Over 30,000 miles of train tracks are used to ferry goods across Canada’s vast landscapes. Predicting, detecting and averting hazards such as landslides and forest fires is critical for mitigating their impact on this crucial rail network – but this is not easy, as many train lines run through extremely remote and inhospitable regions. At the University of Alberta, Dr Renato Macciotta is part of a unique partnership using remote sensing technologies to address this challenge, providing the rail network with the tools needed to stay on track.

Due to the loss of vegetation making slopes more unstable, there are also links between forest fires and landslide risks. “One of the slopes that we are monitoring experienced a forest fire five years ago,” explains Renato. “Since then, we have noticed substantial increases in the frequency of rockfalls there.” Meeting these new challenges will involve increasingly detailed data, closer analysis and more coordination than ever before.

Dr Renato Macciotta
Professor, David and Joan Lynch School of Engineering Safety and Risk Management, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alberta, Canada

Field of research: Geotechnical engineering

Research project: Using remote sensing technologies to provide the transportation industry and government agencies with practicable and cost-effective tools for geohazard monitoring and management

Funders: Canadian National Railway; Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway; Transport Canada; Klohn Crippen Berger; Alberta Transportation; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)

About geotechnical engineering

Geotechnical engineering is the branch of civil engineering that researches and models how earth materials, namely soil and rock, behave. Given that most infrastructure is built on soil and rock, understanding how they behave is critical to ensuring that structures are safe and stable. This expertise is also essential to industries such as mining. “Geotechnical engineering offers a fantastic balance between field and office life,” says Renato. “If you like being out in nature and assessing real things, but also enjoy flexing your analytical, technical and imaginative skills in the office, then it could be for you.” Research in this field always offers new and fulfilling rewards because every geotechnical project is unique – after all, the ground is different in every location.

Renato says that sustainable development is at the forefront of where research in the field is likely to go next. “We need to keep developing, but environmental health has to go alongside economic and safety concerns,” he explains. “What’s more, we need to know how climate change will impact our infrastructure, and plan accordingly.” Artificial intelligence is proving critical in this regard given its ability to process huge quantities of data and find meaningful patterns. “But AI, even with proper expert guidance and review, can’t do it all,” says Renato. “We will continue to need engineers with a highly robust understanding of the ground, current and upcoming challenges, and how we can use new AI techniques most effectively.”

Renato emphasises the importance of diversity in the field, both in terms of disciplines and sociocultural backgrounds. “If you only work with people like you, you don’t have the opportunities to think outside the box and come up with novel solutions,” he says. “Diversity impacts research positively. We need people of different backgrounds, genders and perspectives, all feeding into potential solutions.”

Pathway from school to geotechnical engineering

Renato says that science and mathematics are highly useful in any field related to geotechnical engineering. “Even if your field isn’t as technical as mine, these subjects will give you the skills to problem solve, which is critical across the board,” he says.

At university, degrees or courses that lead most directly to a career in geotechnical engineering include civil engineering and geological engineering. Some may focus more on geology and Earth sciences, while others will focus more on structural or geotechnical engineering.

Explore careers in geotechnical engineering

Renato says that the professors at the University of Alberta – and at other universities – are always happy to discuss their programmes and their specialisms. Find courses and staff details on the University of Alberta website.

The Canadian Geotechnical Society is a network of geotechnical engineers and professionals in related industries across the country that can help you build contacts and knowledge of the sector.

Meet Renato

At school, I liked both science and humanities. I got into civil engineering because I saw myself designing bridges: I loved the maths and procedures. I trained with a famous structural designer in Peru, but spent more time in front of a computer screen than I’d have liked. At university, a combination of studying, doing summer jobs and gaining a variety of other experiences helped me identify which stream of civil engineering I liked best, which is when I chose geotechnical engineering.

Then, I moved to construction to see the action! It was fun to deploy the skills I’d studied in the real world. In my early twenties, when I thought I had my next life chapter planned out, I got the opportunity to work for a Canadian-based consulting firm as a geotechnical engineer. Even though it wasn’t on my radar beforehand, I jumped at the chance.

The department I teach in is known worldwide due to its legacy of pioneers in the field, particularly emeritus professor Dr Norbert R. Morgenstern – who is literally the living legend of this field – Dr Derek Martin and Dr David Cruden. If you had told me years ago that I would complete a PhD and then go on to teach here, I would never have believed you. Just the fact that I’m sitting here has exceeded all my expectations!

It’s very fulfilling to interact with my graduate students. I love seeing how they grow in terms of their research and communication skills and go on to have meaningful careers in industry. We keep in contact – and now they’re colleagues! Canada gave me an opportunity, and now I’m giving back by training highly qualified people. That makes me very proud.

Within the university, I want to sustain and develop this programme, so it keeps its excellent international reputation. As well as being passionate about my work, I’m family focused. I have a twenty-year-old daughter who’s studying at the University of Alberta right now, and a two-year-old who keeps me busy at home!

Renato’s top tip

Make a plan, but always be open to change and taking up exciting opportunities when they appear.

Do you have a question for Renato?
Write it in the comments box below and he will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Learn more about how we can predict rockfalls:

futurumcareers.com/can-we-predict-where-falling-rocks-will-go

Imagine sitting in a park and ordering food, but instead of it arriving by car or bike, it is delivered by a drone. How would you feel? For his PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, Dr Shiva Nischal Lingam studied drone deliveries, with the goal of improving the experience for both recipients and bystanders in public places.

Bystander reactions were varied, ranging from curiosity and attempts to engage with the drone, to disengagement and moving away. “This can lead to unpredictable behaviours and safety concerns in public spaces such as parks,” explains Nischal. Bystanders also raised concerns about privacy and the nuisance of propeller noises. “For some bystanders, the drone created a sense of being disturbed in what is normally a calm public space,” says Nischal.

As recipients had ordered the delivery, they were expecting a drone to arrive and so were less uncertain about its presence in a public park. However, they still felt uncertain about how to confirm that the drone was delivering to them and where they should stand while it made its delivery.

