I am a maths lecturer, disease modeller, parent, husband, book-lover, amateur cook and very amateur baseball player.
Research
In our group we use mathematical and computational tools to understand the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases. Research questions we have recently addressed include:
- How do seasonal environments impact the evolution of host defence to parasites?
- How does the ratio of ‘global’ vs ‘local’ interactions impact disease spread and evolution?
- Does the presence of a predator alter host and parasite evolution?
- What is the optimal class size to limit an epidemic amongst a University cohort?
Teaching
I teach a range of mathematics and statistics modules, mostly focussing on mathematical modelling of real-world problems. You can find materials for current courses below:
Equality, diversity and inclusion
I am a passionate advocate for making academia, and mathematics/statistics specifically, a welcoming and inclusive environment. I recognise that many individuals from minoritised groups often feel excluded from academic mathematics, and do not receive the support or recognition given to their peers. From 2018-2022 I was the Director for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in my department, and led a number of activities and policies to promote good practice. Since 2022 I have been a member of the London Mathematical Society’s Good Practice Scheme steering committee, helping to organise events for mathematicians across the country. I am currently particularly interested in embedding inclusive teaching practices into our curriculum.
Public engagement
I have developed some interactive web apps for use at public engagement and schools outreach events:
- How do local interactions impact an epidemic?
- How can we control an epidemic on a university campus?
- Discover STEM 2022 workshop (Requires a Sheffield GMail account)
Modelling baseball results
Combining my loves of maths (and statistics) and baseball, I have started to delve into the world of baseball analytics - or Sabermetrics. I do not consider myself an expert here by any means, but here are some initial analyses I’ve done of the MLB and my local league.
- Predicting MLB results and deciding who was the best team in 2023 - attempt 1
- Predicting MLB results and deciding who was the best team in 2023 - attempt 2
- Analysing the 2022 British Baseball League (lower) seasin
Bluesky
I no longer use X. You can find me on Bluesky with the handle @bestieboy.bsky.social
Follow me for my thoughts on science, academia, politics, sport and assorted random topics.