Hello and welcome to my blog! My name is Caroline and I am a PhD student at the University of Sheffield. My research project focuses on Striga - a genus of parasitic plants that devastates harvests by infecting food crops. I am exploring the defence reactions that can make host plants more resistant against Striga. Due to my ongoing battles with anorexia, I haven't made as much progress as I would have liked but I am determined to finish the course.


This blog charts the ups and downs of life in the lab, plus my dreams to become a science communicator and forays into public engagement and science policy....all while trying to keep my mental and physical health intact. Along the way, I'll also be sharing new plant science stories, and profiles of some of the researchers who inspire me on this journey. So whether you have a fascination for plants, are curious about what science research involves, or just wonder what exactly I do all day, read on - I hope you find it entertaining!


Sunday 12 April 2015

Two pieces of good news...

It's been a good week so far for two reasons. First - my Blog has had over 10,000 views! It has been a much bigger success than I could have hoped for when I started out on my online odyssey. So a big thank you to all of you for reading, commenting and sharing my trials & discoveries! I hope you will come back for more and help me to reach 20,000 views!

Secondly, I have had my first article published by The Conversation, a thriving  online newspaper where articles are submitted by academics and world experts. So how did I manage to smuggle something in?! As in so many things, it all comes down to contacts... A colleague of mine at work, Angie White, recently went down to London to do an internship in the Head Office of The Conversation and mentioned my interest in scientific writing. The editor there suggested that I could do an 'Explainer' article on the parasitic Striga weed. Several emails and a phone call later and here it is! 
https://theconversation.com/the-cutting-edge-science-taking-on-some-of-the-worlds-most-notorious-parasitic-plants-38732


It feels brilliant to have found another outlet for my passion and I am already trying to think what else I could write about for them. Stay tuned!

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