As both recipients and bystanders, participants expressed concerns over the environmental impact of drones and how to ensure they would interact safely with any wildlife in the area.

How could delivery drones be improved?

Nischal’s study highlighted the current lack of clear communication from drones, which reduces trust and affects the comfort of everyone involved. To address this issue, participants suggested adding features such as audio and visual elements to drones. “For example, several participant sketches showed a light projecting from the drone onto the ground to indicate the delivery location when the drone descends to deliver a package,” says Nischal. “They also suggested that blinking lights and audio warnings could indicate landing or take-off, as well as keeping bystanders at a safe distance.”

To reduce uncertainty about the drone’s intention, participants suggested that a drone’s appearance should be designed with logos and colours that people would recognise. For example, a food delivery drone from Uber Eats should be branded as such, while a medical drone delivering a defibrillator should have similar colours to an ambulance.

As drone delivery becomes more common across the world, Nischal hopes his work will help guide policymakers to develop regulations that make both recipients and bystanders feel comfortable, safe and at ease with drones operating in public spaces.

Dr Shiva Nischal Lingam

Previously: PhD Researcher, Department of Industrial Design, Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands

Currently: Research and Development Engineer, Department of Aerospace Operations Safety and Human Performance, Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre, The Netherlands

Field of research: Human-drone interactions

Research paper: Human interactions with delivery drones in public spaces: design recommendations from recipient and bystander perspectives. Lingam, S.N. et al. (2025) doi: 10.3389/frobt.2025.1580289

Funder: This research was supported by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) through the project ‘Safety Solutions for Autonomous Vehicle Integration in Urban Mobility: Efficient and Reliable Acting in an Uncertain and Unreliable World’ (NWA.1292.19.298). The research was part of a collaboration between Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR). The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of NWO, TU/e and NLR.

Do you have a question for Nischal?
Write it in the comments box below and he will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Learn how industrial engineers are preparing to integrate flying technologies such as drones into city infrastructure:

futurumcareers.com/preparing-the-world-for-the-next-generation-of-flying-machines

In a storeroom on the coast of the Greek island of Crete, a team of archaeologists is attempting an almost-4000-year-old 3D jigsaw puzzle. Led by Professor Carl Knappett from the University of Toronto in Canada, these archaeologists are piecing together pottery fragments they have excavated from the Minoan site of Palaikastro. By restoring these ancient pots and vases, the team is shedding light on Bronze Age society and asking questions about what ‘containment’ means today.

“People often assume that archaeology is only about excavation,” Rachel continues. “But objects also need to be conserved and studied after they come out of the ground.” There is so much more to day-to-day archaeology work than digging. “Archaeology teaches you to handle evidence with care, to question assumptions, and to think expansively about how societies form and change,” says PhD student Jacob De Juliis. “At its core, archaeology is a way of understanding people and their resilience, creativity and humanity, and that makes it endlessly relevant to the world we live in now.”

What does a typical day of work at Palaikastro involve?

“It gets pretty hot in Greece in the summer, so we start early,” says Carl. “The whole team is on site at 6am and we finish excavating at 2pm.” To excavate the site, the team digs in trenches. Every artefact they discover, down to the smallest sherd, is bagged, labelled and catalogued, then taken to the ‘apotheke’ (storeroom) for analysis. “In the afternoon, we work on the pottery out of the sun in the apotheke,” says Carl. Sometimes, there will be thousands of sherds laid out on tables as the team tries to find pieces that fit together so they can restore whole pots and vases. “It’s a bit like doing several 3D jigsaws at once, but without the picture on the box to guide you!” says Carl. “This can be pretty difficult, especially when you go for hours without finding any joins. But it’s very satisfying in the end once the vase has been put back together. All in all, it’s quite a full day of work, so it’s great to have the sea close by to cool off. And we’re lucky to have a really supportive local village that is invested in this project.”

Pathway from school to archaeology

“There is no single pathway into archaeology,” says Carl. “You can study languages, sciences, history or geography. Archaeology really does encapsulate a wide range of approaches, from philosophy to lab-based science.”

At university, a degree in archaeology would provide a direct route to a career in the field. Or you could study a related degree such as anthropology, history or art history.

“Learning basic digital skills (like photography) will give you a strong foundation,” adds Jacob.

“Visit archaeological sites and museums in your local area,” says Rachel. You can also explore museum collections online, such as those at the Heraklion Archaeological Museum which hosts many artefacts from Palaikastro: heraklionmuseum.gr

Explore careers in archaeology

Volunteer on excavations to get practical experience and learn what a career in archaeology involves. “If you get the chance to participate in a field school, go with an open mind and remember that some of the most important work is behind the scenes,” advises Jacob.

“There is so much breadth of opportunity to study whichever time or part of the world you are most interested in,” says Zoë Arzuman, who worked at Palaikastro as a student. “Archaeology teaches you many specialised skills to study the past. It is expansive in both what part of the past you want to study, and what tools you use to do so.”

Explore the websites of archaeology organisations such as the Canadian Archaeological Association (canadianarchaeology.com), the British Archaeological Association (thebaa.org) and the Society for American Archaeologists (saa.org) to learn about current research and to find fieldwork opportunities.

Meet the team

Zoë Arzuman
Research Assistant, University of Toronto, Canada

When I think of Palaikastro, my mind often goes to memories of watching the sun rise over the Aegean Sea and hearing crashing waves next to our dig trench. I also think of the close friends I made – we still meet for lunch and take trips together.

I spent six weeks excavating at Palaikastro during the summer of 2022. Since then, I’ve spent two summers working at the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, where I helped catalogue pottery which had been excavated from Palaikastro over 100 years ago. Each vessel description (including what it is made of and what decoration is present) contributes to a fuller understanding of what the lives of the people at Palaikastro were like during the Bronze Age.

