Profile

Photo:

Lisa Chatterjee

    • About Me:

      I live in BurgessHill in West Sussex with my husband and two children. I am a hydrologist which means I love rivers! I also love being out in nature and camping!

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      I enjoy growing vegetables on my allotment, when the slugs don’t eat them all. I also love to swim as this helps my body and mind. As a family, we love to watch and play cricket. My favourite food is probably a nice Sunday roast but I am not a fan of avocados!

    • My pronouns are:

      She/her

    • How I Use Maths In My Job:

      I use maths almost every day to:

      • analyse data – water level, flow, depth, velocity and rainfall
      • to estimate flood flows – mainly statistics
      • to calibrate and validate models – analyse model outputs and estimate uncertainty

    • My Work:

      I build computer models to predict flooding.

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      I develop computer models to estimate the flow in rivers. This helps us to understand what places are going to flood. We can then put in place things that can prevent flooding and change how the river responds.

    • My Typical Day:

      I get up at 6:45 and help my children get to school. I sometimes work from home, sometimes from the office and sometimes I’m out on site looking at rivers! I finish about 5:30.

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      Working from home is nice as it allows me to concentrate without noise around. However, I also like to be in the office or out with colleagues as we can then discuss the work and share ideas. In the office we eat lunch together.

    • What I'd do with the prize money:

      £500. I would like to create a fun game (computer based or real life) to show the impacts of flooding and climate change. This could then be used by students to have fun and learn, the best combination.

    Candidate CV questions (extra)

    • Education:

      I went to Brighton and Hive High School for GCSE and A-levels.
      Then studied BSc Geography at Sheffield University.

      Then did a Masters degree in Remote Sensing at UCL, London.

    • Qualifications:

      9 GCSEs

      3 A-levels, 1 A/S level  –  Biology, Physics, Theatre Studies, Maths.

      1 Bsc Geography

      1 MSc Remote Sensing

       

    • Work History:

      GIS analyst

      Environmental Modeller

      Hydraulic Modeller

      Flood forecaster (modeller)

      Took 1 year break to travel

      Worked for a paper mill writing their environmental management plan and doing water quality testing.

      Hydraulic modelling

      Hydrologist / Project Manager

       

       

    • Current Job:

      Principal Hydrologist

    • Employer:

      JBA Consulting

    • My Interview

      • What did you want to be after you left school?

        I wanted to use my geography degree in some form and work with nature.

        Were you ever in trouble at school?

        A normal amount probably - not listening, writing on desks. Nothing major.

        If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?

        Something with conservation probably. Or space technology.

        Who is your favourite singer or band?

        Sia. Tracy Chapman.

        What's your favourite food?

        Aside from Sunday roast, risotto.

        If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!

        To let go of things I don’t need to hold on to, to slow down and see the good in today, for everyone to look after the planet a bit better.

        Tell us a joke.

        What did the sea say to the river? You can run but you can’t tide!