Curriculum vitae

Academic positions, education, awards, teaching, and more.

Summary

I am passionate about using insights from the behavioural neurosciences to design digital technology that is sensitive to human limitations and biases, particularly in relation to attention and self-regulation.

My academic and professional background is highly interdisciplinary, and I try to integrate best practices from many work spheres, such as using tools from large-scale event management to structure academic projects.

My personal interests include backpacking, samatha meditation, dancing (Cuban salsa and swing), surfing, and playing music (often with my concept band the Karaoke Collective).

Download academic CV (PDF)

Academia

Research positions

2025 — present
Research Fellow, University of Oxford
Linacre College
2021 — present
External postdoc, University of Copenhagen
Human Centred Computing, Department of Computer Science
2023 — 2024
Research Associate, University of Oxford
Human Centred Computing, Department of Computer Science
2021 — 2023
Carlsberg Foundation Visiting Fellow, University of Oxford
Department of Computer Science
2020 — 2021
Visiting Research Fellow
Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Śākta traditions project

Education

2016 — 2021
DPhil in Computer Science, University of Oxford
Supervisor: Sir Nigel Shadbolt
Thesis: Examining the effectiveness of design patterns for digital self-control
2012 — 2013
MSc in Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Oxford
Supervisor: Oliver Curry
Thesis: Fundamental motivations and risk-taking
2011 — 2016
MA in the Study of Religion & Psychology, Aarhus University
Supervisor: Uffe Schjødt
Thesis: Religion as a cultural tool for cognitive control
2007 — 2011
BA in the Study of Religion & Psychology, Aarhus University
Supervisors: Jesper Sørensen and Kristoffer Laigaard Nielbo
Thesis: Priming effects of religious concepts on moral judgment

Awards and honours

2024
Early Career Researcher Social Impact Award, 2024 Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Impact Awards, University of Oxford
2024
Best Paper Honorable Mention Award for "Empowering Students to Achieve Their Device Use Goals...", CHI’24: ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
2023
Reid Music Prize, for outstanding contributions to the local musical community, Linacre College, University of Oxford
2023
Best Paper Honorable Mention Award for "SwitchTube: A Proof-of-Concept System...", CHI’23: ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
2020
Winner of the 2020 Oxford Three Minute Thesis competition, Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division, University of Oxford
Conducted online due to the corona pandemic
2020
Commendation Certificate for the Reduce Digital Distraction Workshop, MPLS Impact Awards, University of Oxford
2019
Best Talk Award, 2019 Oxford Computer Science Conference, University of Oxford
2019
Best Paper Honorable Mention Award for "Self-Control in Cyberspace...", CHI’19: ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
2018
Best Paper Award for "Third party tracking...", WebSci'18: ACM Conference on Web Science, Amsterdam
2017
DOMUS Prize for Outstanding Research Communication, Linacre College, University of Oxford

Major grants and funding

2023 — 2024
EPSRC Impact Acceleration Account, Preparing the Reduce Digital Distraction (ReDD) Workshop for Impact across the UK higher education sector
2021 — 2023
Carlsberg Foundation Visiting Fellowship at University of Oxford, Understanding Personal Digital Self-Control Struggles and Appropriate Interventions
2020
van Houten Fund, The Reduce Digital Distraction (ReDD) Workshop for Oxford University students
Supervisor: Maureen Freed.
2019 — 2020
EPSRC Doctoral Prize, Supporting End-User Autonomy Over Digital Device Use
Supervisor: Nigel Shadbolt. Mentor: Max Van Kleek.

