Curriculum Vitae
George David Dickinson, PhD
Current Position:
Bioinformatics Programmer III
Department of Neurobiology & Behavior
University of California, Irvine
Contact:
- GitHub: gddickinson
- LinkedIn: Profile
- Google Scholar: Publications
- ORCID: 0000-0001-7711-0388
Education
PhD Biology (1998-2002)
University of York, UK
Thesis: "Ligand-gated calcium mobilization in higher plants"
Supervisor: Dale Sanders
MRes Biomolecular Science (1997-1998)
University of York, UK - Distinction
PgDip Laboratory Technology & Data Management (1996-1997)
Scottish Agricultural College, UK - Merit
BSc (Hons) Biology (1992-1996)
University of Aberdeen, UK - 2.1
Professional Experience
Research Positions
Bioinformatics Programmer III (2018-Present)
Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, UC Irvine
- Software development for 3D super-resolution microscopy
- Light-sheet microscopy data visualization
- Calcium imaging data analysis
Research Scientist (2019-2022)
Material Science & Engineering, Boise State University
- DNA-origami based digital storage platform development
- DNA-PAINT super-resolution microscopy
- Automated liquid-handling system programming
Consultant (2017-2020)
Sound Science, LLC, Boise, ID
- Aerial imagery analysis software development
- Machine learning for ecological data
- Conservation project support
Assistant Project Scientist (2010-2016)
Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, UC Irvine
- Super-resolution fluorescence microscopy
- Single-molecule calcium imaging
- TIRF microscopy development
Research Fellow (2008-2010)
Department of Cell & Developmental Biology, UCL, UK
- Lysosomal calcium signaling in neurons
- Aging and disease mechanisms
Research Fellow (2002-2004)
Physiology Department, UCL, UK
- Calcium-channel protein characterization
- Sea urchin egg calcium signaling
Additional Positions
Microbiologist Principle, Temp (2017)
Idaho Bureau of Labs, Idaho Department of Health & Welfare
- PCR assay development for infectious diseases
Volunteer Data Analyst (2016-2018)
The Nature Conservancy, Boise, ID
- GIS analysis and Python development
Conservator/Rope-Access Technician (2006-2008)
Sally Strachey Historic Conservation, UK
- Historic building conservation
Technical Skills
Microscopy
- Confocal, TIRF, Super-resolution (STORM, DNA-PAINT)
- Single-molecule calcium imaging
- Light-sheet microscopy
- Optical patch-clamp
Programming & Software Development
- Languages: Python, MATLAB, R, JavaScript, C++/C#, VBA, LINUX Shell, BASIC
- GUI Development: PyQt, PyQtGraph, TKinter, Shiny
- Machine Learning: TensorFlow, Keras, PyTorch, Scikit-learn
- Big Data: Apache Spark, Hadoop, multi-threading
- Version Control: Git, GitHub
Data Analysis
- Imaging: ImageJ, MetaMorph, NIKON Elements, OpenCV
- Bioinformatics: Sequence analysis, RNA-Seq, R Bioconductor
- Statistics: NumPy, Pandas, Matplotlib, SciPy
- GIS: ArcGIS, QGIS, Google Earth Engine
Molecular Biology
- DNA/RNA extraction, cloning, PCR
- Cell culture, transfection
- Protein expression and purification
- DNA origami assembly
- Automated liquid handling (EpMotion)
Publications
34 peer-reviewed publications
Patents
Nucleic acid memory (NAM) / digital nucleic acid memory (DNAM)
US Patent App. 17/443,312, 2022
Honors & Awards
- Poster Prize - Gordon Research Conference on Calcium Signaling (2015)
- BBSRC Studentship - PhD research funding (1998)
Certifications
Bioinformatics & Data Science
- BIF003x: Statistical Analysis in Bioinformatics (2020)
- IBM Applied AI with Deep Learning (2019)
- IBM Advanced Machine Learning and Signal Processing (2019)
- IBM Fundamentals of Scalable Data Science (2019)
- Deep Learning Specialization - Coursera (2018)
- BerkeleyX CS105x: Apache Spark (2016)
- BerkeleyX CS120x: Machine Learning with Spark (2016)
- Stanford Machine Learning - Coursera (2016)
Programming
- MITx 6.00.1x: Computer Science and Programming Using Python (2015)
- MITx 6.00.2x: Computational Thinking and Data Science (2015)
GIS
- UC Davis Fundamentals of GIS (2017)
- UC Davis GIS Data Formats, Design and Quality (2017)
Laboratory
- UCL Small-Animal Handling Certification (2008)
Professional Service
- Manuscript Reviewer - Institute of Physics (2015-2016)
Professional Memberships
- Biophysical Society (2010-2016)
- Biochemical Society (2008-2010)
- Institute of Biology (2001-2002)
Field Experience
- Mark release & recapture studies
- Transect and plot sampling
- Vegetation surveys
- Data collection for goose grazing studies (RSPB, Scotland)
Last updated: December 2024