
27 May 2024
Hi colleague! Johan solves problems and free dives
Johan Jirlén is a technical expert at the laboratories at the Department of Health, Learning and Education (HLT), and helps researchers with everything from installing a radar system to processing data. He is a problem solver who constantly have new plans and a spinning wheel in the bedroom.
Hi Johan, what does a research engineer do?
“It probably varies quite a lot depending on where you work. I mostly work with the laboratories at the department, but also with simulation environments for students and I contribute with technical competence in general. It's a lot of practical work, I learn new systems that I implement so they work well in the researcher's daily job. Some theoretical knowledge is also needed as a background. I have studied Engineering Physics here at Luleå University of Technology.”
Do you have a favorite lab?
“It's nice that all labs have their own values and characteristics. In the activity lab, we can collect a lot of data about how a person lives. There are various systems installed, for example a radar system that can detect where a person is and whether the person is lying down or standing up. The movement lab is dedicated to studying the human body in motion, here I have also done some data processing to help researchers. Biomedical Engineering has the most classic labs. I have been involved in building, among other things, an environment for growing cancer cells.”
What do you like the most about your job, and what are the challenges?
“It is very enjoyable and stimulating. I like problem solving and the variety. It is interdisciplinary, I come from the technical side and work with health. The variety is also the challenge, it can become a bit fragmented. Sometimes I am faced with new problems that I don't know how to deal with, this can generate some fear. But nothing is impossible, you just have to move forward bit by bit.”
What do you do when not at work?
“I always have a lot of project plans. I find something on the internet and try. Recently, I have learned how to ferment tempeh, built a hydromechanical irrigation system and participated in the project a square meter of flax. The project contains how to grow flax from seed, harvest, and do the retting and spinning. My parents found a spinning wheel at a flea market, I still have it in a corner of my bedroom. So far I have crocheted a sock of the yarn. I'm also into racket sports and recently got back into freediving. My methodology is to find friends to do something in a social context, that's when things happen.”
Name: Johan Jirlén.
Title: Senior Research Engineer
Lives: Porsön. ”It is easy to live in a bubble in Porsön, everything you need is here. But now I have started to get out more which makes life richer. Yesterday I went on a nice bike ride along the water through the whole town, and I've started to take an interest in local politics.”
From: Storuman.
Thoughts on Luleå University of Technology: “It is very interdisciplinary, easy for different groups to talk to each other and focused on solving problems. Luleå as a city is also very nice.”
A place I enjoy: “Different places in different ways. One is on a mountain hike, looking out at the landscape seeing geological processes together with people I like. Another is at home in the armchair with a good book. Or when I found a new thing to Google at one in the morning, that feels like the most amazing thing yet.”
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