Catharina Alves-de-Souza 

Research professor, University of North Carolina Wilmington 

Alves-de-Souza is the director of the Algal Resources Collection at UNCW’s Center for Marine Science conducting research on several microalgal-related projects, from getting a better understanding of the environmental study of toxic blooms in lakes and ponds to more applied research such as the production of cement using calcareous microalgae. 
 
She uses her smartphone and tablets to check e-mail and connect with colleagues and family. 
 
While she reads articles from several sources, including stories that appear in her Facebook timeline or shared by her contacts, her main source is the BBC. 
 
Alves-de-Souza listens to several Brazilian podcasts. 
 
“To me, they are a way to stay connected to my mother language and, at the same time, get informed about the general world trends.” 
 
A favorite book that she recommends is “The Happiness Hypothesis” by Jonathan Haidt. “As a scientist, I liked a lot how the author proposes to use what we have learned from behavioral psychology experiments to be more positive in our lives.” 
 
She loves superheroes, science-fiction and fantasy films, including Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. 
 
Apps she often uses include Zoom and Microsoft Teams. “I use an app called WhatsApp that is not used by many people here in the U.S., but it is great to connect with people in other countries.” Find Alves-de-Souza on LinkedIn @Catharina Alves-de-Souza.