NAME: DR ROSS POLLOCK, PhD
ROLE: Physiologist, Lecturer in Aerospace Medicine @ KCL
FAVOURITE AIRCRAFT: Panavia Tornado
TWITTER HANDLE: @R_D_Pollock
What is your role in aerospace medicine?
I am a Lecturer in Aerospace Physiology at King’s College London where I am co-director of the Aerospace Medicine course. In addition to lecturing responsibilities I also conduct aerospace physiology research with a particular interest in acceleration physiology.
How Did You First Get Interested in This Field?
When I was a child my dad use to take me flying in a light aircraft which peaked my interest in aviation. While I never particularly pursued anything specific in this field I have always been very interested in exercise and extreme physiology and what the human body is capable of. As much of aerospace physiology is an extension of exercise and extreme physiology it has always seemed like a natural area to work in.
HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED?
Completely by chance. Having primarily studied exercise, muscle and ageing physiology during my PhD and post-doctoral studies I ended up working for QinetiQ in their physiology group. Fortunately the basic principles of exercise physiology/research are the same as in aerospace physiology so I began primarily work at their human-centrifuge facility but also on altitude, thermal and musculoskeletal injury projects. Following this I moved to King’s College London to do research in this field and help run the aerospace medicine courses.
WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN FIVE TO TEN YEARS?
I hope to be continuing working in the Aerospace Physiology and Medicine research group at King’s College London having established a clear research path in this field and helped build their aerospace medicine and physiology educational activities.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO THOSE WHO WANT TO FOLLOW IN YOUR FOOTSTEPS?
Don’t get to caught up on following a specific path to get where you want to go – there are always opportunities out there that you can use to your advantage, make the most of them.
What IS ONE OF YOUR FAVOURITE MOMENTS IN AEROSPACE MEDICINE SO FAR?
Managing to take an arterial blood sample from myself under +Gz