Dr MORGIANE RICHARDS

Biography

August 2012 - present: Academic Skills Adviser (Maths), University of Aberdeen.

I provide maths support for the University of Aberdeen: one-to-one advice sessions, workshops and development of online resources in ACHIEVE and ACHIEVE+.

November 2007 - September 2011: Post-Doc in Systems Biology, University of Aberdeen.

I worked on a mathematical model of resistance of bacteria to change in pH, and more particularly how metabolism contributes to the buffering of the cytoplasm. I also developed a theoretical model of the repair of breaks in bacterial chromosome and calculated the probability that the repair created a more severe break and triggered the death of bacteria.

October 2004- February 2008: PhD, University of Surrey.

Thesis title: Mathematical Modelling of the Response of Mammalian Cells to Radiation. Funding: Cellion project of the Marie Curie Research Training Network.

I worked on the response of mammalian cells to low doses (i.e. below 2 Gy) of radiation of different qualities (X-rays, protons, alpha particles). I was particularly interested in two phenomena observed in this dose interval: low dose hyper-radiosensitivity (increased sensitivity of cells to doses lower than 1 Gy compared to the predictions of traditional models) and the bystander effect (communication between irradiated and non-irradiated cells which results in death and increased mutation rate in non-irradiated cells). I showed that the low-dose hypersensitivity could be due to the bystander effect.

External Memberships

2017-Present: Chair and co-chair (with Shazia Ahmed) of the Scottish Maths Support Network

2017: Scottish Representative on the SIGMA Steering Group

2013-present: Member of the Committee of the Scottish Maths Support Network

2013-2014: Lecturer in C++ programming at ICRGU (International College Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen)

2012-2014: Maths and Physics Tutor (National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher) (Grampian Tutoring, Aberdeen)

Funding and Grants

“Development of Online Diagnostic Tests for Engineering Maths Using the DEWIS e-Assessment System”, Morgiane Richard, Andrew Starkey & Sally Middleton, Learning and Teaching Enhancement Projects, March 2014, £1400

"Model of a Toxic Metabolic Switch: Production of Methylglyoxal by Gram-Negative Bacteria", Morgiane Richard, Reiner Breitling, Samantha Miller and Alessandro Moura, SULSA Systems Biology Summer Student Funding, June 2010, £2000

Teaching Responsibilities

Current teaching responsibilities:

Maths Workshops and Refresher Courses:

Maths Refresher Workshops for MSc in Business Studies

Maths Refresher Course for MSc in Gesciences (2 days course during Freshers' Week)

Maths Refresher Course for MSc in Subsea Engineering and Renewable Energies

Individual Sessions and Drop-ins:

Individual Maths Skills Advice Sessions with students across levels and degrees.

Discipline-specific Maths drop-in sessions for Level 1, 2 and 3 Engineering, Level 1 Chemistry, Level 2 Biomedical Sciences, Level 2 Economics

Maths drop-in sessions at Sir Duncan Rice Library during Revision Weeks (1st and 2nd semester).

'Introduction to Latex' workshop for PhD students and ECR, Research Development Unit

Past teaching responsibilities:

2010: Demonstrated for a one-day training for staff in mathematical modelling and for the use of the COPASI program for staff (with Prof. Ian Stansfield)

2009: Tutorial demonstration for Physics Students

2008/2009: Lab demonstration for Engineering students