This weeks PhDetails is with Lucy Peters who carries out her PhD at the University of Edinburgh. Prior to starting her PhD Lucy did an MSci at the University of Glasgow in Marine and Freshwater Biology before beginning her current work investigating the genetic basis of different complex phenotypic traits in red deer. I hope you enjoy this weeks PhDetails as much as I did!
Well let’s start of talking about completely unscientific stuff: What is your favourite band/musical artist pre 1980?
I think I’d have to pick the Beatles, they are one of the greatest bands of all time. Although I do enjoy some Elvis now and then as well.
Favourite band/musical artist post 1980?
Definitely BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan), it’s a Korean pop group. Their lyrics are so touching and relatable and I love their energy.
Favourite movie?
That’s a difficult one… If I had to pick, I would probably say the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth. That’s definitely the best adaptation and Pride and Prejudice is my favourite book.
Where do you study and who is/are your supervisors?
I study at the University of Edinburgh and my supervisors are Susan Johnston and Josephine Pemberton, they are both really great.
What year of your PhD are you in?
I’m just starting my second year.
Who’s giving you the money – and for how long?
My PhD is funded by NERC for 3.5 years, which is great, but I wish it was 4!
Do you have any publications – if so where (these will be linked to in the post)?
I do, from a project I did during my undergrad. It’s a little paper with the lengthy title “Born blonde: a recessive loss‐of‐function mutation in the melanocortin 1 receptor is associated with cream coat coloration in Antarctic fur seals.”
Did you do a masters – where was it and was it about?
I did a slightly unusual masters in that it was an integrated 5 year undergraduate programme at the end of which you get a Master in Science (MSci) degree. My programme was Marine and Freshwater Biology and I had to do two research projects. One was on the genetics of coat colour in Antarctic fur seals (which produced my paper) and the other on using environmental DNA as a monitoring tool in aquaculture.
Do you do fieldwork? What is the best fieldwork you have ever done and what made it great?
I did my first proper field work this year. I helped catch and tag the new calves of our red deer study population on the Isle of Rum, on the west coast of Scotland. It was long exhausting days, but also a lot of fun, mainly due to the great team we had. And the calves were super cute, so that made up for the sleep deprivation.
How many PhDs did you apply for – what were you looking for?
I actually only applied for two PhDs – one I got rejected for and the other one I was offered and immediately said yes to, because it was my dream project. I definitely wanted to do a genetics based project exploring evolutionary questions in a wild system, using either a population or quantitative genetics approach. So I had a pretty clear idea, but didn’t narrow myself down with the details.
What is the most bodged piece of equipment you have had to use during field/labwork – did it work?
I have been quite lucky with equipment I think. I have used some quite outdated pieces of equipment and procedures, but they all worked. But for field work this year I had to get a bit creative with my bug jacket - an essential piece of outdoor wear for field work during summer in the Scottish highlands. The midges got pretty bad, so we needed to wear the bug jacket, but at the same time still be able to see properly through our binoculars and scopes. Usually people just zip the hood part of the jacket around the eye piece, but that has you hunched over in a rather uncomfortable position. So I just cut a hole in the net of my hood at the height of my eyes (it was my own bug jacket) and tied it closed with a hair bobble when I wasn’t looking through my binoculars or scope. It worked and was much more comfortable and practical.
What one piece of advice would you give to a masters student applying to PhDs now?
First, don’t be afraid to apply for projects that seem very competitive, if you’re really interested just give it a shot, you never know if you don’t try. And second, ask for references early on during the application process – your supervisors or advisors (or whoever is writing you a reference) are probably very busy and need a fair warning so it doesn’t get too close (or past) the application deadline before the references get done.
What supervisor traits are important to you?
Being supportive and approachable. I think it’s important to feel like you can ask your supervisor anything without feeling stupid or being scared of getting rebuffed.
What do you think are the worst supervisor traits?
Controlling and aloof/indifferent. Your supervisor should be open to your own ideas and give you room to explore and develop your skills, not dictate your PhD to you. On the other hand if they don’t seem interested in what you do at all, then what’s the point of doing a PhD with them?
How often do you meet with your supervisors?
We generally meet about once a week.
In one sentence what is your PhD about?
Using quantitative genomics approaches to understand genetic architecture and evolution of complex traits in red deer.
What has been your academic highlight of the last year?
