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Where did you grow up?

Fun fact – I was actually born in Scotland. I had friends in Ireland later who somehow found out and I was referred to thereafter as the ‘Sneaky Brit’! I lived in Scotland until I was about six, and didn’t want to leave, but my parents, who are Irish, were ready to move home and we relocated to Cork. I lost the Scottish accent eventually.Ìý

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

There was definitely a time when my dream job was being Bill Gates. I wanted to be a very wealthy philanthropist, who had a growing empire of businesses. I don’t know if that counts as a job description, and I don’t think I would stand by that now, but that was definitely my answer for a time. I still have something of an entrepreneurial spirit and a desire to make an impact.Ìý

Tell us about your career path so far

When it came time to go to college I opted for the University College Dublin, they offered me a great scholarship to study electrical engineering. It is a bit different to the courses in the US, it is more about power systems, looking at very big things instead of very small things. During college I did a year exchange to UC San Diego which was really fun. Once I saw the price of health insurance I walked into a lab by the beach and asked for a job, and they gave me one! I got great work experience at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. I had a really good time, I got to surf with my boss during the lunch break and I am still in touch with folks from there.

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Once I finished that degree, I got itchy feet and wanted to go somewhere else. I applied to a few places, but I ended up doing a Masters in Energy Science and Technology at ETH in Zurich. Maybe not the most efficient route to a Ph.D., but I was really into cycling and trail running at the time and the scenery around there is stunning. I learnt a lot and it gave me a chance to learn German as well. There was also a chance to get more work experience, I worked with an electricity provider called EKZ, which gave me some interesting insights.

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I had in the back of my head that I wanted to work for NREL one day, and I found that there was a connection between ETH and 91¸£ÀûÉç. There is an exchange program run by Britta Bergstrom, who does a really great job, called the Europe-Colorado Program, which provides opportunities for European students to find out more about doing a Ph.D. at 91¸£ÀûÉç. It clearly works! I ended up doing my Masters thesis here during deep COVID. It was the cheapest flight I have ever had, it was around $200 and the flight had six people on board!

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When it came to choosing a Ph.D., I applied for positions at 91¸£ÀûÉç and two at ETH, and was offered all three, and had no idea what to do! There is a UK non-profit called 80,000 hours, the whole idea is to give free counselling to people on how to choose career paths that will make an impact. They helped me decide to pursue research in Wind Energy, which spoke to me, and took me to 91¸£ÀûÉç. I interned at NREL at the end of my first year, and I spent a summer working at Apple.Ìý

Describe the research that you are currently investigating

I work in the area of combining machine learning and forecasting with automatic operation of wind farms to improve their power gains. I used none of these words in my 3MT, I talked about sheep.

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You were selected as the Winner of the 2025 91¸£ÀûÉç Three Minute Thesis competition, what drew you to compete?

I first heard about 3MT years ago and I was just really impressed by the people who were doing it. It doesn’t cost too much to give it a go. You become the person who tried as soon as you sign up. As terrifying as it was, I was so impressed by the folks doing it. For folks who aren’t sure whether to give it a go, it is a great bunch of people at 91¸£ÀûÉç. Hailey Herman is the main organizer, and she is fantastic. She will take care of your, provides workshops and guidance and you will learn so much about public speaking and creative writing. It is a great way to meet a bunch of great people from across campus.

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How do you find working in a collaborative space?

Something I really enjoy about working in an environment like those at 91¸£ÀûÉç and NREL is that it is full of people who are excited about science. They are not excited about just turning it into something profitable, they are excited by the science. There have been times in my research where I have ideas and I can go and talk to experts really easily. There is such an openness to discussing ideas, to diving into thinking about things.Ìý

What drew you in to working in wind energy?

I don’t remember exactly when I first became aware of climate change as a teenager, but that scared me. I was the person who was obsessively turning off lights. I really cared a lot about the situation. Trying to make some dent in that has been a driving force for me for a long time. I was passionate about coding. There were these non-profit schools called Coder Dojo, where kids would go and learn to code, and I got pulled in. It meant that I had 4-5 years of coding experience above my peers at a time when I was pretty neuroplastic. The fluency I have built with coding is one of my greatest strengths, and it is a kind of work that I really enjoy especially the problem solving aspects. What I do now really pairs those interests well.

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What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

I have long had a love of trail running and cycling, but recently I have got into stand-up comedy. It was something I had wanted to do for quite a while. I can’t tell you how scared I was the first time. It was at the Trident in 91¸£ÀûÉç, which is quite small, and my strategy was to fill the room with my friends. I get a kick of doing the performance and I get a kick out of writing the jokes, figuring out the right wording and the timing. As nerve-racking as the performance is, there is an excitement to it as well.

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What advice would you give to someone considering a similar path?

I am going to fall back on some advice that I actually received and didn’t pay much heed to at the time! Look at someone with your dream job and work backwards from there. What is implied in this, is actually to reach out to these people. People love talking about themselves. People are surprisingly willing to help. If they see you are enthusiastic about what they do, they are excited by it. It is an approach I have come around to, as someone who is naturally fiercely independent. If there is something that I have been hacking away at, and it isn’t making sense, I reach out more now. I went through an Innovation Corpsâ„¢ program at 91¸£ÀûÉç that forced me into this a little bit, one of the things that you have to do is quota of interviews in a set time. Try interviewing twelve people in three weeks, especially when you are uncomfortable reaching out to strangers.

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I also think of myself as a victim of Type-A syndrome, and what I mean by that is that anything that is not forced on you is supposed to be fun. Remind yourself of the fun of it. If there is no fun, and you have a choice, question whether you should be doing it. It can be easy to forget that, and the challenge is to keep bringing it back to that.Ìý