Research dissemination

2026
AMOSSHE, National Conference 2026, Workshop for leaders of Student Services in higher education
Reducing digital distraction: how to help students get back in control of their smartphone & computer use
2026
AMOSSHE, National Conference 2026, Lightning talk
AI beyond the hype: how 'vibe coding' empowers students to tailor the online world to their needs
2026
CPDP, Computers, Privacy and Data Protection conference, Brussels, Panel
"Get out of my feed!": Child-centered strategies to enhance well-being and agency on social media
2026
Folkeuniversitetet, Public lecture series, Copenhagen
How to take back control of the digital world: On clickbait, Stone Age brains, and the infrastructure of freedom
2026
Maastricht University Brussels Hub, CoCoDa Expert Workshop
Presented the ReDD Project at the CoCoDa expert workshop on techno-legal tools for studying systemic risks on online platforms
2025
University of Oxford, Work in Progress Seminar, Institute for Ethics in AI
Presented the ReDD Project
2025
University of Oxford, Spilling Tea on Neurodiversity, Somerville College
Controlling our attention in a hyper-distracting digital world
2025
Pure Health, 5th Abu Dhabi Integrated Mental Health Conference, United Arab Emirates
The Reduce Digital Distraction (ReDD) Intervention: Empowering people to redesign digital environments to suit their needs
2024
University of Cambridge, Digital Mental Health Group,
MRC Cognition and Brain Science Unit
Self-Control in Cyberspace: Advancing Digital Wellbeing Research & Real-World Impact by Empowering People to Modify Their Digital Environments
2024
Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science, Research retreat, Rødvig Kro & Badehotel, Denmark
Reduce Digital Distraction: Unlocking Impact at Scale
2024
SYNC Digital Wellbeing Summit, Ithra, Global Digital Wellbeing Assembly, Dharan, Saudi Arabia
Empowering People to Achieve Digital Wellbeing With Digital Focus Tools
2024
University of Copenhagen, DIKU Bits, Dept. of Computer Science
Empowering Students to Achieve Their Device Use Goals With the Reduce Digital Distraction Workshop
2024
University of Oxford, Linacre Seminar Series, Linacre College
Self-Control in Cyberspace: Empowering People to Achieve Their Device Use Goals
2023
Tjek på Tech ('Technology in Check'), networking conference organised by Danish NGO Børns Vilkår, Copenhagen, Denmark
Selvkontrol i cyberspace: Hvordan giver vi børn og unge de praktiske værktøjer de har brug for? (Self-control in cyberspace: How can we give children and youth the practical tools they need?)
2023
Oxford Ideas Festival 2023, In conversation with Elaine Kasket, Somerville College chapel
Reclaiming your life in a tech-obsessed world
2023
Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development, Digital Media and Developing Minds, 2023 International Congress, Washington, DC
Empowering Adolescents to Self-Regulate Their Use of Digital Devices: A Pilot Study in Danish High Schools
2023
Brave Software, Inc., Research team reading group
Self-Control in Cyberspace (and browsers as guardians of freedom)
2023
University of Oxford, Netra Tantra Seminar, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies
Digital Humanities and Hindu Studies: Building a Śākta Database
2023
University of Oxford, DPhil research workshop, Human Centred Computing, Dept. of Computer Science
Open and Transparent Research: Why Bother and What To Do
2023
Barnes Philosophy Club, London
Freedom in the Digital World: Tools of Resistance in the Battle for Online Attention
2022
Kynapse, Paris, France
Self-Control in Cyberspace
2022
AVI'22: International Conference on Advanced Visual Interfaces, Designing for Meaningful Interactions and Digital Wellbeing workshop, Rome, Italy
Leveraging Self-Regulation Research When Designing for Digital Wellbeing
2022
Goodenough College & University of Oxford, Colloquium on AI and Regulation, Venice, Italy
Self-Control in Cyberspace: The Attentional Challenges of Computing Technology
2021
University of Oxford, Reproducible Research Oxford
Reproducible academic papers with R Markdown, RStudio, Zotero, Google Docs, and LaTeX templates
2021
University of Oxford, Human Centred Computing, Dept. of Computer Science
"Where has my cognitive prime time gone?" Understanding digital self-control struggles and appropriate interventions
2021
University of Copenhagen, International Seminar organised by the DISTRACT project: Studying the Digital Backlash, Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science
"Where has my cognitive prime time gone?" Understanding digital self-control struggles and appropriate interventions
2021
KulturRummet Thy, Thy 360, local event, Thisted Library, Denmark
Selvkontrol i cyberspace (Self-control in cyberspace)
2021
University of Copenhagen, DISTRACT project, Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science
The Reduce Digital Distraction workshop as research tool: methods and preliminary results
2021
University of Oxford, Roundtable discussion on mental health during the COVID pandemic, Linacre College
Coping with Isolation and Loneliness - a Conversation
2021
University of Copenhagen, Human-Centred Computing Section, Dept. of Computer Science
