Women in Science

How can topology and how fundamental maths can contribute to discoveries in health, disease and beyond? Donuts. Donuts will help explain. 
Dr Agnese Barbensi is an applied and computational topologist whose research explores how the shape of biological molecules influences their behaviour. From proteins that tie themselves into knots to DNA that becomes tangled and untangled, Agnese uses mathematics to uncover patterns that help explain some of biology’s most complex questions.
In this episode, Agnese reflects on growing up in a small village in Tuscany, choosing mathematics over literature, overcoming imposter syndrome during her PhD at Oxford, and building a career that spans mathematics, biology and physics. 
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Women in Science celebrates the stories of remarkable women in science, across disciplines, cultures, career stages, and borders.

Associate Professor Wendy Goodwin is a veterinary anaesthesia and critical care specialist whose work is helping improve animal welfare, patient safety, and outcomes for animals big and small.
Wendy grew up on a remote sheep station in outback Queensland ("our phone number was the morse code for K - long-short-long"). She attended school via radio through distance education, helped her dad at his vet practice through her childhood and teenage years, and went on to become a leading researcher and clinician at The University of Queensland.
She talks about life in a family of veterinarians, the devastating impact of the wool market crash on her family, caring for racehorses, and the challenges of specialising in veterinary anaesthesia.
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Women in Science celebrates the stories of remarkable women in science, across disciplines, cultures, career stages, and borders.

Did you know the average Australian eats 52kg of chicken a year?
Meet Dr Ellie Assadi Soumeh, an expert in animal science and production who studies how to keep farm animals happy and healthy while helping grow the food we eat every day!
Ellie talks about her early education in the midst of war, how a broken freezer changed the direction of her career, and the science of perfecting animal nutrition. 
Now Ellie works at the University of Queensland, where she researchers how to feed chickens the right way so farming is fair for animals, farmers, and the planet.
Tune in to hear Ellie's amazing story and discover the surprising science behind your dinner.
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Women in Science celebrates the stories of remarkable women in science, across disciplines, cultures, career stages, and borders. This episode, published during National Science Week 2026, kicks off our fifth season.
Learn more about Ellie's work: https://about.uq.edu.au/experts/17116

Dr Meagan Carney works with chaos and extremes. As a mathematician, Meagan specialises in using machine learning to predict rare events — from hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico to temperature extremes in Germany and Texas, all the way to bacterial infections in patients with COVID-19.At the heart of Meagan’s work is using mathematics and machine learning to make informed decisions, and navigate our increasingly complex, chaotic, dynamic world.Read more about Meagan's work: https://smp.uq.edu.au/profile/11136/meagan-carney

Hemanshi Galaiya is a PhD student by day and a trailblazing entrepreneur by night. In this episode, Kirsty chats with Hemanshi about her inspiring journey from her childhood in Kenya to founding a transformative STEM education initiative, Young Stripes, to address educational inequities. Hemanshi shares stories from her early life, where a lack of resources fueled her creativity and love for science. Despite limited practical exposure, her curiosity drove her to pursue a degree in chemical engineering in the UK. Now balancing a PhD in Australia and managing her organisation remotely, Hemanshi discusses the future of Young Stripes and her dream of establishing Kenya’s first science museum. ---Donate now to support future episodes of Women in Science: justgiving.com/campaign/women-in-science-podcastRead more about Hemanshi’s work: https://aibn.uq.edu.au/article/2023/09/hemanshi-galaiya-stem-kids-synthetic-bio-and-building-future-kenya