nice sometimes, ha! I usually head home around 16:30.
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I usually start work at 08:00. I always tell myself I’ll go to the gym before work, but that never happens – I love sleep too much 😂 I go into the office on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays and am on the computer for most of day. I help scientists with any questions about Ensembl. A lot of times I also give workshops, so I teach other scientists how they can use Ensembl in their work (these can be in-person or virtual). I usually finish work at 16:30, after which I head home (if I’m not working from home) and either go to Krav Maga, go to my singing lessons, or just laze out on the sofa with my partner and watch series/movies.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
My workplace EMBL-EBI often participates in STEM public engagement activities. The main thing I would like to do with the prize money is to help our communications team with setting up their 3D printer. 3D printers are amazing, because you can print anything you want with them. And having a model that you can show to the audience always helps explain complicated science-stuff!
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Education:
TERTIARY EDUCATION
MPhil. Biological Sciences (10/2018 – 08/2021)
University of Reading
Reading, UKBSc. (Hons.) Genetics and Cell Biology (09/2013 – 06/2018)
Dublin City University
Dubllin, IrelandInternational Foundation Course in Science (09/2012 – 06/2013)
Dublin International Foundation College
Dublin, IrelandSECONDARY EDUCATION
High School Diploma (06/2009 – 03/2010)
Reedley International School
Quezon City, PhilippinesKantonsschule Musegg (09/2007 – 06/2008)
Luzern, SwitzerlandOberstufenzentrum Mariahilf (09/2005- 06/2007)
Luzern, SwitzerlandSekundarschule Neu St. Georg (09/2004 – 06/2005)
Sursee, Switzerland -
Qualifications:
MPhil. Biological Sciences (10/2018 – 08/2021)
University of Reading
Reading, UKBSc. (Hons.) Genetics and Cell Biology (09/2013 – 06/2018)
Dublin City University
Dubllin, IrelandInternational Foundation Course in Science (09/2012 – 06/2013)
Dublin International Foundation College
Dublin, IrelandHigh School Diploma (06/2009 – 03/2010)
Reedley International School
Quezon City, Philippines -
Work History:
Research & development laboratory technician (06/2021 – o1/2022)
Genomics England, Cambridge, UKCompound management and automation scientist (02/2021 – 06/2021)
Horizon Discovery, Cambridge, UKPostgraduate researcher (10/2018 – 08/2021)
University of Reading and National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB), Cambridge, UKResearch assistant (06/2018 – 08/2018)
Trinity College Dublin, IrelandResearch intern (07/2017 – 09/2017)
Dublin City University, IrelandGerman content reviewer (03/2017 – 06/2017)
Arvato, Dublin, IrelandBarista and shift supervisor (08/2015 – 03/2017)
Caffè Nero Donnybrook, Dublin, IrelandLaboratory intern (04/2016 – 09/2016)
FGen GmbH, Basel, SwitzerlandResearch intern (06/2015 – 08/2015)
Dublin City University, IrelandHealthcare advisor (06/2014 – 08/2015)
Boots Donnybrook, Dublin, IrelandBarista (11/2011 – 08/2012)
Starbucks Coffee, Baden, SwitzerlandAssistant (05/2011 – 12/2011)
Black Orchid Asian Restaurant, Turgi, SwitzerlandCaregiver intern (10/2010 – 12/2010)
Psychiatrische Klinik Königsfelden, Windisch, Switzerland -
Current Job:
Outreach officer
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Employer:
European Molecular Biology Laboratory – European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI)
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
coffee-loving science outreacher
What did you want to be after you left school?
To be honest, I had no clue what I wanted to do. You can probably tell from my work history 🙈
Were you ever in trouble at school?
I was never trouble, but I almost got kicked out of secondary school when my grades were going really low.
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
I would probably be working back in a lab doing bench-work molecular biology.
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Tough one! At the moment I'm listening to a lot of Villagers, Camera Obscura and David Gray.
What's your favourite food?
Thai food all the way!
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
Even though public speaking is a big part of my job, I still get super nervous. So one of my wishes would be having more confidence when on a stage, a dog and being able to travel around the world for free!
Tell us a joke.
😅
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