Reproducible and Replicable Research
2021
University of Oxford, Human Centred Computing, Dept. of Computer Science
R Markdown in 7 Minutes
2021
University of Oxford, Human Centred Computing, Dept. of Computer Science
Reproducible and Replicable Research
2020
University of Oxford, Guest lecture in Interaction Design (IDE), Dept. of Computer Science
Ulysses in Cyberspace: The Theory and Practice of Digital Self-Control
2020
University of Copenhagen, DISTRACT, Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science
Self-Control in Cyberspace: Examining Tools of Resistance in the Battle for Online Attention
2020
University of Copenhagen, COINACT, Institute of Psychology
Cognitive Control in Cyberspace
2020
University of Oxford, Seminars at Linacre College
‘I Just Want to Hack Myself to Not Get Distracted’: Do Design Interventions for Self-Control on Facebook Work?
2020
University of Oxford, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, online lecture series (6 videos) for a general audience
What Can Digital Humanities Offer Hindu Studies?
2020
University of Oxford, Śākta traditions project, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies
Deus ex Machina: What Can Digital Humanities Offer Hindu Studies?
2020
University of Washington, Design. Use. Build. (DUB) alliance
‘I Just Want to Hack Myself to Not Get Distracted’: Evaluating Design Interventions for Self-Control on Facebook
2020
2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pre-recorded video presentation due to the COVID-19 pandemic
‘I Just Want to Hack Myself to Not Get Distracted’: Evaluating Design Interventions for Self-Control on Facebook
Video
2020
Google, Digital Wellbeing
Digital Wellbeing in Practice: Designing for Digital Self-Control
Slides
2020
University of Copenhagen, Human-Centred Computing Section, Dept. of Computer Science
Digital Wellbeing in Practice: Examining the Effectiveness of Digital Self-Control Strategies
2020
University of Oxford, Digital Ethnography Group (OxDEG), Oxford Internet Institute
Digital Wellbeing in Practice: Examining the Effectiveness of Digital Self-Control Strategies
2019
University of Oxford, R user group Oxford, St. Peter's College
Reproducible research with R Markdown, featuring article and PhD thesis writing
2019
University of Oxford, Futures Thinking Conference, Wolfson College, roundtable discussion on mental health
Psychology and Futurity
2019
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Best of CHI2019, Mumbai (videolink)
Q&A: Self-Control in Cyberspace
2019
University of Oxford, 2019 Oxford Computer Science Conference, Dept. of Computer Science, moderated panel discussion with Richard Evans (Deepmind), Peter Millican, Hao Ni, and Luba Elliott
Computing Everything? The Limits of Algorithmic Learning
2019
University of Oxford, 2019 Oxford Computer Science Conference, Dept. of Computer Science
Self-Control in Cyberspace: Applying Dual Systems Theory to a Review of Digital Self-Control Tools
2019
University of Oxford, Workshop for new DPhil (PhD) students, Dept. of Computer Science
"Owning" Your DPhil
2019
2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Glasgow, UK
Self-Control in Cyberspace: Applying Dual Systems Theory to a Review of Digital Self-Control Tools
2019
2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Designing for Digital Wellbeing Workshop, Glasgow, UK
Putting Self-Control at the Centre of Digital Wellbeing
2018
BBC, Conference on AI, Society & the Media, BBC Radio Theatre, New Broadcasting House, London
So, Tell Me What Users Want, What They Really, Really Want!
2018
UnBias Hackathon, CodeBase, Edinburgh
Hacking the Attention Economy
2018
University of Oxford, Human Centred Computing, Dept. of Computer Science
Evaluating Anti-Distraction Browser Extensions for Facebook
2017
PubhD, science communication and pints, St Aldate's Tavern, Oxford
How to Build Minimally-Distracting Technology
2017
University of Oxford, SOCIAM: The Theory and Practice of Social Machines project meeting, Jesus College
Distraction and Self-Regulation in Social Machines
2017
University of Oxford, DOMUS Research Communication Competition, Linacre College
Ulysses in Cyberspace: How Anti-Distraction Apps Can Guide Digital Design
2017
University of Oxford, 2017 Oxford Computer Science Conference, Dept. of Computer Science
ICTs and Attention Management: Evaluating the Emerging Anti-Distraction Market
2017
University of Oxford, Human Centred Computing workshop: Being Responsible in Research: Opportunities and Challenges workshop, Dept. of Computer Science
Battle of the Social Machines: Attention Management in the Information Age
2017
SOCIAM: The Theory and Practice of Social Machines, project meeting at Brockenhurst, UK
Attention Management in the Information Age
2015
Aarhus University, Religion, Cognition and Culture research unit, Institute of Culture and Society
Religion: A Culturally Evolved Tool for Self-Control
2014
26th Annual Human Behavior and Evolution Society Conference, Natal, Brazil
Fundamental Motivations and Risk-Taking: Loss Aversion in Context
2012
Homo Experimentalis: Experimental Approaches in The Study of Religion, Brno, Czech Republic
Effort, Loss Aversion and Religion

