Profile

I work in the old Zoology (study of animals) building in Trinity College, which is a nice and inspiring place to work knowing how many scientists from previous generations worked and thought about the living world before me. I have my own office, and I also have a research office where my PhD students and other researchers work on the projects I invented.

The teaching part of my work involves standing up in front of between 20 and 250 students to give lectures and talks on various aspects of animal ecology and evolution. I also conduct research by working with a team of individuals on specific projects. These people are usually postgraduate students who have finished their degrees and are continuing their study to get a PhD which is a mark of research ability and endeavour. Aside from that, academics also tend to run the University so I have jobs that are called “administrative roles” that involve me helping others to apply for money to employ PhD students or to conduct research projects, as well as designing new courses for students to attend.

My normal day is pretty standard and is a combination of reading, writing, thinking, computer programming and meetings with students and colleagues. However, the content is hugely varied on a day-to-day basis.

Questions we are currently thinking about in my group:

Why are humans so intelligent and social?
Do small animals experience the passage of time faster than larger animals?
How do vultures find food as a group?
Can we fish more carefully and have less of a negative impact on the other species that live in the seas?
Why do some animals live longer than others?

Working with my students is one of the parts of my work I love the most. It’s really great fun to sit and chat about new ideas about why animals evolved certain characteristics such as the ability to see fast moving objects really clearly when other animals don’t care if the world whizzes by them.