This week’s PhDetails is with Evie Morris who studies at the University of Southampton! Evie told me that she grew up in the English countryside near Oxford surrounded by her family and an endless menagerie of animals. After screwing up some of her History exams, Evie took an A-level in Biology to fill a gap in her timetable despite having loathed the subject until that point. Suddenly she found that the content of lessons moved away from human health focused topics and she became captivated by genetics and conservation science. At the University of Bath, Evie took advantage of the broad BSc Biology course and graduated with a 1st Class Degree. Evie said that a year of working in an office was enough to chase her back into science's ever-welcoming arms, where she hopes to stay! You can also find Evie on twitter @eviejmorris and you can find out more about her PI's group HERE
Well let’s start off talking about completely unscientific stuff: What is your favourite band/musical artist pre 1980?
I have to admit I’m not very band-loyal in my music choices and my “favourite” changes day-to-day. But I grew up to the sound of 70s rock and roll, so today I’m going to say Smokie.
Favourite band/musical artist post 1980?
The only timed I’ve truly claimed to have a favourite band was when I was about 5 and B*witched were the coolest thing in double-denim. More recently? Jon Bellion was cool before he signed that record deal.
Favourite movie?
This one is easy, Brother Bear.
Do you listen to podcasts? What are some of your favourites?
I go through fits and starts with podcasts, ‘This Podcast WIll Kill You’ is always fun.
Where do you study and who are your supervisors?
I study at the University of Southampton (UK) where I’m supervised by Dr Orly Razgour and Dr Kelvin Peh. My project is in collaboration with the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, so I also have a supervisor there, Prof. Carmi Korine.
What year of your PhD are you in?
Dangerously close to the end of year 2 now!
Who’s giving you the money – and for how long?
My living stipend/tuition/some research costs are funded by the UK government, via one of the Natural Environment Research Council’s Doctoral Training Partnerships. This funding lasts 3.5 years, with the stipulation that you must submit your thesis (providing no unforeseen circumstances) within 4 years. Unfortunately, the training and research grant that goes along with this is not enough to cover ecological fieldwork so I’ve been lucky enough to obtain additional funding from Bat Conservation International, the Genetics Society, NERC (via a different route), and the European Molecular Biology Organization.
Do you have any publications?
Not yet :0
Did you do a masters – where was it and was it about?
Nope, skipped that part too! Master’s programmes are very expensive in the UK and traditionally not required for PhD study. I worked really hard throughout my BSc to gain as much experience as possible and then found a PhD project that I was really well suited to.
Do you do fieldwork? What is the best fieldwork you have ever done and what made it great?
All fieldwork is the best, if I could just do endless fieldwork as a job I would (not an exaggeration if anyone has a job going in around 18months time...) Can I give you a top 3? I’m going to:
I volunteered on a project in Romania with Operation Wallacea during my BSc which really kick-started my foray into fieldwork (as well as furnishing me with some of my best friends to date). Later I worked for OpWall, leading the bat surveys at Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, Mexico, a place of such earth-shattering beauty words will not do it justice. There I caught hundreds of bats, lived surrounded by incredible biodiversity, and got to share my passion for nature with a whole new generation of science students. Finally, my own fieldwork last year in Israel was one of the toughest challenges of my life, and the enormity of the feeling that “it all rests on this” was only just eclipsed by how hard I fell for arid landscapes. I lost my heart to the desert that summer, I hope I’ll get to return and get it back.
How many PhDs did you apply for – what were you looking for?
One! I had spent a year following my BSc working and trying to save to do a Master's degree, but it was looking more and more unlikely that I would be able to afford it. It is common in the UK for PhD projects to be directly advertised (although in reality some are more half-baked ideas than others) so I said to myself that if I found a project that I was really sure I could live and breathe for 4 years I would apply. A spent a couple of months on my application, but it was worth it.
What is the most bodged piece of equipment you have had to use during field/labwork – did it work?
It’s usually my walking boots that give up way before anything else, in Mexico I spent one week in Hormiguero with the soles of my boots held on with penguin-printed duct tape!
What one piece of advice would you give to a masters student applying to PhDs now?
You’re better qualified than I was! But in all seriousness, there are two factors that are going to seriously impact your PhD experience: the project and the people. There is no point applying for a project you’re not head-over-heels for or else when the tough gets going, you’ll find yourself singing “50 ways to leave your PhD” Paul Simon-style. At the same time, one cannot live on love alone and the people you surround yourself with (supervisors, lab mates, University administrators etc) can make or break your experience and your resolve. Underestimate the importance of either at your peril.
How often do you meet with your supervisors?
Irregularly every fortnight or so? As and when really.
