Prof Dr William Megill

Prof William Megill is both a physicist and a biologist, whose interest is in what goes on underwater, specifically in the coastal and riverine environments, where life is complicated.

His group designs and builds propulsors and sensors which they incorporate into small submersibles and boats, then field test in open water. Many of their designs draw their inspiration from the animals which live and thrive in rivers and the coastal zone.   

Alongside the engineering research and development work, Prof Megill and his group are interested in the ecology of the environments their robots are built to study. The fieldwork is done all over the world, starting with the Spoy Canal in front of the lab, and heading out into the North Sea, the Canary Islands, and the Atlantic Ocean. The group has close links with groups in Italy, Ghana, New Zealand and Spain. 

Like his research, Prof Megill's teaching is also multidisciplinary. He teaches several courses on bionics as part of the MSc in Bionics and the BSc programmes in Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering. His philosophy is very much to encourage and guide the students' experiential learning, so his courses are always accompanied by laboratory exercises. Outside the bionics degrees, he helps teach design, particularly the practical aspects of making a drawing come to life.

Outside the curriculum, Prof Megill is the driving force behind the University's racing submarine team, which participates in international competitions in the USA, UK, and Spain.