BIO
How I got here
Inspired by popular movies and media like Jurassic Park and Event Horizon, I have had an interest in science from a young age. For a lot of my childhood I wanted to be a paleontologist or astronomer.
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Pursuing a Bachelor of Advanced Science at UNSW Sydney, I realised early on that my passions lay in understanding the complex interaction between microbes and the immune system, the hidden arms-race in our everyday life. I undertook an honours project studying viruses, and have remained in Professor Peter White's lab since then, developing new methodologies, workflows and ideas to study the evolution of ancient viruses - termed paleovirology.
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I also have a passion for science communication and love engaging younger students with the possibilities of careers in STEM.
Read more about me here.
Research Experience
Other experience
2020-2023
PhD Candidate,
UNSW Sydney
I am currently completing a PhD in Prof. Peter White's lab investigating viral fossils (EVEs) in vertebrates. Using a combination of genomic sequencing and bioinformatics, I investigate the prevalence, function and evolution of viruses inside host genomes.
2019
Research Assistant,
UNSW Sydney
Working in Prof. Peter White's virology laboratory, I undertook molecular biology experiments aimed at repurposing drugs to develop broad-spectrum antivirals, as well as developing bioinformatics workflows for data analysis.
2018-2019
Honours,
UNSW Sydney
I completed my honours thesis in Prof. Peter White's virology laboratory at UNSW Sydney, where I worked on identifying broad-spectrum antivirals against the Flaviviridae mosquito-borne viruses including Dengue fever and Zika virus. My work included expressing recombinant RNA-dependent RNA-polymerase in bacterial cells and screening antivirals against them in both polymerase and replicon assays.
2018
Research Project
UNSW Sydney
Working on a short project in Prof. Rick Caviccioli's lab, I experimented with different DNA extraction techniques to design the optimal method for use with haloarchaea.
2017-2018
Research Assistant
Brien Holden Vision Institute
Working for the Brien Holden Vision Institute, I was a metrologist and computer scientist that helped develop various analysis workflows for use with intra-ocular lens testing.
2021-present
Student representative, Australasian Virology Society
I represent postgraduate student members of the Australasian Virology Society and promote activities, events and awards to encourage younger researchers in virology.
2021-present
Publication committee,
Australian Wildlife Society
I currently help source and edit content for the Australian Wildlife Society magazine.
2021
Blog editor,
UNSW Sydney
I was an editor for the UNSW Women in maths and science champions blog in the 2021 cohort.