OEB Thesis Seminar

Title: Tension Wood Tradeoffs: Hydraulics, Storage, and Mechanics Abstract: Trees are always on the hunt for light. The variety of branching architectures exhibited by forest trees is a testament to this photic need; individual trees must find, occupy...

Title: Evolution and genotype-phenotype maps in laboratory microbial populations Abstract: Understanding how genetic variation maps to phenotypic outcomes is central to predicting evolutionary dynamics. Evolution acts on phenotypes, yet genetic change...

Title: Termite communities in the Republic of the Congo: Drivers of diversity and ecological impacts Abstract: Termites play a major role in the tropics, acting as decomposers, soil bioturbators, and mound builders as they fundamentally shape ecosystem...

Title: The evolution of neonatal vocal behavior in deer mice Abstract: Understanding the proximate and ultimate mechanisms that drive natural trait variation in populations is a major goal in evolutionary biology. Here, we take advantage of the extensive...

Title: The Marine Biosphere during the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event — Quantitative insights from the Early Ordovician Fezouata Shale biota of Morocco Abstract: The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE) consisted of a series of...

Title: Seeing the Forest Between the Trees: The Ecology of Open-Canopy Ecosystems in Central African Rainforest Mosaics Abstract: Central Africa’s rainforest ecosystems are defined by patterns of biodiversity, structure, and functioning that are unique...

Title: Weak Polymers, Strong Impact: How Pectin Hydrogels Control Embolism Spread in Plant Water Transport Abstract: Across biological systems, structural integrity often emerges from fiber-reinforced composites that have stiff fibers embedded within...

Title: Pseudoscorpion Systematics & Phylogenetics: Exploring the Effects of Accelerated Rates of Evolution on bothAncient and Recent Diversification Abstract: Like many arthropod lineages, the arachnid order Pseudoscorpiones DE GEER, 1778 evolved long...

Title: Deciphering the relationships between climate change, plant root exudation, and the terrestrial carbon sink Abstract: Soil is the largest terrestrial carbon sink, and soil carbon storage is governed by the movement of carbon from the atmosphere...

Title: Genetic and Evolutionary Basis of Behavioral Variability in Drosophila melanogaster Abstract: Behavioral individuality is a ubiquitous phenomenon. Animals from genetically homogeneous populations reared in identical environments display persistent...