Giving my first talk at the Evolution 2018 conference in Montpellier this year. I was terrified, but I got overall really positive reactions, so it was worth it.
Have you had an academic low-point of the last year?
I haven’t had any particular low-point this year, just the usual periodic motivation troughs that everyone gets.
Which academic idol/scientist have you met?
Brian and Deborah Charlesworth are part of my department in Edinburgh, although I didn’t realise just how big they were until after I had met them. I have talked to them over coffee a few times, usually not about science, but they are lovely people.
Which academic idol/scientist would you most like to meet?
I would really like to meet Andrew Foote, I have read quite a few of his papers on killer whale evolution.
Do you have a favourite paper?
Another really difficult one. One paper that I remember really left an impression on me was one by Andrew Foote on the evolution of the different killer whale ecotypes using whole genome sequences. I thought it was really exciting and got me thinking about the potential of whole genome-sequencing.
What has been your favourite conference so far – why?
I would say Evolution in Montpellier this year. Not only because I gave my first conference talk, but also because I got to meet and talk to a lot of interesting and nice people and saw really good talks. It gave me new ideas for my PhD and also boosted my motivation.
What hours do you typically work?
I’m usually in between 9:30 and 10am and leave around 6pm.
How do you avoid procrastinating?
I try to set myself small, realistic goals on a day-to-day basis. That way I feel less overwhelmed, which stops me from turning to procrastinating as an escape and it gives more immediate gratification when I’ve reached my goals for the day.
What motivates you in your day to day PhD life?
Usually talking to other PhD students about their projects. If someone tells me about something interesting they’re working on or some cool results it reminds me of why I want to do science.
What do you do when you’re not working – how do you balance it with your PhD?
I’ve been doing Arabic belly dance for a few years now, I think it’s important to make time for a non-intellectual hobby to balance the very intellectual demands of a PhD. I still enjoy reading books as well – I have a weakness for classic English literature, especially women writers like Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters. I also just like to meet people for brunch or coffee and chat.
If a genie could grant you one wish to help with your PhD what would you wish for?
Whole genome sequences for all the deer in my study population on the Isle of Rum since the start of the project. And an equally well studied mainland population, but maybe that’s being a bit too greedy…
What would be your dream job?
Either a successful PI with my own lab group or a position as a conservation genetics scientist at a research institute or NGO.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Hopefully at the end of my first postdoc and my mind made up whether to stay in academia or apply for a job in the real world.
One word to sum up your future in academia:
Rollercoaster
What do you want to achieve outside of academia in the coming year?
I would like to improve my (Mandarin) Chinese, especially my reading skills, which are very basic.
What essential tool hardware/software could you not do your PhD without?
Definitely R, and high performance computers.
Who has been your academic role model/inspiration and why?
As cheesy as it sounds, my academic role model is my supervisor, Susan Johnston. She is still really young but managed to start her own lab group, she does really interesting work and is very clever but super humble about it. As a supervisor she is very engaged and approachable but also gives me free range to develop my own ideas and strategies. She is also just very likeable overall.
Where is somewhere you would like to work in the future?
I have meet quite a few people from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands and the University of Uppsala and Lund in Sweden that do really great work, especially regarding wild evolutionary genetics. So I think working at any of these places would be really interesting.
Do you have a favourite organism?
My favourite organism is the orca, or killer whale, as you might have guessed from my previous answers. I find their social and cultural structures really fascinating.
Are there any social interactions/meetings which have enhanced your PhD experience?
Coffee time in the social room (with the great name of Darwin Dance Hall) is always great, people exchange ideas and advice about science in an informal, relaxed setting or just talk about their dogs.
If you could change one thing about your group/department structure what would it be?
Maybe some sort of culture exchange day. We have people from so many different countries and cultures in the department and I feel like we don’t make the most of it. I would be really interesting to learn about everyone’s cultural background and all our differences and similarities.
What major question in your subject area is yet to be addressed – why is it important and why isn’t anyone addressing it?
I would say understanding genetic variance and how it is maintained. A lot of people have done great work to come closer to explaining why we see so much variation in traits under strong selection, but we still don’t really understand all the mechanisms and how this relates to the evolutionary potential of a species. For me the key is to understand the genetic underpinnings of a trait in detail. This is especially difficult in wild populations due to limited genetic and life-history data, but we need to look at natural systems to understand natural selection. But things are changing with more and more data being available, especially on the genetics side.
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