2016 Robert Dirks Molecular Programming Prize – Dr. Thomas Ouldridge

The inaugural Robert Dirks Molecular Programming Prize was awarded to Dr. Thomas Ouldridge of Imperial College London, for his work developing a coarse-grained model and simulation framework for DNA. By capturing the essential biophysics of unpaired, paired, and transitioning nucleotides, the oxDNA framework enables simulation of long-time-scale dynamics for an arbitrary number of strands (including pseudoknotting), with wide applicability to problems in molecular programming and biology. Tom performed this research as a graduate student under the supervision of Prof. Ard Louis and Prof. Jonathan Doye at the University of Oxford.