small vial and telescope

This small unimportant looking tube is the vial that contained the first isolate of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, imported to Ireland for research purposes.

The telescope, handmade by Takahashi in Japan. It is something I could potentially bring with me on my travels to be able to look at the sky in a different hemisphere!

plumb bob & sketchbook

I have recently started drawing the things I see through the Takahashi telescope. I make these astronomical sketches as I am looking through the telescope, not from photographs. It is a real exercise in learning how to look. The more I look the more I see. I bought the plumb bob to use for plotting the orientation of walls for the design of sundials. This was a new hobby I got interested in during lockdown.

plumb bob & sketchbook

I have recently started drawing the things I see through the Takahashi telescope. I make these astronomical sketches as I am looking through the telescope, not from photographs. It is a real exercise in learning how to look. The more I look the more I see. I bought the plumb bob to use for plotting the orientation of walls for the design of sundials. This was a new hobby I got interested in during lockdown.

books:

These are two books by David Attenborough, who has been a huge inspiration to me throughout my life.

small plastic flower:

This solar powered flower is the same as the one I saw in an abandoned office in the UCD campus during the first lockdown in 2020. I used to walk through the campus during lockdown in between doing COVID experiments, and the flower always struck me as being the only moving thing in that part of the campus. It was really eerie.

small plastic flower:

This solar powered flower is the same as the one I saw in an abandoned office in the UCD campus during the first lockdown in 2020. I used to walk through the campus during lockdown in between doing COVID experiments, and the flower always struck me as being the only moving thing in that part of the campus. It was really eerie.

Researcher Profile

nicola fletcher

Nicola grew up in Wicklow with her parents, sister, and brother. She currently lives in Roundwood, and has two dogs: Bruce and Noodle the poodle. She loves getting out of work on a Friday and heading off to the mountains in search of ancient Irish passage tombs.

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nicola fletcher

Nicola grew up in Wicklow with her parents, sister, and brother. She currently lives in Roundwood, and has two dogs: Bruce and Noodle the poodle. She loves getting out of work on a Friday and heading off to the mountains in search of ancient Irish passage tombs.

Find Out More