Women in Science

Professor Wilkinson is an expert in animal cognition with a particular interest in Cold-Blooded Cognition and Perception and Categorisation. This includes an interest in how animals perceive the world, how they process the vast amount of information that they perceive every day and why they attend to certain aspects of their environment. In particular, Wilkinson is interested in how reptiles learn about the environment and how it alters the decisions that they make. Wilkinson is a member of the Animal Behaviour, Cognition and Welfare research group at the University of Lincoln. She also recently contributed her expertise to a short film for the Sundance Film Festival which was designed to represent the unexamined lives of our household pets. The film aimed to help its audience understand the life experience of household pets and how this could be improved. To find out more about Wilkinson’s research visit the Cold-Blooded Care webpage.

Professor Saaj is the Global Chair in Robotic Engineering and the head of the Industrial Digitalisation and System Intelligence research group at the University of Lincoln. Saaj is a Space Engineer in a male-dominated profession, and she specialises in Robotics, Control, and Automation. Her rich research portfolio covers a range of industry-driven applications spanning from space exploration to Earth-based technology transfer applications in the Agri-Food, Medical and Energy sectors. Saaj has secured research grants over £4M as lead and co-investigator, and she has over 100 top-rated publications to her credit. Saaj is actively promoting Space Engineering education and she was a Flying Lecturer with the EngineeringUK for the ‘Engineers make it happen’ campaign. Saaj is a Chartered Engineer with the Engineering Council, UK and a Senior Member of IEEE and AIAA and a member of IEEE Women in Engineering.

Professor Ye is a Professor of Medical Imaging & Computer Vision in the School of Computer Science, and College Director of Research, College of Science, University of Lincoln. Her main research is focused on developing computing technologies using advanced image analysis, computer vision and artificial Intelligence (AI) to support clinicians in decision-making. Ye has been leading the development of real-world solutions for automated early disease detection, diagnosis, segmentation and quantification of abnormality in various human organs including brain tumour, lung nodule, colonic polyp, stroke lesion and coronary artery from multimodality medical images. She has acted as the Principal Investigator in a number of successfully completed multi-disciplinary research grants funded by different funding bodies including EPSRC, EU, CRUK and Innovate UK. 

Dr Bukola Onarinde is an Associate Professor at Lincoln’s National Centre for Food Manufacturing. Onarinde is a Food Scientist with broad experience in microbiology, chemistry, molecular biology, food safety, food product reformulation, bacteriophage decontamination, AMR studies, process validation, challenge and shelf-life studies. For over 10 years, her effort has focused on conducting research in collaboration with the food industry to tackle real-life industrial challenges. Onarinde’s current research focuses on investigating the rate of oxidation of meat at frozen temperatures from slaughter up to 36 months of storage, a project funded by Meat and Livestock Australia. She is also conducting a systematic review on assessing the impact of heat treatment on ARGs and their potential uptake by other ‘live’ bacteria , a project funded by FSA. Learn more about Onarinde’s research by visiting her online portfolio.

Dr Thillaisundaram is an algebraist, who specialises in an area called group theory. Thillaisundaram is a member of the Charlotte Scott Centre for Algebra at the University of Lincoln. She is especially interested in branch groups and in the Hausdorff dimension of profinite groups. Her work, jointly with the algebra research group in Duesseldorf, on the Hausdorff dimensions in profinite groups has answered open questions concerning the existence of profinite groups with a continuum of Hausdorff dimensions. Part of this work was selected for the finalist round of STEM for Britain 2019. Thillaisundaram current projects involve investigating the Hausdorff dimensions of branch groups and classifying profinite groups based on the collective Hausdorff dimensions of their substructures. This work has received support from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. For an update of Anitha's upcoming research, see the Charlotte Scott Centre for Algebra webpage.

Dr Beck is a palaeoecologist interested in terrestrial-aquatic ecosystem dynamics, with a focus on Tasmanian environments. Beck is a member of the Lincoln Centre for Water and Planetary Health and the Lincoln Climate Research Group. Her research on early warning signals has been influential to the wider paleo community, and was featured in the EOS Research Spotlight in 2018. This work was also selected as one of the '50 influential papers in palaeoecology' by the British Ecological Society Palaeoecology Special Interest Group and will be featured in an upcoming blog. Her current projects explore the past ecological changes in Lincolnshire, UK and Pleistocene environments of Australia and have received support from the Quaternary Research Association, Natural England, and the National Environmental Isotape Facility. For updates on Beck's upcoming research see the Lincoln Palaeo Lab Webpage.

