Dr Rodríguez received a BSc in chemistry from Duke University (US) and a PhD in molecular biology and biochemistry from the University of Cambridge (UK), after which he worked as a postdoc at the Harvard Institutes of Medicine (US). He has obtained research funding from the British Marshall Commission, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the UK Medical Research Council, and the US National Institutes of Health. He works as a scientific communications consultant, helping researchers prepare manuscripts, grant proposals, and oral presentations. He collaborates with the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) to provide communications training to young investigators. Over the years he has worn several professional hats, including researcher, teacher, program manager, start-up founder and restaurant server.