Profile
Charlie Taylor
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About Me:
I’m a PhD researcher living in Cardiff (with my hamster, Thorin, and my partner who is also a conservation biologist). I love all wildlife and am currently researching the mountain chicken frog, which lives in the Caribbean! When I’m not in the field, the lab, or coding, I will likely be reading my favourite books or listening to Taylor Swift 🙂
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I am from Glastonbury in Somerset and my favourite subjects in school were biology and English. I have visited many countries during my time as a biologist and love to travel and see new places. My favourite countries to stay in were Malaysia and Mauritius (after Wales, of course!). I am very lucky that my chosen research area allows me to travel so much, but I also love the work I have been able to do in Wales – although it’s much more rainy here.
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My pronouns are:
she/her
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How I use Science in my work:
I use science every day to do my research. I spend time doing laboratory experiments, fieldwork to collect data and samples from the amazing animals I work with, and I do coding on my computer in order to make sense of that data. Science is everywhere and I am still learning every single day!
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My Work:
I am researching the endangered Mountain Chicken frog which lives in the Caribbean. I am a PhD student in Cardiff and I love all things wildlife, conservation, and biology related!
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My work involves looking at the DNA (the instruction set found in all cells in your body that helps your body function) of the mountain chicken frog and seeing whether we can save it from a disease called chytridiomycosis (ki-trid-ee-oh-my-co-sis). I do a lot of laboratory experiments and coding on my computer to look at the information I get from my experiments. This will all tell me what the frogs’ DNA looks like and how we can do our best work to save them from extinction! I work with other scientists to publish my work so everyone can read about it.
I have worked in many countries and love doing fieldwork for my job!
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What I'd do with the prize money:
I would use this to tell more people about the work I do. I would like to go to Dominica and Montserrat (the countries where my study species lives) and host workshops on my findings, bringing people together who all work on this beautiful species. This would help us share ideas and collaborate on future conservation actions. Good science communication is the key to all effective conservation practices.
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Education:
Secondary school: St Dunstan’s School, Glastonbury
College: Strode College, Street
University (bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and current PhD): Cardiff University
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Qualifications:
GCSE’s
AS-Level: Chemistry
A-Levels: Human Biology, Maths, English language
Undergraduate degree: Biological Sciences (BSc)
Masters degree: Global Ecology and Conservation (MSc)
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Work History:
Shop-floor assistant at Bench (9 months, when I was 18).
Farm-hand at a small-holding for rescued and disabled farm animals (holiday job during university).
Online picker at Morrisons (3 months, after university) at the same time as I was a carpark assistant for the RSPB.
Swab tester at a COVID-19 laboratory in Newport, then I did a similar job at the Cardiff University COVID research lab (9 months overall).
Senior lab technician – testing water quality of UK drinking water (just over a year, my favourite job!).
Finally, PhD!
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Current Job:
PhD researcher! Although technically I am still a student, I get my own office space and a salary so I think it counts as a real job. I have been doing this since September 2023 and will probably be here for a couple more years. A PhD involves researching a topic and producing a long written piece of work (called a thesis) at the end. If I pass the final examination (known as a viva), I get to call myself Dr Taylor!
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Employer:
Cardiff University (funded by NERC, the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, the Natural History Museum in London, and the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation).
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Wildlife-loving Swifty
What did you want to be after you left school?
A medical doctor
Were you ever in trouble at school?
I often got detentions for being late to class (I just loved a corridor yap with my friends!), and for dying my hair
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
Journalist or wildlife vet
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Taylor Swift!!
What's your favourite food?
Marmite toast
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
To be able to speak every language in the world, to own a cat (or more than one...), and teleportation
Tell us a joke.
What shoes do frogs wear? Open-toad sandals!!
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