Meet the scientists!

My CV

School:

Cavusoglu High School, Istanbul (1993-2000)

University:

Marmara University, Istanbul, Turkey (2000-2004) Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA (2004-2009)

Work History:

I guess they consider post-doctoral fellowship as a work? I am proud to say that I am finally working now!

Employer:

Georgia Institute of Technology NASA Astrobiology Institute Center for Ribosome and Evolution

Current Job:

Post-doctoral Researcher

Photo:

Betul Arslan

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

Favourite Thing: Problem solving, unexpected findings and learning something new everyday.

Me and my work

Rewinding and replaying the tape of life through resurrected molecules.

I am traveling in time through constructing the tree of life for molecules (specifically the ones that are involved in protein making). Then I am reanimating this ancient (millions old!) proteins via evolution to see how well they adapt to ‘now’.

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My Typical Day

I experiment, I eat, I sleep and I experiment again.

What I'd do with the money

I will use it for a volunteering project named “Hardworkers for Evolution” and it’s outreach activities that aims promoteing evolution and science among public.

My Interview

How would you describe yourself in 3 words?

passionate, fun, creative

Who is your favourite singer or band?

Pink Floyd \o/

What is the most fun thing you've done?

Getting into the caves and discovering the world in a completely novel way was breathtaking.

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

1. A shiny fellowship 2. My friends being close to me (American way of living can be hard) 3. A house with a garden located in the city

What did you want to be after you left school?

I wanted to be a theatre actress.

Were you ever in trouble at school?

yes, a lot of times!

What's the best thing you've done as a scientist?

Getting the least interested student excited about science. (priceless)

Tell us a joke.

“Old chemists don’t die, they reach equilibrium” (got nerd?)