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Thanks for visiting my website, where I share post-prints of my research papers.  ​​I am a Polish-Australian biological anthropologist, currently completing an Australian Research Council funded DECRA fellowship (2019-2022) at the Australian National University.

My PhD was awarded in 2014. I have a mixed background in biological anthropology and medical research united through the investigation of bone and tooth microscopy. I predominantly work with anthropological and archaeological collections of human skeletal remains, and post-mortem samples, to better understand bone remodelling changes under different lifestyle conditions.

​I also collaborate with zooarchaeologists, palaeontologists, biomedical scientists, epidemiologists, and forensic scientists whenever hard tissue histology is needed for analyses.​ ​​Please get in touch if you want to collaborate!

​I have 45 publications as of Jan 2022, and have so far secured >$560k in research grants as a PI, and >$13k towards research travel. Including collaborative grants (as a CI/AI), I have featured on >$1.8 million worth of research grants. ​

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My motto is 'community over competition'. I believe in open and respectful communication about the struggles we all face navigating the research environment. I wrote this piece for Nature a couple of years ago to encourage a positive mindset to research setbacks and failure. My message is just a reminder that tomorrow is always another day! 

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BRIEF BIO
Employment history
2020-2021: Senior Lecturer (Level C), Biological Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia 
2019-2022: Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow (Level C), ​Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2016-2019: Lecturer (Level B) Biological Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2015-2016: Research Assistant, Imperial College London/ Hammersmith Hospital, London, UK
2013-2014: Lecturer, Biological Anthropology, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
2012-2014: Osteologist, Kent Osteological Research and Analysis, Canterbury, UK
2010-2013: Graduate Teaching Assistant, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
2009-2012: Assistant Osteologist, Kent Osteological Research and Analysis, Canterbury, UK
2008-2013: Laboratory Demonstrator, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
2007: Tutor, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK

Elected roles and honorary appointments​
2022: Editor, The Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland 
2021-2023: Honorary Senior Lecturer, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
2021: Head of Discipline, Biological Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
2020: Acting Head of Discipline, Biological Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
​2019-2021: Treasurer, Australasian Society for Human Biology, Australia
2016-2022: Honorary Research Associate, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
2014: Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, UK

Qualifications
2014: Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
2014: PhD in Anthropology, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
​2010: Bachelor of Science in Biological Anthropology, 1st Class Hons, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK

Technical experience
​2020: marsupial dissection, Tasmania Parks and Wildlife; with Dr Georgia Stannard
2019: oxygen isotopes in bone, ANU Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe; with Dr Bin Fu
2018: 3D laser confocal microscopy, Australian National University and Olympus Sydney 
2018: mouse bone phenotyping (2D and 3D), University of Sydney; with Prof Natalie Sims and Dr Tara Speranza
2017: advanced bone histology, New York University; with Prof Tim Bromage 
2017: field bioarchaeology, Catanauan, Philippines, with Prof Marc Oxenham and Prof Victor Paz 
2017: Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy, Australian Synchrotron; with Dr Mark Tobin, Dr Pimm Vongsvivut
2015: rat/quail bone uCT, x-ray, experimental biomechanics, Imperial College London; with Dr John Logan, Dr Chakraborty
2014: atomic force microscopy, University of Kent; with Dr Wei-Feng Xue
2010: bone and tooth histology, University of Kent; with Dr Patrick Mahoney

Crocodile tooth histology featured on the cover of the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland volume 129

Ancient human bone histology in a Neolithic sample from Turkey - by Schotsmans and Miszkiewicz, cover of 2019 AMMS Newsletter

Bird's eye view of a false-colour, atomic force micrograph (AFM) showing the topography (surface contours) of a section of healthy femoral bone (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection) 20 x 20 micrometres (created at University of Kent in Wei-Feng Xue's lab)

False-colour, atomic force micrograph (AFM) showing the topography (surface contours) of a section of healthy femoral bone (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection) 20 x 20 micrometres (created at University of Kent in Wei-Feng Xue's lab)

False-colour, atomic force micrograph (AFM) showing the topography (surface contours) of a section of healthy femoral bone (image acquired by Wellcome Collection) 4x4 micrometres (created at University of Kent in Wei-Feng Xue's lab)

3D reconstruction of high-resolution, micro-computer tomography (CT) scans of the thigh bone (femur) from a female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). The internal surface of knee joint in the femur is shown here. (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection, created at Imperial College London)

3D reconstruction of high-resolution, micro-computer tomography (CT) scans of the thigh bone (femur) from a female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). In this image the viewer looks into the marrow cavity towards the knee. (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection, created at Imperial College London)

3D reconstruction of high-resolution, micro-computer tomography (CT) scans of thigh bones (femora) from Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). Whole quail femora (far left and far right) from a male (left) and female (right) are visible here, together with corresponding longitudinal cross-sections (inner two bones) revealing the bone marrow cavity. (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection, created at Imperial College London)

3D reconstruction of high-resolution, micro-computer tomography (CT) scans of the thigh bone (femur) from a male Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). The delicate and intricate trabecular bone structure within the marrow cavity of the femur is shown here. (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection, created at Imperial College London)

3D reconstruction of high-resolution, micro-computer tomography (CT) scans of the thigh bone (femur) from a female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). A longitudinal cross-section of a femur showing the bone marrow cavity almost completely filled with the medullary bone that is stored by the female quail for eggshell formation is shown here. (Image acquired by Wellcome Collection, created at Imperial College London)

3D reconstruction of trabecular microCT of a mouse femur (created at Imperial College London)

Human cortical bone histology at midshaft femur - inverted colours! (created at University of Kent in Mahoney's lab)