Vanessa Chong-Morrison

"Being an 'Explorer', 'Quality Controller' and 'Influencer' are certainly relevant to being a research scientist. It is also important to remember that scientists are human beings and therefore come in all sorts of personality 'types' - the unifying trait is an inquisitive mind with a strong desire to learn."

"Left/right (L-R) differences in the brain have fascinated people for generations. By studying numerous vertebrate organisms, a major element of our current understanding on L-R differences stems from research focusing on a region of the brain called the epithalamus. Previous studies in the zebrafish have demonstrated that within the epithalamus, the left and right habenulae display differences at multiple levels, from the genes that are active in each side to their responses to sensory stimuli. I use genetic techniques established in the zebrafish to uncover important events within the habenulae during early establishment of forebrain L-R differences.I enjoy the intellectual freedom and independence to pursue scientific questions that remain unanswered. This means that through the course of my 'job', the palpable excitement of finding something out, however small, is second to none. As such I do not think of it as a 'job' per se, but a way of life that forms a significant aspect of my identity. These are major elements of my role that money cannot buy."

"I grew up in Malaysia and was educated in the British equivalent of state school. Having held initial aspirations to be a chemical engineer, I changed my mind during A-levels after being intrigued by basic molecular genetics covered in Biology. This led to my decision to pursue a biomedical science degree (after a gap year of clerical work, waitressing, volunteering and choral singing) where I became fascinated with developmental biology – the study of how organisms develop as embryos. Upon graduation I spent a year as a Research Assistant in a neuroscience lab, before pursuing a DPhil (PhD) at the University of Oxford for four years. Currently I am a postdoctoral researcher at University College London (www.zebrafishucl.org, Wilson lab)."

"I play the piano to some degree of standard, bake sourdough bread, and enjoy walks in the countryside with my spouse and our little one. "

"There is no typical day, as every day is different! Depending on deadlines and/or what I am trying to achieve, a day can consist of data analysis, planning experiments, reading scientific journals, writing a paper, supervising students, preparing a presentation and/or performing lab work."

"A-Levels in Biology, Chemistry, MathematicsB.Sc. (Hons) in Biomedical ScienceD.Phil. in Medical Sciences"