Frances Briggs

As a teenager, nothing was more compelling career-wise than not sitting at a desk all day. Chemistry, with its explosions, problem-solving and rainbow of unexpected reactions, was the perfect answer.

I studied at the University of Manchester in the UK, getting completely stuck into lab work (and the challenges of data and joys of synthesis) in my fourth year MChem project. Here, I was part of a group working to create ‘bio-Teflon’, a multi-fluorinated polymer created from sustainable cellulose. During this year, I was the deputy editor for the science section of the university paper, The Mancunion. Reading, writing, and editing science news and features told me research wasn’t right for me – but science communication was.

I’ve recently joined the Royal Society of Chemistry as this year’s Chemistry World intern.