• Question: What inspired you

    Asked by peak520paps on 24 Sep 2024. This question was also asked by Jerry, tame520emyd, debt520prog.
    • Photo: Rachael Eggleston

      Rachael Eggleston answered on 24 Sep 2024:

      My biggest inspirations have been the researchers that have been kind enough to slow down and teach me things one-on-one. One is named Jill Anderson, and she’s the reason I love studying montane plants. Another is Dorset Trapnell, who let me work in her lab and learn about population genetics. Wendy Zomlefer is the reason I study plants at all!

    • Photo: Michael C Macey

      Michael C Macey answered on 25 Sep 2024:

      Great question – I always liked science in school, but found microbiology through a book I read called Microcosm by Carl Zimmer. Since going into science I have been very influenced by the works of the Banfield group, they are really changing the field of microbiology.

    • Photo: Camilla Cassidy

      Camilla Cassidy answered on 25 Sep 2024:

      I first wanted to become a scientist because of the TV programme Mythbusters – I was so inspired by the way you can learn about the world and prove things that people think might be true!

    • Photo: Martin McMahon

      Martin McMahon answered on 4 Oct 2024:

      My granddad, he invented a special kind of long distance radio antenna during WWII, and it was the first to be fitted to armoured tanks. For that he was awarded the British Empire Medal.
      Also, when I was young there was a tv programme called “Tomorrow’s World” on the BBC. It always inspired me and made me want to know more about the world and about new inventions.

    • Photo: Michael Schubert

      Michael Schubert answered on 4 Oct 2024:

      Lots of things! Mostly it was my own curiosity. I always wanted to know more about the world around me and, eventually, I realised that science could give me the answers I wanted. (Or, if it couldn’t, it could help me work out how to find them for myself!)

      A lot of people in science have inspired me, but they weren’t necessarily the famous people you hear about in books and on TV. Mainly, they were people I worked with who showed me how to be a better scientist or a better person.

    • Photo: Ashley Hecklinger

      Ashley Hecklinger answered on 12 Nov 2024:

      Early on I was inspired by my grandmotherā€™s work in wildlife rehabilitation and my grandfatherā€™s career in forestry. They both loved animals and nature and taught me to have a strong appreciation for it! As I went on to university level courses I found inspiration from my professorsā€™ who were so incredibly knowledgable – I remember one who travelled to South Africa each summer to work in wildlife management for elephants, another who spent time each year in Alaska studying songbirds (he was able to name any bird species just by hearing its call!) and one who used to take us out into the forests and was able to name every tree, every insect, every plant. They were all so dedicated to their fields of research and made me want to go into research myself!

    • Photo: Luke Fountain

      Luke Fountain answered on 21 Nov 2024:

      I have many inspirations – my parents have always encouraged me to follow my passion for science and space exploration, and have made sure that I have had the opportunities to do so. My biggest inspirations are the astronauts I watched go to space when growing up, especially the British astronaut Tim Peake, who I have had the pleasure of meeting!

      I’ve also been inspired by many researchers in my field, particularly Ray Wheeler and Gioia Massa, whose work inspired me to work in the field I work in (space crop production). Fast-forward to now, and I work with both Gioia and Ray on a daily basis! You don’t often get to meet your heroes, let alone work with them!

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