Say yes to every opportunity, because you never know where it will take you. When I started university, I didn’t imagine myself as an archaeologist. But working at Palaikastro led me to a place where I can imagine myself as an archaeologist studying Aegean prehistory for years to come.

Jacob De Juliis
PhD Student, University of Toronto, Canada

My role at Palaikastro involves the careful digital documentation and management of artefacts by creating a coherent digital record that preserves each object’s condition, origin and features. While less glamorous than some aspects of archaeology, this job ensures that the material culture remains accessible for future study, comparative analysis and long-term conservation.

Working at Palaikastro is truly a dream, thanks to the people I’ve met there – and the fact that I get to work side by side with my best friend! The opportunities you have and friendships you form during archaeological fieldwork are truly unmatched.

Archaeology lets me bring together the two forces that shaped me – a fascination with deep time, which I inherited from my father who works in palaeontology, and a commitment to human stories and lived experience, shaped by my mother’s work with refugee communities. Archaeology sits exactly at that intersection as it asks how people lived, adapted, created and connected across vast spans of time, and why their choices still matter today.

Dr Rachel Phillips
Researcher, British School at Athens, Greece

As an archaeologist at the British School at Athens, I work on the pottery found in the excavations at Palaikastro, helping to identify and catalogue the different vessels. I write down the shape and size of the pot, the kind of clay it’s made from, and any decoration it has.

Some vessels are found intact and so are easier to identify (to work out what kind of cup or jar it is, for example), but some are just tiny fragments. However, even these fragments can help us to date a building more precisely or tell us how it was used by people in the past.

Palaikastro is a beautiful place to work, close to the mountains and the sea. But my favourite thing about working at Palaikastro is the people that I’ve met. Archaeological fieldwork offers an opportunity to meet people from all over the world, to make new friends, and to be part of a community of people interested in similar things.

Do you have a question for Carl, Zoë, Jacob or Rachel?
Write it in the comments box below and they will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Discover how archaeologists are excavating a Mayan settlement in Belize:

futurumcareers.com/how-are-archaeologists-uncovering-the-secrets-of-an-ancestral-maya-boomtown

Slime moulds are intriguing, fungus-like organisms that play a huge but hidden role in the environment. Historically, they have been understudied, but they are now starting to receive more attention. Dr Chinyere Knight from Tuskegee University in the US is a leader in slime mould research, studying and cataloguing specimens of slime moulds and fungi to document their diversity and characteristics. Through her research, she hopes to inspire and educate the next generation of mycologists.

Pathway from school to mycology

At school, useful subjects to take as preparation for a career in mycology include biology, chemistry, environmental science and mathematics. Other useful subjects include computer science and statistics.

Chinyere recommends taking university courses or modules in subjects such as ecology, microbiology and plant sciences (botany). Other areas of study that can lead to a career in mycology include anthropology and evolutionary or molecular biology.

Explore careers in mycology

Chinyere recommends seeking out local mycology communities or organisations to learn more and make connections with people working in the field. For instance, Alabama has a state mushroom society that provides educational and networking opportunities.

Tuskegee University offers a range of summer programmes for high schoolers and university students, including SLIME.

Meet Brogin

PhD Student, Tuskegee University, USA

Growing up, I was always curious about the natural world. I was especially drawn to biology and environmental science because they help to explain the living systems around us. That curiosity evolved into a deeper interest in organisms that are often ignored or misunderstood, like fungi or slime moulds.

I’m taking my PhD in the Integrative Biosciences programme with Dr Chinyere Knight. She is an outstanding mentor: supportive, gracious and genuinely invested in her students’ success. She creates an environment where you feel trusted and encouraged to grow, while being challenged to think deeply and independently.

I aim to become an independent researcher and educator. I want to continue studying microbial biodiversity, while mentoring students from diverse backgrounds. My long-term goal is to build programmes that combine research, education and outreach, especially for students who may not initially see themselves in science.

Tuskegee University has a deep history and a strong mission of excellence, resilience and service. Being a part of that legacy aligns with my ideals of making meaningful change.

Slime moulds challenge how we define living organisms and how we classify life on Earth. They have complex life cycles and are highly diverse, the details of which I’m helping to uncover. There is still so much we don’t understand about life, and this area of study helps expand what we know.

I’ve had challenges around access, resources and self-doubt. Graduate school can be demanding and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. I’ve overcome these challenges by staying persistent, asking for help, and surrounding myself with great peers and mentors like Dr Knight. Struggling doesn’t mean you don’t belong – growth often happens in uncomfortable moments.

Brogin’s top tips

1. Stay curious, don’t be afraid to ask questions and find mentors who genuinely care about your growth.

2. Don’t compare your own journey to others’. Everyone’s path is different, and that makes science stronger.

Meet Carmen

Undergraduate student researcher, Tuskegee University, USA

My love of STEM – ‘Seeking the Truth about Earth’s Mysteries’ – began at an early age. I had many teachers who were enthusiastic about STEM, and I joined the Engaging Youth through Engineering club when I was young. It’s important to have passionate, effective teachers.

I was granted the opportunity to participate in the SLIME internship programme. It was amazing to study alongside my peers and gain field and lab experience. We studied myxomycetes through sample collection, microscopy, taxonomy and DNA extraction.

I want to be a source of encouragement and guidance for students. After studying biology at graduate school, I plan to attend law school, focusing on educational policy and STEM development in southern states. I also want to collaborate with other changemakers to support communities in line with my faith.

I love the culture of hard work and scientific legacy at Tuskegee. Being a student here has grown my knowledge on the sciences, health and wellness, and public policy. It has ignited a new passion in me to carry the torch.

I believe that science is God’s creation. I am passionate about studying this creation and what solving its mysteries means for our lives and livelihoods. I appreciate and have so much gratitude for the pursuit of knowledge.

Initially, I struggled with learning how to study. Research is not just discovery; it involves investigation, problem-solving and the ability to pivot quickly. Surrounding myself with people who want me to succeed is a big motivator to keep going and stay passionate. Curiosity and open-mindedness have helped me countless times. Every internship and learning opportunity has taught me resilience, delayed gratification and persistence. I choose to work hard, trying to maintain the right balance of organisational skills, creativity and motivation to keep on going.

