Leading Lights
Leading Lights is an inspiring new exhibition of portraits by award-winning photographer Richard Cannon. It showcases 19 STEM Ambassadors from all over the UK who are using science, technology, engineering and maths to push the boundaries of what is possible and to make the world a better and more exciting place to live.
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Ranna Patel did a doctorate in Biochemical Engineering at UCL which broke new ground in the development of processes to make antibiotics, vaccines and monoclonal antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies are similar to the antibodies created by our own body’s immune system, and are providing the latest breakthroughs in the treatment of cancer and other debilitating diseases.
Ranna’s research contributed to making these life-saving treatments faster, safer and cheaper. Ranna says of her job: “It’s challenging and I get to use my knowledge of science and technology to make a direct difference to society. Meeting an engineer at my school was enough to make me realise it was the career I wanted to pursue – I want to do that for the next generation.”
Ranna is pictured here inside a giant bubble – her career as a process engineer has included making washing-up liquid and glycerine, both of which are ingredients of bubble solutions.
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As a materials technologist at Rolls Royce, Jonathan Taylor takes new product ideas from jet engine designers for civil and defence aircraft, and identifies the materials needed to turn each idea into a viable jet engine component. Materials science is a largely hidden industry that bridges the gap between design and production.
Talking about his job, Jonathan says: “Materials science is such a fascinating field in which to work. What we do has a rapid, lasting and tangible effect on the world around us”.
Jonathan believes that engaging young people in science, technology, engineering and maths is vital: “These young people are the innovators of the future and we need to ensure that they’re excited about technology at a young age."In his portrait, Jonathan is attached to the Zwick mechanical test machines that he uses at Rolls-Royce to test how and when materials break.
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Kandarp Thakkar is Lead Pharmacist for Admissions and Discharge at the Hammersmith Hospital. “ When people think of pharmacy”, says Kandarp, “they picture someone behind the counter but there is a lot more to it than that and my job never involves being stuck in a dispensary.”
His average day starts with a round of the emergency admissions ward of the hospital, advising doctors on what kind of medication to prescribe. “It is very hectic and adrenalin driven and I get to work with a range of healthcare professionals including consultants, junior doctors, nurses and physiotherapists.” Kandarp’s job requires a detailed knowledge of thousands of different medications, their chemical structure and possible side-effects. The best part of the job for Kandarp is the interaction with patients.
He is pictured in an automated dispensary at Hammersmith Hospital – medications are selected quickly by a robotic device which means Kandarp can spend more time with his patients.
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Heather Williams is a senior medical physicist at the Manchester Royal Infirmary. She works primarily in nuclear medicine imaging, a non-invasive and painless way of diagnosing a variety of diseases, including many types of cancer, heart disease and other disorders within the body.
Nuclear medicine imaging typically involves giving a slightly radioactive injection to the patient and then using a gamma camera to pick up the radiation it gives off as it is taken up in the body. The images show whether tissues and structures, such as the heart, kidneys, liver and brain, are working as they should.
Talking about her work in schools Heather says: “When I talk to groups of young people there are always some that have a ‘light bulb’ moment, and realise that science is exciting and rewarding, and something that they can and want to do for a living."
Heather is pictured in a gamma camera at the Manchester Royal Infirmary, holding an image of a nuclear medicine bone scan.
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Liza Brooks is a mechanical engineer in the third year of her engineering doctorate at Cranfield University. She is also co-founder and technical director of True Snowboards in Wiltshire. Liza uses her engineering skills to analyse the performance characteristics of different snowboards, and develops new materials for them – she then has the fun of testing them out on the slopes at Morzine in the French Alps.
True Snowboards sponsored a team at the British Snowboarding Championships in 2008 which had a 74% medal win rate.
“I love my job”, says Liza, “because of the variety. One day I can be in the laboratory testing materials for a new board, and the next day I’ll be out testing it on the slopes to see if all my work has paid off.”
Liza is pictured testing one of her True Deviant snowboards in Sevenoaks in Kent.
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Ranna Patel
Bioprocess engineer
Jonathan Taylor
Materials Technologist, Rolls Royce
Kandarp Thakkar
Lead Pharmacist, Hammersmith Hospital
Heather Williams
Senior Medical Physicist, Manchester Royal Infirmary
Liza Brooks
Mechanical Engineer, True Snowboards
