Tom Wilson

💻 Background 💻

Graduating in 2021 with a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Surrey, a highlight was my final year project experimenting with clustering and topological data analysis of RNA-seq (GitHub) supervised by Dr Tom Thorne. Wanting to learn more real world applications of CS, I undertook an MPhil in Computational Biology at the University of Cambridge.

I came to WIMM for an internship in the Milne lab as part of my MPhil where I developed new software to identify key gene targets for MLL-AF4 leukaemia. Enjoying my time here, I got a job as a Research Assistant between the Hughes and Davies lab and am now studying towards a DPhil in Medical Sciences with a WIMM Prize Studentship.

🧬 Research Interests 🧬

My research goal is to discover novel insights into non-coding genetics through developing new computational methods. During my DPhil, I have created a new normalisation method, ZEN, to improve the alignment of epigenetic signals. This has been fundamental to our lab's ability to train state-of-the-art machine learning models, such as REnformer for single-cell ATAC-seq (scATAC-seq) prediction, as neural networks are highly sensitive to data quality.

I have also developed a pipeline to efficiently split scATAC-seq into pseudoreplicates (GitHub), and an unreleased tool for detecting signal differences between samples from the same epigenetic assay.

🎓 Outreach 🎓

Over the years, I have been involved in many outreach initiatives to improve access to the University of Oxford for under-represented groups and promote inter-disciplinary research. These include teaching for Discover Computer Science, Aim for Oxford, Christ Church Horizons, UNIQ, running maths admissions test workshops, interview workshops for undergraduate computer science and other workshops. In recognition of this work, I was awarded The MCR WIMM Public Engagement Prize 2024.