Carmen’s top tips

1. Seek lab placements, internships and conferences to figure out what you enjoy studying. Taking advantage of these moments will allow you to explore your passions and develop into a better scientist.

2. Make time to do the things that you enjoy outside of academia. Whether that is reading a book or painting a picture, do it!

Do you have a question for Chinyere, Brogin or Carmen?
Write it in the comments box below and they will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Learn more about the microorganisms living in soil:

futurumcareers.com/what-lies-beneath-digging-into-the-soil-microbiome

Most of the buildings we spend time in are solid and unmoving, and manage their environmental conditions (such as temperature, lighting and air flow) using energy-hungry heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. However, at Bodeker Scientific in New Zealand, Dr Negin Imani has taken inspiration from plants to design adaptive building façades that respond to environmental conditions to keep buildings well-lit, well-ventilated and at a comfortable temperature.

Both the active and passive parts of Negin’s system are inspired by how plants maintain thermal equilibrium. “The active system is biomimetic at a system level, using controlled movement to regulate sunlight, similar to how stomata adjust their opening,” Negin explains. “The passive system is biomimetic at a material level, behaving like plant tissue responding automatically to light and humidity.”

Trial by sun and water

After designing prototypes of her shading system, the next step was to test whether they were up to the challenge of becoming part of an adaptive façade. “We tested how the 4D printed materials reacted to different conditions by spraying them with water,” says Negin. “We then observed how they changed over time as they dried or were heated. By measuring how much they bent and how quickly they responded, we could understand how effective they were and how the design could be improved.”

To test the effectiveness of the motorised component of the shading system, Negin looked at how effectively the different rotating panel designs could control or block sunlight. She also needed to check if her ideas worked on a practical level. “When we tested different designs, we looked at how simple and robust they were, and how easy they would be to install and maintain,” she says. “Importantly, we also considered how they would look on a real building. It’s not just about performance; an adaptive façade also needs to contribute positively to the overall architectural design.”

Building on the work so far

One challenge for Negin and her team is making these designs simple, affordable and durable. “While there are several iconic buildings around the world that use adaptive façades, they are often very complex, expensive and difficult to maintain, so they’re not widely used,” says Negin. “We want to make these systems more practical, scalable and easier to apply in everyday buildings.”

It takes an interdisciplinary group of highly skilled experts to design and test adaptive façade systems. Negin and her team hope to use their innovations to improve the process of applying adaptive façades in real buildings.

Dr Negin Imani
Senior Research Fellow, Bodeker Scientific; Senior Lecturer, Open Polytechnic, New Zealand

Fields of research: Architecture; building science, technologies and systems

Research project: Designing biomimetic adaptive building façades

Funder: New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment Endeavour Fund Smart Ideas

Website: biomimeticbuildings.org.nz

Do you have a question for Negin?
Write it in the comments box below and she will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Discover how architects are using building design to promote social and environmental justice:

futurumcareers.com/building-a-better-future

Food allergies are becoming increasingly common in children, yet scientists still do not fully understand why some infants develop allergies while others do not. At the University of Rochester in the US, Professor Kirsi Järvinen-Seppo and Dr Erin Davis are investigating how an infant’s gut microbiome influences their risk of developing food allergies.

How does breast milk influence food allergy development?

Breast milk plays an important role in shaping an infant’s gut microbiome, which is essential for healthy immune development. “It contains oligosaccharides, a type of carbohydrate, that are not digestible by the infant but can be broken down by certain bacteria,” says Erin. “In breaking down breast milk oligosaccharides, bacteria can produce metabolites that may reinforce the infant’s gut barrier and potentially increase their tolerance to certain foods, protecting against food allergies.”

Breast milk can also contain antibodies that recognise food proteins, which may help protect infants from developing allergies. A mother’s diet can influence the composition of her milk – for example, eating certain foods may increase the levels of related antibodies or nutrients, such as fatty acids. Kirsi’s lab found that women living in traditional farming communities produce breast milk with different levels of antibodies, fatty acids and oligosaccharides compared to women living in urban environments, which may contribute to differences in allergy risk.

How could the team’s research help prevent food allergies in the future?

“Our programme is focusing on the prevention of food allergies,” says Kirsi. By identifying early-life exposures, like the healthy infant microbiome, that help the immune system develop tolerance to foods, her team hopes to design new strategies that reduce the risk of allergies in infants. At the same time, they are working to identify biomarkers – measurable signs that show whether a child is developing tolerance or sensitisation to certain foods – which could help doctors monitor prevention strategies and identify infants at higher risk.

Professor Kirsi Järvinen-Seppo
Chief of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology

Dr Erin Davis
Postdoctoral Fellow

Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, University of Rochester, USA

Fields of research: Paediatric allergy; immunology

Research project: Investigating how the infant gut microbiome and early-life exposures influence immune development and the risk of food allergies

Funders: US National Institutes of Health (NIH); National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); United States Department of Agriculture (USDA); Janssen R&D

About paediatric allergy and immunology

The intersection of paediatric allergy and immunology involves investigating how the immune system develops and reacts to allergens in children. Over the past few decades, the field has advanced rapidly. “When I started practising food allergy, we had no therapies available except strict avoidance of trigger foods and preparation to treat reactions,” says Kirsi. Today, several treatments exist to manage food allergies, and promising prevention strategies are being developed.

Working in this area comes with unique challenges. Accessing the human tissues involved in allergic reactions, such as the intestinal tract, is complicated, making it difficult to study the underlying mechanisms. Researchers are developing innovative laboratory models, such as artificial guts, to simulate these tissues and test potential treatments. Scientific research also requires persistence, as experiments or analyses do not always go as planned. “Getting experience in a research laboratory and getting used to working through and learning from setbacks will be invaluable,” says Erin. “Surrounding yourself with supportive colleagues will make working through any challenge far easier.”

