Faculty News

Cambrian Ancestor of Crustaceans and Insects in 3D

January 7, 2019

The pancrustaceans are the most diverse animal group to ever exist, and include familiar kinds of arthropods such as crustaceans (e.g. shrimp, crabs, lobsters) and six-legged insects. A new study by Prof. Javier Ortega-Hernández and Joanna Wolfe (Research Associate, Ortega-Hernández Lab), in collaboration with colleagues at Yunnan University in Kunming, illuminate details on the evolution of these successful invertebrates. The findings, published in the...

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B v374(1763)

Biological Collections for Understanding Biodiversity in the Anthropocene

November 19, 2018

Postdoctoral researcher, Emily Meineke (Davis Lab), former postdoctoral researcher, Barnabas Daru (Davis Lab) and Prof. Charles Davis teamed with Prof. Jonathan Davies, University of British Columbia to serve as co-editors of a special issue of Philosophical Transactions B, (v374:1763).

The special issue is dedicated to looking at the creative...

Researchers Look to Echidnas to Shed Light on Forelimb Evolution in Mammals

November 14, 2018

Mammals use their forelimbs for many activities including swimming, jumping, flying, climbing and digging. But how they evolved to do so is a mystery for scientists. Postdoc, Sophie Regnault (S. Pierce Lab) and Prof. Stephanie Pierce studied a highly-detailed musculoskeletal model of an echidna forelimb to shed light on how extinct mammals might have used their forelimbs. Echidnas are egg-laying mammals with many anatomical features in common with earlier mammal ancestors and can help bridge the gap between extinct and other...

James Crall QR Code Tagged Bees for Science Magazine

Pesticide Exposure Disrupts Bumblebee Nest Behavior

November 9, 2018

Postdoc, James Crall joined former PhD student, Callin Switzer ('17, Hopkins Lab) and OEB professors, Benjamin de Bivort and Naomi Pierce to investigate the effects of neonicotinoid pesticides on the bumblebee's nest behavior. Previous studies showed the pesticides reduced colony size, but how the reduction occurred was not known. In their study published in Science...

Scott Edwards and Colleagues Awarded NSF's Dimensions of Biodiversity Funding

October 25, 2018

Congratulations to Scott Edwards and colleagues awarded the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Dimensions of Biodiversity program fund for their project, "US-BIOTA-Sao Paulo: Traits as predictors of adaptive diversification along the Brazilian Dry Diagonal." Edward's project is one of 10 new projects NSF is investing over $18 million to... Read more about Scott Edwards and Colleagues Awarded NSF's Dimensions of Biodiversity Funding

Peter Girguis Receives 2018 Lowell Thomas Award

October 2, 2018

Congratulations to Prof. Peter Girguis, who will receive the 2018 Lowell Thomas Award at the October 27th Awards dinner at the Museum of Science. Read more about Peter Girguis Receives 2018 Lowell Thomas Award

Javier Ortega-Hernández Granted National Researcher Level I

September 27, 2018

Congratulations to Javier Ortega-Hernández, granted the distinction of Investigador Nacional Nivel 1 (National Researcher Level I) by the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores (National System of Researcher). The award from the Government of Mexico is for excellence in scientific production. Read more about Javier Ortega-Hernández Granted National Researcher Level I

Illustration showing an early mammal relative, Thrinaxodon, which was part of the first group to have an extra fourth section of their backbones. Credit: April Neander Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-09-mammal-spine-scientists.html#jCp

What Makes a Mammal a Mammal? Our Spine!

September 21, 2018

A new study led by postdoctoral researcher, Katrina Jones (S. Pierce Lab) and Stephanie Pierce suggests the makeup of a spine is one more characteristic that defines a mammal. The research, published in the September 21 issue of Science, shows mammal backbones are different than the vertebra of most four-legged animals in that it is made up of different sections - neck, thorax, and lower back - that take on different shapes and...

Everyone loves spring! by Percita on Flickr

How Clumps of Honeybees Survive Wind

September 17, 2018

L. Mahadevan and PhD students, Jacob Peters ('18) and Mary Salcedo (Mahadevan Lab) teamed with Prof. Orit Peleg, Colorado University-Boulder, to research the collective mechanical adaptation in honeybee swarms. The study, published in Nature Physics, shows the swarm of bees act as a superorganism that responds to physical stress by changing shape. Using both physical experiments and computer modeling, the team showed that the inverted cone...

Mansi Srivastava Awarded NIH MIRA for Early Stage Investigators

September 5, 2018

Congratulations to Mansi Srivastava, recipient of the National Institutes of Health, Maximizing Investigators' Research Award (MIRA) for Early Stage Investigators for her proposal, "Using a new regenerative model system to elucidate mechanisms for stem cell regulation."

The MIRA award is a unique funding opportunity that supports research that increases understanding of biological processes and lays the foundation for advances in disease diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

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