The biggest surprise in my STEM career is that it happened at all – I was told at school I was no good at science! As my interest in artefacts grew, I realised how important science was to unlocking and preserving the past, and that there was no clear division between science and the humanities. My work bridges that divide, and solving problems and working collaboratively with communities to reveal information about the human history is really dynamic and always exciting… so I’m glad I didn’t listen to the people who tried to limit the possibilities for me. When you want to learn something, there is always a way forward.