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Dr Alice Carstairs
Name:
Dr Alice Carstairs
Job title:
Research Communications Officer
Place of work / study:
Area of Research:
My main role involves communicating dementia research to a wide range of audiences, primarily helping to disseminate the outcomes of Alzheimer’s Society-funded research. This includes a range of formats, including web, social media and working with the media when big dementia research stories hit the news.
How is your work funded:
Alzheimer’s Society
Tell us a little about yourself:
I’m a cell biologist by background. My PhD focused on musculoskeletal stem cells and using CRISPR/Cas9 to genetically modify immortalised cells to mimic cells from patients. I then moved to work at the NC3Rs, working across the funding and comms teams. I love telling the stories behind research, so moved to Alzheimer’s Society to work on research comms full time.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself:
I got my black belt in karate during the first year of my PhD, although I’ve not trained in a long time
Why did you choose to work in dementia?
My grandmother was diagnosed with vascular dementia when I was a teenager. As I moved to become a PhD student, she’d remember I was working in research but not what I was doing, so she used to ask a lot if I could work on something to fix her memory. I knew if there was ever a chance I could work in dementia research, I’d want to take it.
What single piece of advise would you give to an early career researcher?
Ask questions. Even if you think they’re daft! It’s often much faster to ask, and you never know someone else might have been thinking the same thing.
What book are you reading right now? Would you recommend it?
The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher – I’m rereading them all, so yes I’d recommend them! I love sci-fi and fantasy books
Favourite film of all time?
Disney’s Robin Hood – I love the music and the old style animation
Favourite ways to unplug and unwind?
Dungeons and Dragons, playing or running games, I just really enjoy telling stories with friends
Alzheimer's Society
