Applying to study in Zoology

More student testimonies

Biswa Sengupta (Neurobiology)

Hi, I am a 2nd year PhD student in the Neurobiology Group where I conduct theoretical studies on the role of metabolic energy on information processing in single neuron models. Before coming to Cambridge, I had been a graduate student at the Max Planck Institute in Tuebingen, Germany where I primarily focussed on electrophysiology and novel machine learning methods to analyze them. I hold a bachelors in electronics & computer engineering and a masters in computer science from the University of York.

Zoology at Cambridge attracted me because of the presence of collaborative efforts from theoreticians (in physics/engineering) and experimentalists (in zoology), to understand neural function. Being a theorist, the department allowed me to appreciate how a biologist approaches a particular problem. Constant discussion with researchers and students in the tea room allowed me to critically evaluate the research ideas that I had. Weekly beer talks offer an excellent opportunity to identify research areas that are currently studied in the department. Every friday, just after the beer talks the department meets and mingles over a pizza, which offers yet another opportunity for the students to socialize !!