By SORTEE | August 16, 2021
[SORTEE Member Voices is a weekly Q&A with a different SORTEE member]
Name: Melina de Souza Leite.
Date: 2 July 2021.
Position: PhD Candidate.
Research and/or work interests: Community Ecology, Landscape Ecology, Demography.
What’s an open science practice or topic that you’ve changed your views on within the last few years? Why?:
I’ve learned a lot about the importance of standardized data management protocols (at least in the same project!), especially for metadata. Messy data, even if available in open repositories, don’t help much! :).
What open/reliable/transparent behaviour have you found difficult to change? Do you have ideas about how this could be made easier?:
The problem with package versions and functions that don’t work anymore. I’ve heard of some initiatives, but haven’t looked for solutions yet.
Where were you born and raised?:
I was born and raised in a small fisherman village on the coast of Brazil, surrounded by the Atlantic rainforest and beautiful beaches and islands.
Do you have a favorite non-human organism? What is it and why is it your favorite?:
The water opossum (Chironectes minimus) is my favorite non-human organism! It is the only semi-aquatic marsupial of the world (and in South/Middle America, not Australia), it has a sixth opposable finger on its front paws, and their hind paws look like they’re from a duck (with membranes). Females have invented the submarine, ‘cause they swim with the offspring inside the pouch (no water goes inside!), and the males also have a pouch to protect their balls from the cold water!! I’ve radio-tracked some of them in my masters project!
What is something about your work in science that your friends outside of science (or the general public) would find surprising?:
For statisticians, I’m a reasonable ecologist. For the ecologists, I know something about statistics. So, not enough in any field… :)
Where to find you online?:
https://melinaleite.weebly.com/
[The opinions expressed in this blog post are those of the authors and are not necessarily endorsed by SORTEE.]