You can download a PDF of my CV here.

Dr Emma Chapman – Curriculum Vitae

Work Address: Astrophysics Group, Imperial College London, Blackett Laboratory, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
E-Mail: e.chapman@imperial.ac.uk

Website: https://dr-emma-chapman.com

Twitter: @DrEOChapman

Research Interests: Foreground mitigation; Epoch of reionisation; Cosmology; Radio interferometry and data reduction; Signal processing

Career Summary

Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship         Imperial College London         Oct 2018 – Present

My fellowship is centred around research into the Epoch of Reionisation (EoR), contributing to its detection through membership of the LOFAR core EoR team and leading a focus group on foreground removal and pipeline simulations within the SKA working group. I supervise two PhD students.

Science Communication Author            Freelance    

I am a popular science writer and have produced articles in popular magazines such as The I Paper, The Big Issue, Astronomy Now. “First Light”, my first popular science book, was published by Bloomsbury in November 2020 to great acclaim.

Co-director of The 1752 Group                                                                                 Jan 2017 – Apr 2021

Lead of Media, Campaigns and Advocacy in the 1752 Group (www.1752group.com), a research and activist organisation tackling sexual misconduct in higher education via. evidence-based policy change.

Royal Astronomical Society Research Fellowship         Imperial College London         Oct 2015 – Oct 2018

Postdoctoral Researcher            University College London     Dec 2013 – Oct 2015

SKA-funded postdoctoral research position, continuing personal research and contributing to the organization of the SKA EoR pipeline within the SKA SDP consortium.

PhD                                                University College London       Oct 2010 – Dec 2013

Thesis title: Seeing the Light: Foreground Removal in the Dark and Dim Ages

MPhys                                           Durham University                     Oct 2006 – July 2010

Integrated masters in Theoretical Physics awarded as a First. Overall Firsts achieved in every year and every module with an overall degree percentage of 81%.

Research Prizes and Major Grants

2020 Women of the Future Award, Shortlisted (winner to be announced)

2019 Imperial College Julia Higgins Medal for a significant contribution to the support of academic women.

2018 Royal Society Research Enhancement Award, £97,000

2018 Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship (accepted), £635,000

2018 STFC Ernest Rutherford Fellowship (declined)

2018 Royal Society Athena Medal and Prize, £5000

2017 L’Oréal Women in Science Fellowship, Highly Commended, £1000

2016 CAASTRO visitor grant, £7000

2015 Royal Astronomical Society Fellowship

2014 The Shell and Institute of Physics Award for the Very Early Career Woman Physicist of the Year: winner, £1000

2013 UCL Chris Skinner Department of Physics and Astronomy Thesis Prize: winner

2013 Royal Astronomical Society Michael Penston Thesis Prize: runner up

2010 Durham University J.B.Chalmers Prize: winner for exceptional Physics degree marks

2009 Durham University Award for Outstanding Achievement in Physics: winner for consistently achieving grades of over 80%.

Research Presentations

Recent notable talks:

  • ASTRON, Groningen, Netherlands, June 2021, invited seminar
  • University of Lancaster, June 2020, invited seminar, (postponed due to Covid-19)
  • University of Nottingham, May 2020, invited seminar, (postponed due to Covid-19)
  • Cosmological Analyses Featuring galactic Foreground Emission, May 2020, Invited review
  • University of Hertfordshire, February 2020, invited seminar
  • Queen Mary University of London, Astronomy colloquium,Oct 2018, invited seminar
  • IAU Symposium 333: “Peering towards Cosmic Dawn”, Dubrovnik, Croatia, October 2017, invited review
  • University of Birmingham, Astronomy colloquium, May 2017, invited seminar
  • University of Nottingham, Astronomy colloquium, February 2017, invited seminar
  • CAASTRO annual retreat, Australia, December 2016, invited review

Professional Services

Leadership and Project Participation

  • Chair of SKA office inquiry into the effect of possible decrease in maximum baseline (8 members)
  • Focus group leader within SKA-EoR working group
  • LOFAR-EoR core member
  • MWA, SKA-SDP

Conference Organisation

  • The Epoch of Reionisation: UK community update, RAS Specialist Meeting, Feb 2018 (organiser)
  • “Science at Low Frequencies IV”, Sydney, December 2017 (SOC)
  • IAU Symposium: Peering towards the Cosmic Dawn, May 2017, Croatia (SOC)
  • EoR Algorithms, June 2016, Cambridge (SOC)

Committee Work

  • UK SKA Programme Board, Jun 2021 – present
  • UK SKA Early Career Researcher Committee, October 2020 – present
  • Organised creation of Imperial College Department of Physics Welfare Committee, 2018
  • 1752 Group member, involved in drafting best practice harassment and bullying policy with UUK, UCU and NUS, 2017 – present (see e.g. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/mar/05/students-staff-uk-universities-sexual-harassment-epidemic)
  • Imperial College Sexual Harassment Policy Reform Working Group, 2018 – present
  • Imperial College Equality and Diversity Forum, 2017 – present
  • Imperial College London JUNO committee culture focus group leader, 2015 – 2019
  • Institute of Physics Diversity and Inclusion Committee member, 2013 – present
  • UCL JUNO committee, 2014 – 2015

Media

Recent Outreach Talks

Science

  • Open University Space Society, July 2021
  • Edinburgh Science Festival, A reading of First Light, July 2021

https://www.sciencefestival.co.uk/event-details/first-light-switching-on-stars-at-the-dawn-of-time-with-emma-chapman

  • Imperial Festival, Day in the Life talks, June 2019
  • Friends of Imperial College London, “First Stars”, October 2018
  • New Scientist Live, “First Stars”, September 2018, largest audience of the day. https://www.newscientist.com/video/2184799-emma-chapman-the-first-stars-in-the-universe/
  • Euroscience Open Forum, “The Square Kilometer Array: showing the early stages of our Universe”, July 2018
  • Cheltenham Science Festival, Panel Member, “Beyond Light: The Future of Astronomy”, June 2018

Diversity

  • University of Nottingham, May 2020, invited diversity colloquium, (postponed due to Covid-19)
  • University of Bristol, Bristol Quantum Information Technologies Workshop, invited diversity panel member, Apr 2020
  • Cheltenham Science Festival, Panel Member, “Workplace Bullies”
  • Gamechangers Conference, Turing Institute, “How to Moan Effectively and Effect Change”, September 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31M8SGez90E
  • Institute of Physics JUNO Diversity and Harassment Conference, “Sexual Misconduct in UK Universities”, August 2018
  • “How do we Solve Science’s Problem with Women?”, Wellcome Collection, February 2018
  • Panel member for “Bias in Science”, International Conference for Women in Physics, Birmingham, July 2017

Teaching

  • 2020/2021 – BSc and MSc project supervisor
  • 2015/2016 – Third year laboratories, semi-conductor physics, Imperial College London
  • 2014/2015 – Mathematical Methods I Problem Solving Tutorials, UCL

Journal Review: AAS, MNRAS

Grant Review: STFC Astronomy Grants Panel Consolidated Grant, Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)