Rosemary Dyson is a Lecturer in Applied Mathematics at the University of Birmingham and part of the Systems Science for Health initiative. She applies the principles of mathematical modelling to mechanical problems in biological and industrial contexts, generating novel insights into the systems involved, as well as new mathematical techniques. As such her work is inherently highly collaborative, involving frequent interactions with experimentalists. She talks about her career so far (at time 0:10) the kind of mathematics she does and how she describes herself (0:51) what is an applied mathematician? (1:31) the mathematics of how plants grow (2:46) how mathematicians differ from other professionals (3:48) how social networking facilitates collaboration (4:39) dissemination of her work (7:07) encouraging people to stay in mathematics - the LMS Women in Mathematics Day and the IMA Younger Mathematicians Conference (8:10) outreach (8:40) study groups (9:09) women in mathematics and the importance of role models (10:34) teaching and its connection with research (12:39) teaching mathematical modelling: the skills required, and how some potential mathematicians are turned off the subject (14:05) More information, worksheets and other resources for the undergraduate mathematics curriculum: www.beingamathematician.org