Introducing… Mariona Coll Ardanuy

What’s your name?

Mariona Coll Ardanuy

What’s your background?

I studied translation (specialising in literature) and linguistics at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona. There I became acquainted with computational linguistics and was fascinated by its capabilities. Later on, I went to Germany for a M.Sc. in Language Science and Technology at Saarland University and worked as a student research assistant at the German Centre for Artificial Intelligence. I received my PhD in Computer Science from the University of Göttingen. After my PhD I moved back to Barcelona, where I worked for a company specialised in artificial intelligence until January 2019, when I joined the Alan Turing Institute as a postdoc in the Living with Machines project.

In one sentence, what is your role on the project?

As the computational linguistics postdoc, my role is to develop new computational methods that allow us to process large collections of texts and analyse how the language used to talk about technology has changed over time.

What excites you about the project?

Many things. To start with, the size, scope, and interdisciplinarity of the project. Working closely together with people from very different backgrounds and areas of expertise brings many new perspectives and I feel I am constantly learning. I am also very excited about the topic of the project and the period it covers, and the wide range of data we may have the chance to explore.

What challenges do you see ahead?

Keeping the balance and cohesion needed in interdisciplinary research. More specifically, I hope we will be able to maintain a central space of cross-disciplinary collaboration while also sharing our research to the communities in our respective fields.

What’s the last (non-work) book you read, exhibition or performance you saw?

The Noise of Time, by Julian Barnes.