A typical day studying paediatric allergy and immunology involves a mix of lab work and data analysis. “Much of my day is currently spent performing statistical analyses on data we have generated in the lab, creating scientific figures, discussing results with colleagues, presenting findings at meetings or conferences, and writing papers to hopefully get those data published,” says Erin. “Earlier in my career, I also spent time preparing samples, performing experiments and mentoring students in the lab.”

Pathway from school to paediatric allergy and immunology

Study science subjects at school, such as biology and chemistry, to prepare for further study at college or university.

Conducting research in a laboratory as a high school or undergraduate student, or participating in a summer research programme, can also be valuable, whether you are aiming for a clinical or research-focused career.

Explore careers in paediatric allergy and immunology

Organisations such as the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and the American Association of Immunologists provide useful information for students interested in paediatric allergy and immunology.

“There are numerous careers in paediatric allergy and immunology, including those that treat patients in a clinical setting, such as a physician, nurse or dietitian,” says Erin. “You could also work as a scientist, either conducting research at an academic institution or working at a company developing therapeutics to prevent allergic disease.”

“My tip is to get as much exposure as possible,” says Erin. “Reach out to a paediatric allergist or immunologist in your local community or university and see if you can shadow them in clinic or work in their lab if they are conducting research.”

Meet Kirsi

I grew up in Finland and was interested in being a good student so that I could make it into medical school. I had no idea about biomedical research and only discovered that pathway later.

I love learning from my patients and understanding what they and their families need. Then I can try to answer their questions with the help of my research team and hopefully get some solutions back to the clinic. I enjoy that every day is different, and that I can move the field forward with my persistence.

The possibility to advance medical knowledge and make a big impact in the lives of children with allergies is motivating for me. I love being able to do translational research in my laboratory where we work on clinically important questions.

Curiosity, courage, integrity, persistence and kindness have allowed me to lead a successful career. Being trained by excellent scientists and clinicians, and engaging in professional opportunities, such as presenting at conferences, reviewing grant applications and networking, have also been key.

To unwind from work, I exercise, listen to music, do gardening, travel, and spend time with family and friends.

Kirsi’s top tip

Look for a role model who can train you.

Meet Erin

For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in paediatric chronic disease prevention. This is probably because I grew up watching my parents, both paediatric healthcare professionals, take care of chronically ill children. I wanted to understand how to stop diseases before they started, or at least decrease associated symptoms. It wasn’t until I started doing clinical nutrition research in college that I realised that I wanted to engage in the field from a nutrition perspective. I became particularly interested in infant nutrition and the microbiome because nutrition is the principal driver of infant microbiome composition, which is associated with short- and long-term health and susceptibility to multiple diseases, including allergies.

I love working as a team with my colleagues to discover something new – information that inches us just a little closer solving the puzzle that is early allergic disease development. The long, spontaneous conversations in the lab about a new piece of data or hypothesis that has us buzzing are some of my favourites.

I am motivated by the potential to develop strategies to prevent the onset of these allergic diseases, allowing children to lead healthy lives and enjoy all activities, experiences and foods without worrying about or feeling the daily burden of their disease.

I’m a nutrition scientist by training, so I had a steep learning curve when joining an immunology lab for my postdoctoral research. My curiosity and communication skills continue to help me engage effectively with my colleagues, ask a lot of questions, gather and learn new information quickly, and collaborate effectively. Supportive environments, colleagues and mentors have also been exceptionally important in the success I have had so far.

I’m a foodie. When I’m not working, you can often find me at a new or well-loved local restaurant, watching cooking videos, or cooking in my own kitchen with a nice vinyl record on in the background.

Erin’s top tip

Reach out to clinicians or researchers. They can connect you with other trainees in the field and refer you to relevant, credible sources of information and research for you to explore.

Do you have a question for Kirsi or Erin?
Write it in the comments box below and they will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

 
Learn about how the microbiome influences breast cancer treatments:

futurumcareers.com/translational-cancer-research-with-dr-katherine-cook

As the global shift to renewable energy accelerates, so does our need for batteries, both for personal use and in industry. Batteries need to store more energy than ever before, at lower costs, while also being sustainable and safe. At RWTH Aachen University in Germany, Benedikt Späth is using computer simulations to supercharge the process of developing new batteries.

Benedikt uses digital toolchains which link design, testing and data analysis tools so information flows smoothly and automatically from design to production. “This increases transparency and reduces inefficiencies,” he explains.

Using digital toolchains also avoids the time delays caused by treating product development and production separately and allows Benedikt to constantly link the two by running simulations of both, which feed off each other. “We analyse how design decisions affect production and vice versa,” he says. “We can detect issues much earlier which reduces costly redesign loops. On the product side, we simulate the behaviour of battery cells to predict performance, lifetime and safety. On the production side, we simulate manufacturing steps to understand how process parameters influence the final cell properties.” These simulations rely on a combination of physics-based and data-driven models, integrated into a digital workflow that evolves as more data becomes available.

Thermal runaway

One of the key concerns for battery safety is thermal runaway. “This is a self-reinforcing overheating process inside a battery,” explains Benedikt. “Once it starts, the battery generates heat faster than it can dissipate it, causing the temperature to rise rapidly in an uncontrolled way.”

Thermal runaway can be caused by internal issues within the battery or by external issues such as damage or overheating, leading to explosions, fire and the release of toxic or flammable gases. Fortunately, incidents are few and far between, thanks to the inclusion of advanced safety features in today’s batteries.

“We conduct thermal simulations which calculate how heat is generated and distributed inside a battery cell under different operating conditions, such as current, voltage, charging rates and material properties,” says Benedikt. These models are part of a model-based systems engineering (MBSE) approach, linking thermal, electrical and mechanical behaviour to provide a complete picture. Early models are simple and fast while later models build complexity, and all models are validated with real data. “This allows us to evaluate safety-relevant scenarios early, reducing the risk of costly and dangerous failures.”

