This perspective is underpinned by my scientific journey: I began as a biochemist and gradually moved into engineering. I was frustrated at the dearth of technologies available, wanting more than limited snapshots, and unwilling to accept measuring techniques as black boxes. An inability to understand methods means that the limitations or hidden advantages are not apparent nor utilised. After many years invested in developing adapted technologies, my team can now use them to answer important questions in biology, with a current focus on the gut–brain axis.
Róisín M. Owens (Tue,) studied this question.