Name :
Guðbjörg Ósk Jónsdóttir
Age:
27 years old
Job:
Doctoral student in Biology at the University of Iceland
Your favorite place in Iceland:
Haukadalur in Dýrafjörður in the Westfjords. My paternal grandfather is from the Westfjords, when I was little the family often went on a trip there and I have many good childhood memories from there.
Who does the cooking in your home?
My boyfriend and I always cook together.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
There were many things to consider and I was always switching. First it was a teacher, then an occupational therapist (like my mother), then an actress, director and writer. I became so interested in biology after watching entomologist Erling Ólafsson remove a wasp colony. David Attenborough was also a great role model.
What book do you have on your bedside table?
I always have a stack of books on the bedside table, right now the books are: Eden by Auði Öva Ólafsdóttir, Merking by Frída Ísberg and Hansdætur by Benný Sif Ísleifsdóttir.
What to do this weekend:
Dinner with friends and gardening at my in-laws.
Do you have pets? /Dog or cat or something else?
No, sorry but hopefully we’ll get one later.
Coffee or tea?
Tea
What is your favorite form of exercise?
I regularly go to the gym to do strength exercises, I also do mountain hiking, yoga and swimming.
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten/tasted?
I once tried giraffe meat and I do not recommend it.
Summer, winter, spring or autumn.
Spring, there is always something so charming about seeing everything come back to life after winter.
Do you have a favorite spring bird?
For me, it’s just the good old plover, the sweet welcome of spring.
What is your favorite swimming pool (or swimming pool) in the country?
The tiny little pool that my grandfather dug in his backyard in Mosfellsdal is my favorite. He let us grandchildren play when the weather was good. I also learned to swim there.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I have always wanted to go to Southeast Asia.
How do you contribute to a better relationship with the environment?
First, I sort through all my garbage. Second, I try to pick up the trash I find on the road. Third, I try to walk or take the bus whenever possible. Fourthly, I try to show the greatest respect to nature in my outdoor activities.
What advice would you give to university students currently studying?
It is important to take good care of your own mental and physical health. From my own experience, I know that university students have a tendency (especially during exams) to read to much and forget to think about themselves. It is so important to sometimes close the book, take a deep breath and move or get some fresh air.
What is the connection of your research to South Iceland?
In my research, I am investigating the diversity between (and within) Icelandic char populations and the plasticity of the shape of those populations with a special focus on the populations in the South. Malleability includes changes in characteristics due to the influence of the environment on the development of an individual. An enormous diversity can be found in char populations in the South. In this regard, I would like to specifically mention the char in Þingvallavatn and Úlfljótsvatn. The char found in these two lakes offer a very unique opportunity to study moldability in nature.
Why did you choose this research topic?
It actually had a long lead up to it. When I was finishing my undergraduate studies, I knew I wanted to do a master’s project, but I wasn’t sure what, but I wanted to do a project related to evolution and how organisms adapt to their environment. I heard about a big research project that deals with the variation between char varieties in Þingvallavatn, it sounded quite interesting. I got in touch with Arnar Pálsson (professor at HÍ) and he helped me design a master’s project, and was my main mentor through it. During the processing of the master’s project, new and new questions always arose, which I did not have time to explore at the time. Thus, by the time I finished my master’s degree, I had basically formulated my current project simply based on all my questions.
What do you enjoy most about the research work?
I am curious by nature and I enjoy solving complex tasks. After all the work of gathering all the data and doing all the calculations, you finally get an answer to your question. Most of the time, the answer isn’t even that crunchy, but there’s something so fun about that moment, where you put 2 and 2 together.