Dr Hills is Associate Professor in the School of Life Sciences with a passion for research in chronic kidney disease. A founding member of the Diabetes, Metabolism and Inflammation group, her research targets inflammation and fibrosis in both the injured and ageing kidney. With over 20 years experience in cellular physiology and an international reputation in the field of diabetic kidney disease, Hills has received funding from the Physiological Society, Diabetes UK, the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes, and the Royal Society. She has been recognised through the award of many fellowships and research prizes including the Nick Hales Young Investigator and the prestigious International Joan Mott Prize lecture. Hills works with international collaborators in both academia and industry to further our understanding of how we can intervene clinically to help reduce the socioeconomic burden of this debilitating condition.

Dr Ayten Aylin Tas is a Senior Lecturer in food chemistry and nutrition at Lincoln’s National Centre for Food Manufacturing. Tas is a dedicated lecturer, teaching food science, nutrition, and chemistry in Higher Education and Further Education since 1997. She is also a researcher with a number of scientific papers published in addition to two books. Tas is registered with the Association for Nutrition as a Registered Nutritionist specialised in food. Tas’ research focuses on various projects and industrial collaborations which aim to increase nutritional value of foods to improve the overall diet and subsequently the health of general public. As a qualified nutrition professional, Tas is very passionate about increasing the general publics knowledge of nutrition. Her current research focuses on nutrition labelling in the UK and the effect of processing on bioactive components of foods.

Dr Mcllroy is an applied mathematician interested in non-Newtonian fluid dynamics and materials processing for industrial applications, including 3D printing. Mcllroy is a lecturer in the School of Maths & Physics and is a member of the Centre for Computational Physics. Mcllroy's research in 3D printing is the first to study this manufacturing technique from a molecular perspective and gives new insight into how printed parts can be made stronger, more sustainable and more readily recyclable. Mcllroy's latest project investigating "semi-crystalline materials for additive manufacturing" was supported by a Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 Independent Research Fellowship. Claire showcased this work to MPs at the Houses of Parliament for STEM for BRITAIN. To find out more about Mcllroy's research watch her recent British Sciecne Week talk '3D Printing Under the Microscope'.

Professor Sharon Green is a Professor of Vocational Education and Skills Development and Deputy Head at Lincoln’s National Centre for Food Manufacturing (NCFM). Green is a Food Technologist by trait and has a wealth of experience within the food industry, specifically within the meat and poultry sectors. Green has a passion for all things technical with food science and technology and especially enjoys the systems and processes that drive legal compliance and quality requirements in the industry. She has previously worked with major supermarkets on developing modified atmosphere packaging. This was during the time that the HACCP systems were being implemented across the food and drink industry which resulted in Green’s expert understanding of legislation and the legal requirements to meet quality standards. Green now oversees the strategic development of qualifications within the sector, meeting industry needs through her understanding as a Food Technologist.

Yvonne James is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science, specialising in computer networking and cyber security. As a network engineer James is an advocate for more women to become involved in computer science and especially in the fields of networking and cyber security. She broke the mould by becoming a network engineer at a time when it was a considered a male occupation and has worked on network installations of all sizes, including supporting devices globally. Her research interests include the fields of social engineering and cyber security awareness. She is also currently working on using escape rooms as a means to measure perception, awareness, and to explore our digital footprint. James has been instrumental in developing the University of Lincoln Cisco Networking Academy to promote professional qualifications which enable students to demonstrate valuable skills on their CVs.

Dr Moore is a founding member of the international EDGE Consortium exploring the spatial distribution of medical emergencies in the UK, Ontario and elsewhere, including identifying unusual clusters of COVID-19 emergencies, and mental health emergencies during ‘lockdown’. Morre’s research has identified environmental, demographic and socio-economic factors related to hot-spots of contagion, and helped inform emergency response to the pandemic in real-time. She leads the newly established Development, Inequality, Resilience and Environments (DIRE) Research Group, including a focus on the unequal impacts of the pandemic.

Katherin Rincon Saldarriaga is a Food Engineer with vast experience in the food industry gained from working in various roles in Quality Assurance, New Product Development, and as a Research and Development Scientist. Saldarriaga career has been complemented by cultural and academic experiences living in Colombia, Mexico and the United Kingdom, where she has taken part in a range of international academic events. Her career has focused on applying her scientific and engineering background to agricultural, food production, researching and developing new food products using by-products of the food industry, and developing innovative solutions for food and drink packaging. She is currently working as a Technician in Lincoln’s National Centre for Food Manufacturing where she provides technical support to enable the laboratory to function efficiently, and contribute her knowledge to scientific analysis and research projects.