Abbey | Founding/Lead Organizer | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Synthesis of Metabolomics in Life Sciences and Ecology (sMiLE) | 🔗 | » «

I am a scientist and an activist. As a scientist, I study plant-insect interactions. Plants and insects make up the greatest number of described species on Earth, excluding bacteria. My research interests lie at the intersection of these two groups and how chemicals produced by plants influence their interactions and larger patterns of biodiversity. As an activist, I seek to bridge science and social justice advocacy by providing opportunities for knowledge exchange between academic researchers and incarcerated persons. I strongly believe scientific knowledge should be for all, and I hope to expand our work with bI/O and help establish similar programs at higher institutions around the country. (less)

Anah | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

Jill | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I'm interested in polishing treasures from others' trash. I like data dumpster-diving and studying the viruses that infect poorly-sampled, forgotten fungi. I argue that by studying these obscure organisms we learn fundamental truths that we could only have learned from these particular organisms. This helps me remember how representation shapes knowledge- an idea with implications that reverberate throughout our field and society. (less)

Matthew | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Complex Systems, Michigan Institute of Data Science | 🔗 | » «

My research interests are in applying computer simulation to study the evolution of evolvability. I am also passionate about software engineering and spend a lot of my time writing code! (less)

Mia | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I'm a community and evolutionary ecologist interested in the ways that plants interact with microorganisms in the soil and the creatures that eat them (herbivores). (less)

Zach | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

Evolutionary biologist specializing in population genetics. I am passionate about evolution education, the history and philosophy of science, and confronting misinformation about science. I run a YouTube channel (talkpopgen) dedicated to this. My research focuses on understanding ancestry and how organisms migrate across complex landscapes. (less)

Emma | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

Emma is a 2nd year PhD student in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology department. She graduated from University of Minnesota (go gophers!) with a BS in Plant and Microbial Biology in 2020. She is currently interested in biofilm-phage interactions and how niche co-construction impacts short and long term coevolutionary dynamics. She is interested in applying these ideas to both medical (phage therapy) and agricultural (plant growth promoting bacteria) systems. (less)

Rosa | Biopsychology | 🔗 | » «

I am a primatologist studying the evolution of social cognition and behavior, with a focus on social dominance and possessive behavior. By comparing closely related macaque species, such as rhesus and Barbary macaques, I explore how differences in social structure shape cognition and behavior. Previously, I investigated the use of communication signals in food sharing events with the chimpanzees at the Los Angeles Zoo. (less)

Tom | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am a botanist and evolutionary biologist who uses plant DNA, and sometimes fossils, to understand when and why plants evolved into over 400,000 different species. I like developing new methods that aim to answer these questions better, but am also interested in understanding theoretical limits to what we can ever understand about evolutionary history. Lots of evolution happened hundreds of millions of years ago, which means that some parts of evolution are very difficult (or impossible!) to estimate. (less)

Kira | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am a lab manager who researches microscopic animals called zooplankton in local lakes and studies how they can become infected with parasites. Plankton is a classification for any organism that can’t swim against horizontal currents in the water. Animals, plants, and even viruses can all be considered plankton! (less)

Natasha | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am an evolutionary biologist and herpetologist interested in what explains the incredible diversity of forms we see and why some groups show greater morphological diversity than others. My current focus is on skeletal changes associated with limb reduction and elongation in lizards and snakes. I am also part of the Museum Studies Program where I am passionate about creating more equitable museums. (less)

Rachel | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

Grace | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I'm an evolutionary ecologist broadly interested in human impacts on plant ecology and evolution. My research focus is on the evolution of concurrent resistance to chemical herbicide and insect herbivory in a common agricultural weed. (less)

Kristen | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am an evolutionary biologist who uses genomics to understand how speciation plays out in different landscapes (with a focus on Neotropical birds), and what that can tell us about the mechanistic basis of broadscale biodiversity gradients. My research utilizes specimens from natural history collections, so I am also passionate about building and maintaining museums as scientific resources and using museums for public outreach and education. (less)

Matthew | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Complex Systems, Michigan Institute of Data Science | 🔗 | » «

My research interests are in applying computer simulation to study the evolution of evolvability. I am also passionate about software engineering and spend a lot of my time writing code! (less)

Abbey | Founding/Lead Organizer | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Synthesis of Metabolomics in Life Sciences and Ecology (sMiLE) | 🔗 | » «

I am a scientist and an activist. As a scientist, I study plant-insect interactions. Plants and insects make up the greatest number of described species on Earth, excluding bacteria. My research interests lie at the intersection of these two groups and how chemicals produced by plants influence their interactions and larger patterns of biodiversity. As an activist, I seek to bridge science and social justice advocacy by providing opportunities for knowledge exchange between academic researchers and incarcerated persons. I strongly believe scientific knowledge should be for all, and I hope to expand our work with bI/O and help establish similar programs at higher institutions around the country. (less)

Juanita | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am a scientist interested in how behavior evolves and develops. I study this using paper wasps that use individual recognition to manage dominance hierarchies and aggression. I've previously worked with meerkats, lizards, and turtles at Zoo Atlanta. (less)

Zach | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

Evolutionary biologist specializing in population genetics. I am passionate about evolution education, the history and philosophy of science, and confronting misinformation about science. I run a YouTube channel (talkpopgen) dedicated to this. My research focuses on understanding ancestry and how organisms migrate across complex landscapes. (less)

Andrea | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Frontiers | 🔗 | » «

Learning about the whereabouts of birds throughout their migration journeys is important to identify locations for conservation since many populations are experiencing declines. Range maps and geolocators are two ways to do this, and in my master's thesis, I compared both methods to see how well they characterized avian movement patterns. I also talked about my background, how I got to graduate school, and organizations I'm interested in working for when I graduate. (less)

Mia | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I'm a community and evolutionary ecologist interested in the ways that plants interact with microorganisms in the soil and the creatures that eat them (herbivores). (less)

Rosy | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am a botanist, artist, and evolutionary ecologist. I study how morphology and anatomy influence interactions between plants and other organisms. I grew up on a small farm in upstate New York, where I developed a love for working outdoors and growing plants. I frequently express my love for biology through art and illustration, and firmly believe that science and art are closely intertwined disciplines. (less)

Jill | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I'm interested in polishing treasures from others' trash. I like data dumpster-diving and studying the viruses that infect poorly-sampled, forgotten fungi. I argue that by studying these obscure organisms we learn fundamental truths that we could only have learned from these particular organisms. This helps me remember how representation shapes knowledge- an idea with implications that reverberate throughout our field and society. (less)

Roberto | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «

I am a geneticist and frog scientist interested in understanding how changes in DNA (mutations) translate into traits that influence an species' evolution. (less)

Anah | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | 🔗 | » «