About me
Rebecca holds a BA with Honours in History (2019) and MRes in Historical Research (2020), both undertaken at the University of Stirling. Her interdisciplinary PhD research, supervised by Profs. Philip Slavin and Richard Oram, focuses on contextualising non-textual palaeoscientific data to understand the natural forces and human activities responsible for the emergence and spread of Yersinia pestis in Neolithic and Bronze Age Eurasia.
Her research thus transcends the conventional limits of ‘History,’ encompassing a broad temporal range, from the Middle Neolithic to Late Bronze Age. She is developing and applying an interdisciplinary methodology, ‘historical science,’ which is being used to identify patterns in the outbreaks and transmission of plague interconnected with biological, environmental, social, cultural, economic, technological, and demographic changes during the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. Her research interests are in all-things ancient, delving into evolutionary genetics as well as prehistoric culture, disease, demography, diet, migration, and environmental change.
Award
Research Based Learning Prize
University of Stirling
Recipient of the Research Based Learning Prize for the best Masters dissertation in History. Awarded by University of Stirling, History, Heritage and Politics Division. Dissertation received 90%
Postgraduate Funding Award - Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - The McGlashan Charitable Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from The McGlashan Charitable Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - The McGlashan Charitable Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from The McGlashan Charitable Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from Stirlingshire Educational Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - The Sir Richard Stapley Educational Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from The Sir Richard Stapley Educational Trust
Postgraduate Funding Award - The Scottish International Education Trust
Grant secured for Postgraduate study from The Scottish International Education Trust
Event / Presentation
History, Heritage, and Politics Postgraduate Symposium
University of Stirling
Inaugural Conference on Interdisciplinary Studies
University of St Andrews
Paper: ‘Historicising the Emergence and Spread of Plague in Neolithic and Bronze Age Eurasia’
History, Heritage, and Politics Postgraduate Symposium
University of Stirling
Paper: ‘Historicising the Emergence and Spread of Plague in Neolithic and Bronze Age Eurasia: Why we need an historian’
Graduate Women Scotland
Panel Presentation: ‘Plague’s, Climate Change and Vaccines: A look through history to understand our future.’
Faculty of Arts & Humanities PG Conference: 'Community and Cooperation'
University of Stirling
Lightening Talk: 'Studying Community-Level Dynamics in the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age: A Case Study from Southern Germany'
Biological and Environmental Sciences Divisional Research Seminar
University of Stirling
Paper presented at the Biological and Environmental Sciences divisional research seminar series (Natural Sciences Faculty). Paper: 'When History Meets Palaeo-Science: Studying the Emergence and Spread of Yersinia pestis in Neolithic and Bronze Age Eurasia (c. 3300-1000 BCE)'
History, Heritage, and Politics Divisional Research Seminar
University of Stirling
Invited talk at the History, Heritage, and Politics Divisional Research Seminar. Paper: ‘On the Move: Fine-Tuning Plague Dispersal during Late Neolithic and Bronze Age Human Migrations in Eurasia’
PANSOC Fall Webinar Series
Oslo Metropolitan University
Invited talk at the Centre for Research on Pandemics & Society Webinar Series. Paper: 'On the Move: Fine-Tuning Plague Dispersal in the North Caucasus and Altai-Sayan during Early Bronze Age Human Migrations (3300-2500 BCE)'
International Pandemic Sciences Conference
University of Oxford
Poster Presentation: 'Plague's Changing Narrative: The Emergence and Spread of Yersinia pestis in Neolithic and Bronze Age Eurasia and its Implications for Pandemic Research'
Environmental Histories of Scotland Conference
University of Stirling and Newcastle University
Panel Presentation: New Perspectives and Methods on Climate, Landscapes, and Urban Environments
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Invited Talk: 'Plague before History: The Emergence and Spread of Yersinia pestis in Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age Eurasia'
Inaugural International Conference on Palaeogenomics
Swedish Museum of Natural History and Stockholm University
Upcoming poster presentation: 'Plague before History: Reconstructing the Emergence and Spread of Yersinia pestis through a Historical Science Framework'
Other Academic Activities
Access To: Forensic and Analytical Science
Robert Gordon University
Access To: Forensic and Analytical Science course undertaken at Robert Gordon University, certificate awarded
Postgraduate Plus+ Professional Skills Programme
University of Stirling
Professional development and workplace preparation academy, the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) certificate achieved
Professional Career
Research Assistant
University of Stirling
2021 - 2025 Research Assistant on the Environments of Change project for the University of Waterloo
Teaching
Teaching
Teaching Assistant
TA on the UG Wicked Problems and Sustainable Solutions module
PGT Programme Tutor
University of Stirling
2022- 2025
Programme Tutor in the History, Heritage and Politics Division. Provided academic-related support to PGT students on the MSc International Conflict and Cooperation programme, and assisted Programme Director/Module Coordinators