Profile
Samantha Watson
My CV
-
Education:
I went to Blyth Jex School (now Sewell Park Academy) in Norwich from 1983 to 1989, then Newcastle University 1989 to 1992, and Sheffield University 1992 to 1993. I’ve also done a diploma with the Open University.
-
Qualifications:
I have a number of O and A Levels, and then a BSc and Masters degree in medical physics.
-
Work History:
I have previously worked at Kent and Canterbury Hospital, the Cookridge Hospital in Leeds, and Newcastle General Hospital. Then I came to my current job in May 2002 and haven’t looked back.
-
Current Job:
Senior Radiation Protection Scientist
-
About Me:
A friendly (but slightly forgetful) non-boffin, with plenty of enthusiasm!
-
Read more
As well as being a scientist I love photography, gardening, and cooking. I also like reading crime fiction and watching quiz shows. I live with my husband and our 13 year old daughter and our cat, Midnight.
I don’t work during the school holidays, so as well as doing plenty of science stuff at work, I get to spend plenty of time with my family and have some great holidays.
I sometimes get to travel with work too, which is cool. I few years ago I got to go to see the Chernobyl exclusion zone – but not too close to the reactor!
My favourite season is autumn, as it’s full of great times (Halloween, Bonfire Night and my birthday!), has amazing colours, is a good excuse to cosy up as it gets colder and darker, and on top of all that it’s got all the excitement of starting to think about Christmas!
-
Read more
Public Health England protects and improves the nation’s health and wellbeing. As part of this, my department works to improve understanding about protecting people from the risks of radiation, and gives out expert information and advice to the regulators, government, and public on how to keep people safe from radiation.
Part of my job is looking at what could happen if there was an accident involving radiation, how to keep people safe if an accident did occur, and how to clean up after an accident. I have also been working recently on learning how actions taken to protect people can sometimes have unexpected impacts.
When I can I like to get involved with science outreach work. I’ve been to science fairs, and hope to get involved with a local school, including some work for the police.
-
My Typical Day:
A lot of my time is working at a computer, reading reports, researching stuff, doing calculations and writing about my findings. I sometimes do a bit of coding and use computer applications to do the hard sums. At the moment, because of the pandemic I am working at home, but still manage to meet my colleagues using software such as Zoom, Skype and MS Teams.
-
Read more
A lot of my work is based round looking at published information on a given subject and deciding how best to use or present this information. Sometimes this is straightforward, but sometimes you have t0 “think outside the box”. Research may mean doing some calculations, or using a computer program. Some pieces of work involve trips out to find out about other peoples’ work which is always interesting.
A big part of my work is communicating my findings. This normally means writing a summary and detailed information on what I’ve found out, and presenting any measurements or calculations with conclusions about what it all means. Often recommendations are aso needed for what should be done next
Pretty much all my work gets discussed with colleagues, to get ideas and suggestions about how to make it even better. So while a typical day will have lots of time at the computer, there will also be some time in the library, and some time in meetings. And of course there are always emails to answer!
I’ve had some great chances to travel to meetings overseas, which can be cool to do. I’ve been lucky to go to Belarus and Chernobyl, Slovenia, Luxemburg, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Paris, and Berlin.
-
What I'd do with the prize money:
Build on work communicating science to the public through fun activities.
-
My Interview
-
How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Friendly, helpful, enthusiastic
What did you want to be after you left school?
Scientist
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Occasionally! But I was mostly good and only had detention once
Who is your favourite singer or band?
I mostly love stuff from the 1970s and 1980s, but am getting to like my daughter’s Little Mix CDs
What's your favourite food?
A good old fashioned Sunday roast!
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
To be healthy. For me and my family to be happy. To be a better photographer.
Tell us a joke.
What is the difference between a stoat and a weasel? A weasel is weasily recognised and a stoat is stotally different!
-