• Question: why do you do what you do

    Asked by rush499dun on 8 Feb 2024.
    • Photo: Harriet Gamble

      Harriet Gamble answered on 8 Feb 2024:


      I design and build satellites because I have always been fascinated by space and discovering more about Earth and other planets. I really enjoy designing things and problem solving which are key skills for engineering and lots of engineers are needed to make a satellite.

    • Photo: Martin McCoustra

      Martin McCoustra answered on 8 Feb 2024:


      I’ve always had an interested in science and this was reinforced in primary 6 and 7 when I had teachers who were trained scientists. It didn’t take much but they push my interest and that happened even more at high school when I realised I could do science as a job eventually. However, I also recognised that I needed a degree to do that. When I got to university, I realised that I really like finding out about chemistry and physics. I also realised by working as a summer intern in my local oil refinery laboratories that I didn’t like being told to do something and began to look for a job where I could make my own decisions and carve my own path. Becoming an academic seemed the way to go so I did my PhD and got myself on the academic career ladder. Becoming a professor was the outcome of that.

      Fundamentally, I enjoy what I do… and wouldn’t go back and change a thing.

    • Photo: Michael Schubert

      Michael Schubert answered on 8 Feb 2024:


      I love learning new things and finding out the answers to questions I didn’t even know people were asking! I’m a curious person who likes to know as much as I can about the world around me, so science is a great way to learn more. I also love finding ways to make sure as many people as possible can learn the same interesting things I do, so science communication lets me work on that. It’s a lot of fun to figure out good ways to write and illustrate things that are hard to understand!

    • Photo: Bruno Silvester Lopes

      Bruno Silvester Lopes answered on 8 Feb 2024:


      I study how bad bugs fight drugs and look at ways to discover new drugs…So I guess the simple answer is: My work saves lives of people around the world and this motivates me to do more of what I do.

    • Photo: Hannah Scholes

      Hannah Scholes answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      I help doctors and nurses work out why people aren’t well, and help to monitor their treatment – hopefully watching people get better and recover from their illness. I also give people blood when they need it, for example, if they’ve been in a really nasty accident.
      I get to save lives every day at work, and I love it.

      Did you know that 70% of diagnoses come from the results biomedical scientists (people like me) give the doctors and nurses? I like to think that without us, the doctors are often just guessing!

    • Photo: Chigozie Onuba

      Chigozie Onuba answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      My role enables me to play a part in patient care pathway through the diagnosis and treatment of patient by analysing body fluids as well as blood samples to find out why an individual is unwell. I then proceed to validation, interpretation and clinical authorisation of highly complex results derived from the analysis of these body fluids which aids in patient diagnosis and formulation of treatment and or care plan.
      I also monitor the effectiveness of patient treatment, play a part in the prevention of disease as well as involved in research and education.
      I do all of the above because I am committed to providing patients and service users with excellent service.

    • Photo: David Bremner

      David Bremner answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      Short answer – to try to help people. We are involved in nutrition (what we eat) and its impact on health so if we can do a study that finds something out that helps people then all the early mornings are worth it.

    • Photo: Rachel Edwards

      Rachel Edwards answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      A little bit by accident! I love physics, so I did a degree in it and then a PhD. The area of physics I did my PhD in (superconductors, which are really interesting materials) was chosen because of a very enthusiastic supervisor. I stayed in a similar bit of physics for a while but working in the US, then needed to come home – and found a job in ultrasound because they weren’t asking for any particular experience in that area. I stayed because jobs kept coming up at the right time, and I enjoyed doing something a bit more practical :).

    • Photo: Erin Pallott

      Erin Pallott answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      I study how our mucus layers respond to infection. I do this research because we used to think mucus is a simple slime for trapping bad bugs, but now we realise it is a lot more active than that! It cultures your microbiota, it coordinates with your immune system, and its specific at different mucus sites! Better understanding will help us find new ways to treat diseases like cystic fibrosis, inflammatory bowel disease and more.

    • Photo: Alexander De Bruin

      Alexander De Bruin answered on 9 Feb 2024:


      I have my current job because I enjoy leading people, am interested in managing big projects, and because the science that is developed by me and my team can have a real impact on the health of the planet

    • Photo: Kirsty Ross

      Kirsty Ross answered on 15 Feb 2024:


      I want to leave the world a better place than I found it in.

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