Teaching experience

2023
Instructor, Digital Humanities
Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies' Summer University in Kathmandu
Gave lecture and hands-on workshop on use of computational methods in hindu studies, to 24 international students.
2021
Instructor, Reproducible research with R Markdown
Oxford|Berlin Summer School on Open Research
25 early career researchers (MSc, PhD, and postdocs). Taught a 2-hour workshop on workflows for reproducible data analysis and paper writing
2020
Teaching assistant, Big Data Analytics
Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford
20 master's students. Taught the practical part of the class on analysing and visualising non-normally distributed data in R and RStudio
2019
Instructor, Reproducible research with R Markdown
TIER Faculty Development Workshop, St. Anne's College, University of Oxford
20 staff and faculty from research institutions across Europe. Developed and taught a 2-day master class in reproducible research
2013
Teacher, Introduction to Evolutionary Psychology
Oxbridge International Summer School
10 high school students. Organised and taught a 2-week course with group and individual tutorials
2010 — 2011
Teaching assistant, Philosophy, theory of science, and university history
Dept. for the Study of Religion, Aarhus University
20 undergraduate students. Taught a weekly supplementary seminar to the main lecture series

Service

2016 — present
Reviewer
ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), ACM CHI Conference, Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing, International Journal of Human-Computer Studies
2018 — 2020
Steering group member
Transparent Statistics in Human-Computer Interaction
2018
Main conference organiser and General Chair
Oxford Computer Science Conference 2018, Dept. of Computer Science, University of Oxford
2017 — 2018
President of the Computer Science Graduate Society (CoGS)
Dept. of Computer Science, University of Oxford
Organised and chaired termly CoGS planning meetings, Computer Science representative at termly orienting meetings in the mathematical, physical, engineering and life sciences division (MPLS).
2016 — 2017
DPhil representative in the Computer Science Graduate Society (CoGS)
Dept. of Computer Science, University of Oxford
Participated in termly meetings, organised numerous social coffee, pizza, and drinks sessions. Reviewed submissions for the annual Oxford Computer Science Conference and chaired multiple sessions at the event
2012 — 2016
Executive committee member in the London Evolutionary Research Network (LERN)
London, UK
Organised regular talks (30+) plus annual conferences (3) on cutting-edge evolutionary research, for early career researchers across universities and departments in southern UK.
2008 — 2012
Chairman of the Society for the Study of Religion (RvF)
Dept. for the Study of Religion, Aarhus University
Organised and chaired monthly committee meetings; chaired monthly research talks

Work

Selected employments

2020 — present
Data Scientist and Digital Humanities Consultant
Śākta Traditions, Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, University of Oxford
I provide practical support and consultancy on natural language processing methods for analysis and visualisation of large text corpora, using reproducible workflows in R Markdown.
2019 — 2020
Research Assistant
RoboTIPS: Developing Responsible Robots for the Digital Economy
Developed accident scenarios and investigation processes to inform responsible innovation in social robotics, with researchers at the Dept. of Computer Science in Oxford (lead: Prof. Marina Jirotka), and the Bristol Robotics Facility (lead: Prof. Alan Winfield).
2017 — 2019
Web developer
Dept. of Computer Science, University of Oxford: SOCIAM: The Theory and Practice of Social Machines
Built sociam.org, which archives outputs of a 5.5 year EPSCR research project involving 55+ researchers, 40+ projects, and 400+ publications. Developed from scratch in Drupal 7, assisted by two summer interns. Ongoing maintenance, feature development, and content curation.
2017 — 2019
Bartender
Linacre College, University of Oxford
2013 — 2016
Festival Producer and Manager
Institute of Art and Ideas, London
Generated ideas and wrote programme copy for 250+ panel debates for the internationally renowned philosophy and music festival HowTheLightGetsIn; interviewed (600+) and booked (150+) speakers, including Cory Doctorow, Aubrey de Grey, and Simon Baron-Cohen; led and managed a research team division of two full-time staff plus a music team of three full-time staff.

