Profile
Fiona Edwards Murphy
Curriculum Vitae
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Work History:
Tyndall National Institute, University of Notre Dame, UCC
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Current Job:
I am a PhD candidate working in the area of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN)
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Employer:
University College Cork
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My Work: I am pursuing a PhD in the area of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN), which is also known as the “Internet of Things”, this involves allowing a whole range of everyday objects (a fridge, toys, car etc.) to communicate with each other and connect to the internet. The application for this technology which I have chosen is monitoring beehives.
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My PhD work is a joint project between the Electrical and Electronic Engineering department and the school of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences (BEES) in UCC. The project involves integrating technology into beehives, to monitor the activity of the honey bee colony living inside. A video describing our project
The honey bee is a vitally important animal to humans all over the world, it provides honey and wax, and pollinates a huge portion of our crops. Our project helps beekeepers to quickly check if their hive is healthy using their mobile phone or a laptop, without actually travelling to the hive. This will allow the keeper to respond to problems much faster, helping bee colonies live longer and be more productive.
This is a very interesting project for me because I have always had an interest in the environment and animal welfare, and wanted to use my engineering skills to make a difference in this area. It has also been very interesting to travel around to visit beehives and learn about beekeeping!
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My Typical Day: I do simulation, analysis, and development of my project in the lab, some days I travel to the deployment sites of my project, I also supervise student research projects and lab work
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What I'd do with the money: I would use it to help fund a student project developing smart robot toys for helping sick children
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Smart Toys catching Santa
Video describing the aims of our project
Another Christmas Toys video
This is a project which I started working on while I was an undergraduate, and it has grown massively since then, with two students currently working on it.We are developing low cost, wireless, interactive toys for children with disabilities, helping enhance their personal development.
With the prize money I would like to buy development platforms and a thermal imaging camera to help us develop another spider robot which can interact with a child while monitoring them for early signs of changes in health.
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Enthusiastic, Curious, Responsible
What's the best thing you've done in your career?
Designed and developed robot spider toys to help children with disabilities interact with the world around them
What or who inspired you to follow your career?
My Dad, he is an engineer and he always encouraged me to explore the word around me, I also had several teachers in secondary school who encouraged me to look at engineering as a career.
What did you want to be after you left school?
I’ve always wanted to be an engineer!
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Not really, other than talking too much!
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
I love cooking, so a chef!
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Mumford & Sons
What's your favourite food?
Strawberries
What is the most fun thing you've done?
When I was in college I spent 3 months working in a research team at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, in the USA. It was great to experience the college life in the states!
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
Happiness, health, and more time to work on my projects!
Tell us a joke.
Two fish are in a tank. One fish says to the other, “I have no idea how to drive this thing!”
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