• Question: Have you had a different job to do with science, previously, or is this your first?

    Asked by Baileylee12 to Hannah, Lucy, Phil, rochellevelho, Stephen on 8 Mar 2017. This question was also asked by 767spah27, samualdye11.
    • Photo: Lucy Kissick

      Lucy Kissick answered on 8 Mar 2017:

      Yes, before I started my PhD last autumn, I was lucky enough to work with the European Space Agency for two small jobs.

      The first was helping decide where to send the next Mars rover by assessing how dangerous each of the proposed sites would be to a small rover. I had to count big boulders on the planet’s surface by looking at incredibly high quality photos (the camera in space would be able to see you stood in a field). The most exciting bit was going with my team to the Netherlands at the ‘landing site selection meeting’ — I got to meet all the coolest scientists and engineers as they decided where to go.

      The second position wasn’t space but was still the European Space Agency: I worked at the University of Leicester using a satellite to detect groundwater from space. This could change the way people farm by helping them know where to best use their water and not waste it.

    • Photo: Phil Sutton

      Phil Sutton answered on 8 Mar 2017:

      I’ve had some very different jobs in my past while I have been studying. I have worked in supermarkets doing an excellent job of placing products on shelves and cleaning the floor. I used to work nights at Showcase cinema as an usher. I would clean the screens after each showing and show people to their seats and watch films until 2 – 3 in the morning. I also worked as a mechanic for a number of years building cars and helping customers build cars to race. We specialised in putting large engines in very small cars. This was great fun and I learnt a great deal about engineering in this job.

      Anyway, this is my first job that is directly in science but the others have still helped me.

    • Photo: Hannah Sargeant

      Hannah Sargeant answered on 12 Mar 2017:

      I was a teacher! I taught physics in high school and college which I loved! I really missed doing research though so that’s why I went back to university.

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