Professional development

2024
Invited participant to the workshop 'Empowerment of Users as a Counterweight to Private and State Control', with key representatives from academic and industry, including Bluesky, Mastodon, and Meta, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
2022
Invited participant to Dagstuhl Seminar on Transparent Quantitative Research as a User Interface Problem, Schloss Dagstuhl, Germany
2018
Invited participant to the Global Dialogue for Happiness, World Government Summit, Dubai
2017
Leading for Impact fellow, 4-month leadership training programme at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

Technical

Skills

AI-assisted development with the latest frontier models and open-source models in Cursor and Claude; teaching vibe coding for rapid browser extension development and general software development
Programming, data analysis and visualisation in R (tidyverse), Python, D3.js, SQL
Reproducible research with Quarto/R Markdown (bookdown, xaringan, pagedown) + LaTeX + HTML/CSS/JS
Web development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Shiny, React, Hugo, blogdown, GitHub Pages, Netlify, LimeSurvey, form{r})

R packages

2019 — present
oxforddown, for reproducible thesis writing in R Markdown, formatted with a traditional University of Oxford LaTeX template
2019 — present
pagedown-cv, for dynamically generating a curriculum vitae from data held in a spreadsheet into a variety of output formats, using R Markdown and the pagedown R package
2018 — 2020
chi-2021-rmd-template, chi20-papers-rmarkdown, chi-proc-rmd-template & chi-ea-template, for writing reproducible submissions in R Markdown to the ACM CHI conference

Apps

2025 — present
ReDD Focus, open-source browser extension and Android app from the Centre for Digital Habits that hides distracting features (feeds, Shorts, Reels, and more) with one click
2025 — present
ReDD Blocker, open-source tool from the Centre for Digital Habits for blocking distracting apps and websites on computer or phone when you need to focus
2025 — present
ReDD To-Do, open-source to-do app from the Centre for Digital Habits that keeps your current task visible while you work; especially helpful for those of us with ADHD
2025 — present
Phone-Free 2FA, open-source browser extension from the Centre for Digital Habits that lets you use your computer for 2FA so you can keep your phone out of sight
2022 — 2025
MindShield, browser extension hiding distracting UI elements on a range of websites, including YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Google Search in the Safari browser on Mac and iOS
2021 — 2023
Newsfeed toggle for Facebook, browser extension that hides distracting UI elements on Facebook in the Safari browser on Mac and iOS
2019 — 2025
HighlightAds for Google Search, browser extension that adds a background color to search results on Google that are ads in the Safari browser on Mac
2019 — 2023
"No Distractions" for Twitter, browser extension that hides distracting UI elements on Twitter in the Safari browser on Mac
2019 — 2025
"No Distractions" for YouTube, browser extension that hides distracting UI elements on YouTube in the Safari browser on Mac and iOS; now replaced by ReDD Focus

Personal

Skills & volunteering

2017 — present
Founding Band Member
The Karaoke Collective
Inventor, MC, keyboard player, and drummer; the KC blends the fun of karaoke with the magic of a live band.
2017 — 2019
Computer Science Ambassador
Dept. of Computer Science, University of Oxford
I gave regular talks about my group's and my personal research to 14-18 year old students from schools in the UK visiting the Dept. of Computer Science
2017 — 2019
Steering committee member, Oxford Scandinavian Society
Co-organiser of 'sittnings' (traditional Scandinavian dinner- and drinking parties), movie nights, summer BBQs and more. Webmaster at oxfordscandinavian.com
2017
Head of Entertainment, Linacre College Ball
Planned, contracted, and produced 15+ acts, including a 30-piece swing band, funk orchestra, live karaoke, glitter fairy, space hopper race, treasure hunt and drumming DJ
2013 — 2016
Interview Coach
Oxbridge Interviews, Oxfizz
Provided interview training to 30+ teenagers from families not traditionally going to university wishing to apply to Oxford or Cambridge