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Ekbal Hussain

Wooooo, I won!!!! Thank you soooo much for voting for me guys! I had so much fun taking part in this event. Thanks to all my fellow scientists too. I learnt a lot from your answers!

My CV

  • Education:

    University of Leeds 2012 – present, University of Cambridge 2008-2012, Cadbury Sixth Form College 2005-2007 (Yes, it was close to the Cadbury chocolate factory in Birmingham!)

  • Qualifications:

    Master of Science (Geological Sciences), Bachelor of Arts (Honours in Natural Sciences), A levels in: Physics, Chemistry, Maths and Further Maths

  • Work History:

    I used to work in Waterstones because I love reading stories!

  • Current Job:

    PhD Student

  • Read more

    Every year thousands of people die because of ground shaking during earthquakes. Earthquakes happen on big cracks in the ground called faults. For my research I want to try and understand how the ground moves when there is an earthquake. Is it possible to measure how much energy is being stored on big faults and can we try and understand how and when the next big earthquake will happen?

    This is my favourite satellite and the one I use the most. It’s called Envisat.

    You can follow me on twitter for more science news: @ekh_rocksci

    Also, check out my blog if you would like to learn more about earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis and other things like that.

  • My Typical Day:

    I write computer programs that use information from satellites to understand how the ground is moving.

  • Read more

    8am: Some kind of sporting or gym activity in the morning.
    9am: Into my office
    – At work, I write lots of computer code to analyse information from the European Space Agency satellites that tell us how much the ground is moving. The area I focus on at the moment is in Turkey.
    – Must remember to take LOTS of tea breaks during the day!
    5pm: I play badminton
    6pm: I play squash
    7:30pm: I’m home. Time to relax and have dinner!

    Sometimes, I get to go outdoors to look at the landscape and the rocks in it to try and understand what they tell us about the Earth.

    Here’s a picture of me at the bottom of a cliff in Greece. Did you know, earthquakes in Greece can often make the ground go up? After lots of earthquakes you can get giant cliffs like the one in the picture! That’s cool, right?

  • What I'd do with the prize money:

    I will use it to encourage young scientists to get involved with helping people around the world.

  • My Interview

    • How would you describe yourself in 3 words?

      Happy, Energetic, Crazy

      Were you ever in trouble at school?

      All the time in primary school. In fact, I was responsible for most of my teacher’s grey hairs!

      Who is your favourite singer or band?

      Frank Turner

      What's your favourite food?

      Spicy curry

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

      Happiness for my family and friends. Lots of money so I can give it all away to charity. I wish I could predict earthquakes!

      Tell us a joke.

      What did the boy volcano say to the girl volcano? I lava you.

Questions answered by Ekbal

View all Ekbal's answered questions