The results are useful and practical. Benedikt’s simulations reveal temperature patterns within the cell and battery system, identify hot spots and highlight cooling requirements. “We can understand where a battery might overheat and potentially enter dangerous states such as thermal runaway,” says Benedikt. “We can identify critical conditions before they occur in reality.” This helps product engineers make informed design choices about cell layout, cooling systems and safe operating limits early on in development.

Benedikt highlights that simulations do not replace real-world testing. Instead, the two approaches work together, each informing the other. “Simulations reduce the need for physical prototypes and enable faster and more efficient development, but in the end, simulations are always validated with real tests,” he says. “For example, in thermal runaway investigations, we deliberately push batteries to their limits – through overcharging, heating or mechanical damage. In some cases, this can lead to severe failure events, including fire or explosions.”

Computer simulations play a vital role in making the transition to renewable energy happen quickly, smoothly and safely, and the focus on safety is essential. “Batteries store a large amount of energy in a small space and are used in everyday applications such as electric vehicles and home energy storage systems,” says Benedikt. “Reliable and safe batteries are therefore crucial for building trust in new technologies and enabling the transition to sustainable energy systems.”

Benedikt Späth
Head of Battery Development, Chair of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

Field of research: Product development; production engineering

Research project: Using computer simulations to improve battery development processes

Funder: The Na.Ion.NRW Project (EFRE-20800353) is funded by North Rhine-Westphalia and the European Union

About production engineering

Would you like to work in an exciting and varied field, where you get to take innovative ideas and turn them into high-quality mass-produced products that solve some of the key problems of our time? If so, production engineering may be for you.

“Production engineers work at the intersection of engineering, data and business,” says Benedikt. “They apply digital tools such as simulation, automation and artificial intelligence to improve production systems. Production engineering has a direct and visible impact on the real world. You are not only designing ideas – you are helping to turn them into products that people use every day.”

Benedikt specialises in battery development. “Engineering in the battery field is particularly exciting because it is a highly dynamic and future-oriented field,” he says. “Battery technologies and production methods are evolving rapidly, which means there are always new challenges to solve and opportunities to innovate.”

Future production engineers will be at the forefront of providing vital solutions to global challenges, such as improving the sustainability of product design and production processes, producing new technologies at scale without compromising on quality or safety, and advancing the field alongside advances in data, technology and artificial intelligence. “Future production engineers will not only optimise factories but also help shape the transition to a more sustainable, electrified and digital society,” says Benedikt. “Whether you’re working on climate change, sustainable energy or electric mobility, many solutions depend on the ability to develop and manufacture new technologies efficiently and at scale.”

Pathway from school to production engineering

“At school, subjects such as mathematics and physics are especially important, as they help develop analytical thinking and an understanding of how technical systems work,” says Benedikt. “Computer science is also becoming increasingly valuable, as digital tools and data play a major role in modern engineering.”

At college or university, typical study paths include mechanical engineering, industrial engineering or product design, which provide a broad understanding of both technical systems and production processes. During your studies, you can specialise in areas such as production engineering, manufacturing technologies or industrial digitalisation.

“In addition, skills in programming, data analysis and simulation are becoming more and more important, especially in fields like battery production, where digital tools are used to optimise both product design and manufacturing processes,” says Benedikt.

Explore careers in production engineering

Everything that is manufactured requires production engineers to help develop the production process, so the career opportunities are endless!

Benedikt recommends exploring university websites and professional engineering organisations to learn about career paths, research and opportunities. For example, you can learn more about Benedikt’s research in the Chair of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components at RWTH Aachen University: www.pem.rwth-aachen.de   

“My main advice is to stay curious and hands-on,” says Benedikt. “Try to understand how things are made and don’t be afraid to explore technical topics in practice by building things yourself or using tools like 3D printing.”

Meet Benedikt

My grandfather sparked my fascination with technology. He was someone who could repair almost anything and had a deep practical understanding of how things work. He gave me my first computer, taught me how to use tools and encouraged me to explore technology on my own.

As a teenager, I enjoyed taking things apart, understanding their functionality and thinking about how they could be improved. I was also involved with the fire brigade and rescue services, where I experienced responsibility in real-world situations and gained early exposure to technical systems in practice.

I was motivated to pursue engineering by the idea of turning concepts into real products that have an impact. It is very satisfying to contribute to technologies, such as batteries, that play an important role in areas like electric mobility and renewable energy.

Batteries are everywhere in our daily lives. From smartphones and laptops to electric vehicles and renewable energy systems, we rely on batteries almost constantly, often without even noticing it. At the same time, each battery cell is a highly complex system where small changes can have a huge impact on performance, safety and lifetime.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time in nature, especially through activities like hiking, biking and diving. These help me stay active and provide a good balance to my daily work.

Benedikt’s top tip

Don’t be afraid of challenges. Engineering problems can be complex, but that is exactly what makes them interesting. Learning how to approach and solve problems step by step is more important than having immediate answers.

Meet Achim

Professor Achim Kampker is a mechanical engineer and the chair-holder of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components at RWTH Aachen University.

As a teenager, I was very interested in agriculture and wanted to become a farmer. I was fascinated by working with nature, creating something tangible, and understanding systems that must function sustainably over long periods of time.

Becoming an engineer was not a childhood dream – it was more a process of elimination. Other options didn’t feel like the right fit and engineering remained. Looking back, it turned out to be the right choice.

Being a mechanical engineer is rewarding because I can truly make an impact by creating technologies, systems and ideas that will change industries or improve society. However, it can be frustrating to deal with the slow pace of processes, especially when innovation could move much faster.

I find the efficiency and enormous potential of batteries fascinating. They are not just storage devices; they are key enablers for the energy transition, electrification, and entirely new mobility and industrial systems.

When I’m not working, I value spending time with my family which gives me balance, energy and perspective.

Achim’s top tip

Be persistent, work hard and stay curious. Opportunities are often not obvious at first – you need to recognise them and be willing to take them when they appear.