What supervisor traits are important to you?
I work quite independently so it was important to me to ensure my supervisory team were in no way helicopter-supervisors, but were still approachable.
What do you think are the worst supervisor traits?
I think that is very student-specific, but in general I think science is best served by researchers who are open, collaborative and respectful, so anyone who was not those things or not trying to encourage these principles in their students would be bottom of the list for me.
In one sentence what is your PhD about?
The effect of desert agriculture on bats.
What has been your academic highlight of the last year?
I GOT SOME DATA! Ok, it is mostly only preliminary and much of it has to be redone, but I made a pie-chart of potential contaminating bacterial taxa found in the controls of one of my experiments yesterday and I’ve never been so happy with a completely useless figure.
Have you had an academic lowpoint of the last year – if so what happened?
I spent several weeks at my collaborator’s lab this spring preparing DNA libraries for sequencing. The experience itself was great and I really enjoyed it and learned a lot, but a couple of weeks after returning we found that the quality of the libraries was not good enough for sequencing in a lot of cases and that’s been a bit of a setback.
Which academic idol/scientist have you met?
I try not to idolise people as much as possible. Although I once met Rosie Woodroffe when I volunteered with one of her PhD students and was a little star-struck.
Which academic idol/scientist would you most like to meet?
One that wants to give me a job...? But genuinely, there are so many people whose work I admire and read with interest that I don’t know where to start. Perhaps this: I would like to meet any and all scientists who can talk with enthusiasm (and not too much seriousness) about their work over a cup of tea and a baked good.
Do you have a favourite paper?
I tend to only remember facts not papers, which is so unhelpful when it comes to writing.
What has been your favourite conference so far – why?
I volunteered at the British Ecological Society when I was an undergrad, that was my first ever scientific conference and I loved being able to just enjoy the science with no ‘agenda’.
What hours do you typically work?
I’m not a scheduled person really. If I’m in the office I try to work 10-6, Monday-Friday. But if I have a lot of work to do and I’m in the thick of it, I will work more. If it’s a slow time, I might just take a couple of days off or work compressed hours. I try to focus on productivity and meeting deadlines not the hours I put in to do so.
How do you avoid procrastinating?
I don’t, I thoroughly indulge it, because I know if I have important work that needs to be done, I will do it. Which is probably a terrible approach but hey!
What motivates you in your day to day PhD life?
Enjoyment.
What do you do when you’re not working – how do you balance it with your PhD?
I’m a chronically busy person, I do everything, all the time. My diary fills up approximately 3 months in advance! Mostly my ‘itchy feet’ lead me to dance and travel, I love visiting my friends (close to home and in far-flung places), and try to get in as much nature time as possible all the while.
If a genie could grant you one wish to help with your PhD what would you wish for?
I would wish for perfect knowledge of all major-programming languages and their uses.
What would be your dream job?
Aside from someone just paying me to catch bats all day every day? I think my dream job is to be a field-based researcher, preferably doing impactful research at the interface of agriculture and conservation.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Hopefully enjoying a post-doc position somewhere, living the above mentioned dream.
One word to sum up your future in academia:
Potential.
What do you want to achieve outside of academia in the coming year?
A more regular yoga and meditation practise.
What essential tool hardware/software could you not do your PhD without?
The kettle.
Where is somewhere you would like to work in the future?
Oh gosh, everywhere! Most pie-in-the-sky is probably Mongolia, maybe I could observe the effects of the major shift away from a nomadic, pastoralist way of life on the ecosystem.
Do you have a favourite organism?
I’ve always related very strongly to the European Brown Bear (Ursus arctos arctos) and would love to work with them.
Are there any social interactions/meetings which have enhanced your PhD experience e.g. social seminars/group meetings?
Our office is open plan, and I’m on the 4th floor away from the majority of ecologists. A few of us have a little desk cluster we call “Ecology Island”, just having people around you to push your chair back with and have a natter keeps me chipper more than anything.
If you could change one thing about your group/department structure what would it be?
I’d put the walls back in the offices so people weren’t so oppressed by the silence of tens of people working, it’s actually really bad for the feeling of the department and it's hard to have a phone call or even just discussion because it feels like everyone can hear you! “Bring back dingey cupboards full of PhD students” I say!
What major question in your subject area is yet to be addressed – why is it important and why isn’t anyone addressing it?
I always bump into the fact no one seems to really know how far bats fly on a nightly basis (excluding a few well-known species). This is being slowly addressed in a number of ways by a few groups, my supervisor’s group considers this with landscape genetics, and I know some researchers in Israel who physically tag bats to consider movement. But often the answers begin with “well, it's probably...”
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