The membership of Hughes Hall represents an extraordinary breadth and depth of interests. In the second of a series, two Research Fellows (RF) present their exciting cutting edge work through short (20 minute), accessible presentations. Please do come along, if you can - these events offer an excellent opportunity to find out more about what your fellow RFs and RAs are up to, and to strengthen ties within the Hughes Hall community. You are also very welcome to bring guests, so feel free to invite any colleagues who may be interested (including those from outside the College).Whatever your own discipline, this stimulating event will offer a chance to discover why the cross disciplinary network has always been central to the Cambridge tradition.

Dr Arne Jungwirth (Research Fellow)
Ageing in Cichlids
Why fish may help tackle one of humanity's great challenges: ever older societies

Dr Bianca Jupp (Research Fellow)
Risky business: Impulsiveness and addiction

Is there such a thing as an addictive personality? Dr Jupp's work examines this idea and aims to identify what is it about the brains of individuals with 'personality traits' like impulsivity that makes them more vulnerable to develop addiction. In this talk she will cover some of her recent work examining what underlies an impulsive brain.

All welcome, free of charge. Cheese, wine and soft drinks will be available.

About our speakers:

Dr Arne Jungwirth
Arne studied biology at the University of Bielefeld, Germany. During his time as an undergraduate he developed a strong interest in evolutionary biology and behavioural ecology, and thus, after graduating, pursued a Master’s degree in that direction, also at Bielefeld University. This allowed him to travel to Costa Rica to study the feeding behaviour of nectarivorous bats. This project, led by York Winter, deepened his dedication towards field experiments. He expanded his experiences by working in other research projects before starting his PhD under the supervision of Micheal Taborsky at the University of Bern, Switzerland, to work on social behaviour in Lake Tanganyika cichlids. This project included several trips to the lake itself in order to study the fish in their natural habitat. During his time in Switzerland, Arne’s interest in mathematical modelling of biological phenomena grew, culminating in his application for a SNF grant aiming at exploring the co-evolution of mating systems and parental care strategies using game-theoretical approaches. In order to learn the necessary techniques, Arne joined Rufus Johnstone at the University of Cambridge. At Hughes Hall, Arne is combining his field work and modelling experience with genetic tools available in the cichlid system in order to understand the evolution of ageing, senescence, and differences in the pace-of-life of various cichlid species.

Dr Bianca Jupp
Bianca is a Research Associate at the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute.

Her research primarily concerns investigating the neurobiology underlying the behavioural trait of impulsivity and related cognitive endophenotypes and how these confer risk for developing drug abuse and addiction. I am particularly interested in the application of neuroimaging techniques such as MRI and PET in rodent models of these behaviours to facilitate such studies.