Do you have a question for Benedikt?
Write it in the comments box below and he will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Discover how other engineering fields are contributing to the green energy transition:

futurumcareers.com/how-can-electronics-engineers-help-to-power-the-green-transition

Lecturers Without Borders (LeWiBo) is a non-profit organisation that bridges the gap between the global research community and school classrooms. The initiative encourages scientists who are already travelling for work to visit local schools, providing students with first-hand exposure to various STEM fields through interactive experiments. Founders Dr Liubov Tupikina and Dr Athanasia Nikolaou tell us more…

Download this resource

L: We are aware that teachers are under huge stress and often lack the time to organise extracurricular activities. Because of this, we try to make it as easy as possible for them to engage with us. They can subscribe through a form on lewibo.org, and we will then reach out to them when any scientists are travelling nearby.

Our goal is to facilitate participation that is low-effort for the educator but high-impact for the students. By building sustainable activities, we can attract more researchers to the network without adding to the administrative burden on schools.

What does the LeWiBo network look like?

N: We have a main group of approximately 500 registered scientists. Because LeWiBo is a non-profit, all our lectures are provided free of charge, and we operate in a sustainable, self-operating manner. The number of scientists actively participating at any given moment fluctuates depending on the season, when people are travelling, or when major conferences are being held.

What is a typical LeWiBo experience for a student?

L: Although we do run webinars, offline and on-site events are an important part of what we do. For example, we have had researchers from France who travel to schools in Nepal to give lectures in person. Typically, a researcher arrives in the classroom and provides an overview of their work. But we also encourage them to focus on their ‘passion subjects’ – the topics they are most interested in explaining.

N: The main aim is to engage students. We don’t just lecture on a requested curriculum topic; we bring something that sparks immediate curiosity, such as using metaphors to refer to exoplanets with exotic climates for elusive magma oceans (e.g., ‘dragons in the sky’) or setting up an ant colony experiment.

What student age groups do you work with?

N: We work with a very wide range of ages. Generally, we start with students around the age of 10, although we have organised events for children as young as seven. Our reach extends all the way up to the master’s level in colleges and universities, meaning we work with students up to 30 years old.

What have been the challenges of making LeWiBo a success?

L: One of the most significant challenges is grabbing and maintaining students’ attention, particularly with the older generation. Younger students are often easier to engage. When a scientist arrives from another country, their presence is already different and exciting.

To ensure the lectures are successful – including for older students – we provide specific training for scientists and collaborate closely with teachers. This collaboration helps the scientist understand the specific audience and the cultural context of the school.

What impact has LeWiBo had?

N: We have an extensive network of schools. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we were working with about 100 schools, but that jumped to almost 300 schools within a single year as we moved to webinars. While these numbers are impressive, we try to ensure that the quantity of schools is not our only metric. What truly matters to us is the number of participating researchers and engaged students. We attempt to collect feedback from schools to monitor this impact, though collecting data remains a difficult task.

L: We work all over the world, but we often find that schools in under-resourced areas or certain countries are easier to connect with because they are so open to welcoming scientists. However, we have had very interesting and successful experiences in many places, including Nepal, India, Germany and the UK. Schools have been very welcoming.

What has been a highlight for you during these school visits?

L: For me, and I think for many of our lecturers, a major highlight is the realisation that explaining your work to students changes your own relationship with the subject; it provides a fresh perspective on it. When you have to break down complex concepts for a young audience, you often start to understand aspects of your own work that you hadn’t fully grasped before. It’s a very important aspect of personal development that I try to pursue.

One specific moment that made me very happy was when I explained a mathematical problem – the kind usually reserved for PhD students – to a 5th grade class, and they provided original and insightful responses! This kind of outreach provides a sense of enjoyment and satisfaction that allows you to see your own subject in a completely new light.

How can teachers or scientists get involved?

N: We have made the process very simple for teachers because we want to be as accessible as possible. Apart from telling us your available time and the current curriculum topics you are working on, we don’t require much else. We take the information about the students’ ages and the topics and do the work of matching teachers with a scientist.

L: For scientists, the process is also straightforward – you simply need to register on our website. The ‘tricky’ part is that you must remember to tell us when you are travelling! So, we need to know you want to be part of the network and your travel schedule. We then provide hints on schools you can visit or teachers you can meet at your destination. Because we do not fund travel, we rely on researchers who are already going somewhere for work and want to make the most of their time there.

What’s next for LeWiBo in the coming years?

N: Our next steps are focused more on depth than breadth. While we are always open to growing the number of scientists and schools, we want to connect more deeply with the people already in our network. We are planning ‘meet and greet’ sessions for our scientists and encouraging schools that have already participated to provide feedback and collaborate on creating sustained, long-term programmes.

L: LeWiBo is a collective effort, with many colleagues working to create new and valuable experiences for educational institutions, as well as for scientists. We’ll keep building and sharing this experience together, as open and free education is precious in this fast-changing world.

Meet Liubov

Dr Liubov Tupikina is a mathematician, working on stochastic processes and applications with research groups in France, Germany and Russia.

My interest in STEM was sparked by my school mathematics teachers, Alexander Ivanishcuk and Helen Bunina. If not for them, I would not be where I am now. They made me start to like physics first, and that led me to an interest in mathematics. I wouldn’t say I started by loving mathematics, rather, I became interested in other disciplines and mathematics was the necessary language for these disciplines. Other scientists have always inspired and led me to stay engaged with what I loved.

While many scientists might point to their PhD as their greatest achievement, I particularly enjoy working in interdisciplinary research problems, translating one language to another, as well as supervising and co-supervising students. Growing a network of young researchers around you is invaluable, and those connections and collaborations matter to me more than personal accolades. I am happy about the achievements of my students and collaborators with whom we are participating in research. And, of course, we are proud of Lecturers Without Borders!

Liubov’s top tip

Love what you do, but don’t stop there. You must also strive to deeply understand why you like it. Never stop questioning that motivation. If you maintain that constant inquiry, you can stay open to new ideas and ensure you never lose your path.

