Profile

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ilma qonaah

    • About Me:

      I live in Nottingham for the past 2 years but I’ve lived in several southeast asian countries most of my life. When I’m not busy being a plant scientist I spend my time reading science fiction books 📚🧬

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      I’m a cat lover who loves to listen to kpop. I like colouring my hair fun colours 🌈 and learnt to do my own nail art to save money 💅🏾

    • My pronouns are:

      she/her

    • My Work:

      I work with plants 🌱 (specifically wheat 🌾) and insects (specifically aphids)

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      Aphids are insect that feed off wheat and eventually reducing harvest. Mainly aphids are controlled with insecticides but they have various side effects to the environment and showed less and less efficiency in the last years. Additionally, aphids population has been growing faster as a result of global warming. My research revolves around trying to find natural ways wheat can protect itself from aphids to maintain food security, so we can still eat pastas and cakes in future!

    • My Typical Day:

      I start working around 9, depending on my schedule I work in the laboratory, or the glasshouse, or just in my office to work with my data. Around 1 pm I would grab lunch with my friends and finish my work around 5. In between my work I like to grab coffee or afternoon snack for a boost of energy to finish work. Some days I would go to the gym after work, around 6-8 pm. Other days I would stay home and recharge by reading books or watching tv shows. In the evening I like to cook my own dinner (I love cooking 🍳) and prepare for my lunch for the next day.

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      Working in the laboratory and glasshouses for a whole day can be mentally and physically exhausting. This includes observing dozens of plants and weighing hundreds of aphids. But it is all worth it when my data started to make sense and leads me to new scientific findings. Still, I try to maintain work life balance by keeping up with my hobbies and spending time with my friends and family.

    • What I'd do with the prize money:

      I would open a pop-up booth in public area (in schools, parks, or libraries) to share recent scientific findings to the public. The prize money would be very useful to fund for interactive activities to attract audiencesz

    My CV

    • Education:

      I went to public high school in Indonesia and did my undergraduate at The University of Nottingham Malaysia campus before starting my PhD in Nottingham, UK

    • Qualifications:

      I did both Indonesian national curriculum and A-levels (Math, Biology, Chemistry)

    • Work History:

      I did a series of research internships throughout y undergraduate years and I started my PhD right after, mostly because I knew from the start that I wanted to do a PhD

    • Employer:

      University of Nottingham

    • My Interview

      • What did you want to be after you left school?

        Scientist

        Were you ever in trouble at school?

        I was very shy at school

        If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?

        Probably scientific illustrator

        Who is your favourite singer or band?

        Aurora

        What's your favourite food?

        Anything fried

        If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!

        Money, clear skin, happiness

        Tell us a joke.

        No matter how hard you push an eraser it will always be stationary

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