I have two primary research interests: 1.) the evolution of sociality, or how and why animals get together and help each other, and 2.) how physiology interacts with ecology, or how animal structures and movements relate to their environment. Animal social interactions can describe everything from parental care and nest guarding to cooperative acquisition of resources and group rearing of young. My interest in this concept spans species, from insects to mammals. For three winters I studied grey wolf social behavior in Yellowstone. Later, as a graduate student at the University of Colorado, I studied social behavior and evolution in honeybees. While at UC Boulder, I focused on how wax that is secreted by different bee species ultimately function as nest structures with remarkable mechanical and thermal properties. At the University of California in Berkeley, I worked on a postdoctoral fellowship studying the biomechanics and evolution of bumblebee flight.
keywords
Evolution of social behavior, Honeybees, Bumblebees, Bee behavior, Evolution of insect flight, Science Pedagogy
Teaching
courses taught
EBIO 1030 - Biology: A Human Approach 1
Primary Instructor
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Summer 2018 / Fall 2018
Lect. Studies the principles of biology and their implications. Central theme is humans and the environment, emphasizing ecology, natural resource conservation, and the interrelatedness of a growing human population. Recommended for nonscience majors.
EBIO 1040 - Biology: A Human Approach 2
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2018 / Spring 2019
Lect. Continues EBIO 1030, focusing on the function of the human body, and maintenance of dynamic equilibrium in the internal environment in the face of a continually changing external environment. Discusses factors influencing these homeostatic conditions and how and why they change. Recommended for nonscience majors. Recommended prerequisite: EBIO 1030 (minimum grade C-).
EBIO 1210 - General Biology 1
Primary Instructor
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Fall 2018 / Fall 2019
Lect. Provides a concentrated introduction to molecular, cellular, genetic, and evolutionary biology. Emphasizes fundamental principles, concepts, facts, and questions. Intended for science majors.
EBIO 1220 - General Biology 2
Primary Instructor
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Spring 2018 / Spring 2019
Provides a concentrated introduction to organisms, homeostasis, development, behavior, and ecology. Emphasizes fundamental principles, concepts, facts,and questions. Intended for science majors. Recommended prerequisite: EBIO 1210 (minimum grade C-).