Meet Nasia

Dr Athanasia Nikolaou is a physicist and has been a member of the international science consortium of the ARIEL Space mission. She works as a contractor for the European Space Agency (ESA) in Italy.

My ‘love at first sight’ moment in science was receiving a kids’ chemistry set when I was 10. I was very happy meticulously weighing substances and making colours change in solutions. At first, I was driven by beauty and was avoiding drilling into maths equations, but when I read an article about a Greek mathematician who was discovering equations that described irregular crystals, my imagination was captured! An equation that showed a pattern that isn’t repetitive? I realised maths can be cool!

My father has always encouraged me to follow science, even when I was reluctant about my own skills in maths as a teenager. Luckily, he could see beyond the terror imposed by secondary education mathematics teachers at the time!

My career has been shaped by many experiences. At university, I had a professor of astrophysics whose door was always open for questions. A poster of a space mission that I got from him is still up in my room. Being accepted for a young graduate trainee position at the European Space Agency at the end of my master’s degree and earning a place in the Advanced Concepts Team of the agency were pivotal. Since then, I discard no idea as too crazy or unfeasible, which has shaped my approach to science and teamwork.

I am proud of publishing my first paper in the journal Climate Dynamics. I highly respect the science published there. I am also proud that I was invited to NASA Goddard in the US to give a talk with other planetary scientists as an expert on magma oceans. The principal investigator of ESA’s ARIEL mission, Professor Giovanna Tinetti, has trusted me and other scientists to write a chapter about rocky exoplanets and, thus, contribute to the red book of the mission. I feel honoured to have added a pebble in this giant effort of discovering worlds beyond ours.

Nasia’s top tip

Ask about something but don’t be reassured unless you have reproduced the proof yourself. As with almost in everything else in life, the devil is in the details that are silenced.

lewibo.org

 facebook.com/Lecturerswithoutborders

 linkedin.com/company/lewibo

x.com/lecturerswb

Instagram/lecturerswb

Do you have a question for Nasia and Liubov?

Scientix® is a platform containing educational science resources for teachers:
www.futurumcareers.com/attention-teachers-scientix-a-platform-packed-with-science-focused-services

Food fraud is a growing concern, with low-quality products deliberately mislabelled and fraudulently sold as high-quality products. In Italy, a team of computer scientists, including Professor Remo Pareschi from the University of Molise, has developed a digital platform to provide traceability in food supply chains, helping to combat food fraud and improve food safety.

METROFOOD-IT consists of three components – an open data platform, a blockchain layer and an AI layer – that work together as a single pipeline. The open data platform stores all data generated throughout the food supply chain, from soil moisture measurements and satellite images of crop health on farms, to food nutrient levels and bacterial analyses in processing plants, to certification documents stating exactly where and when an item moved through the production line.

Verifying data with blockchain

A blockchain is a digital ledger stored across many computers in a network. Once data is written into a blockchain, no one can change or erase it. The blockchain layer in METROFOOD-IT ensures that data on the platform is authentic and has not been tampered with.

“In METROFOOD-IT, we use blockchain in a clever way,” says Remo. “We don’t put the full datasets on the blockchain as that would be too expensive and slow. Instead, we register a cryptographic ‘fingerprint’ of each data file that is calculated from the file’s content. If someone altered even a single comma in the original data file, it would produce a completely different fingerprint.”

The blockchain layer means that if someone wants to verify that a lab report or provenance certificate has not been tampered with, they can recompute the data’s cryptographic fingerprint and compare it to the one stored on the blockchain. If they match, the data is authentic. “This is important because food safety depends on trust,” says Remo. “And trust depends on the ability to prove that data hasn’t been altered along the way.”

Analysing data with AI

Once data has been stored in the METROFOOD-IT open data platform, it is verified through the blockchain layer. After this, the AI layer generates useful insights from the data. Some advanced AI models use a ‘black box’ process – they give answers without explaining how or why they have reached those conclusions. “That’s not good enough for food safety regulations, because a certifier or policymaker needs to understand why the model is making a particular decision,” says Remo. So in METROFOOD-IT, the AI layer uses techniques that open the black box to show which parts of the data most influence each prediction. “The outputs of the platform aren’t just numbers,” says Remo. “They’re explained recommendations that producers, certifiers and regulators can trust and rely on.”

Tracing olive oil production

With so many cases of low-quality olive oil being fraudulently sold as extra virgin, olive oil production is a great example of how METROFOOD-IT works. The open data platform stores information from every step of the process, including soil analyses from the olive grove, the date and conditions of the harvest, chemical analyses performed at the oil press, and bottling and packaging records. Each piece of data gets its own cryptographic fingerprint registered on the blockchain, so no one can later alter a certificate or swap in cheaper oil and claim it is the original. The AI layer combines the data to confirm the oil’s provenance and detect potential fraud. “Everyone in the chain benefits,” says Remo. “Producers can prove the authenticity of their product, sellers gain confidence in what they’re distributing, and consumers can scan a QR code on the bottle to check that the oil they’re about to buy is what the label claims it to be.”

Thanks to the work of the computer scientists behind METROFOOD-IT, food supply chains are becoming safer and more trustworthy – and the next generation of computer scientists will help take this work further.

Professor Remo Pareschi
Stake Lab, University of Molise, Italy

Field of research: Computer science

Research project: Developing a digital platform to provide traceability in food supply chains

Institutions: ENEA; National Metrology Institute of Italy; Universities of Bari, Naples Federico II, Parma, Rome Sapienza, Siena and Molise

Funder: Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan supported by the European Union

Website: metrofood.it

Do you have a question for Remo?
Write it in the comments box below and he will get back to you. (Remember, researchers are very busy people, so you may have to wait a few days.)

Discover how Remo has developed a new and more effective AI framework:

futurumcareers.com/building-better-ai-how-are-computer-scientists-improving-ai-systems