Celebrating the Spineless! Dr. Gonzalo Giribet of Harvard University is in Nerd Corner this Week…
Dr. Gonzalo Giribet is a Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University
~~
~~
~~
CB: Please explain your research interests in a nutshell (think filbert rather than Brazil!)
Tim Parrish 2008
GG: I am interested in understanding the origins and maintenance of animal diversity and biogeographical relationships using invertebrates as models. To do this my research group aims to collect invertebrates in most landmasses and oceans in order to bring them into the lab and study their genomes and their morphology and with this information we reconstruct their relationships (the animal tree of life) and the relationships of the terrains where they inhabit.
CB: You’ve done a lot of work (including being on the cover of Nature) on assembling ‘Trees of Life’, and you’re currently involved in BivATol ‘Evolution on the Half-Shell’. Can you explain what this project is all about?
Image by Gonzalo Giribet, Copyright Harvard
GG: The AToL (Assembling the Tree of Life) program from the National Science Foundation is integrating evolutionary research (theoretical and empirical) from many research teams in order to obtain a reliable background of the tree of life—a metaphor of the relationships of all organisms—in the same way that one can reconstruct a family tree of life, but including ideally all species of organisms (extant and extinct). Our BivAToL project is taking care of an important branch of the tree, that which includes bivalves, familiar animals as mussels, cockles, clams, oysters, or giant clams, among others.
CB: You work with diverse groups of organisms, from bivalves to spiders, centipedes and sipunculid worms…have you got a favorite group?
Image by Gonzalo Giribet, Copyright Harvard
GG: I have many favorite groups, this is perhaps the reason why I could never choose just one and have continued working on so many of them. Those dearest to my heart right now are a strange group of short-legged daddy-long-legs known as Cyphophthalmi, the fascinating velvet worms (Onychophora), a group of tropical arachnids known as Ricinulei, or centipedes, but also marine mollusks, which have been among my primary interests since I was a kid and ribbon worms (Nemertea).
CB: Where does the bulk of your field work take place?
GG: My field work takes place everywhere, both in marine and terrestrial ecosystems around the world, from the tropics to the arctic. I have collected in all continents except Antarctica and in all oceans, except the Antarctic Ocean.
CB: Do you use both molecular and morphological tools in the study of phylogeny?
Image by Gonzalo Giribet, Copyright Harvard
GG: Yes, my lab has traditionally used both sorts of information because sometimes we study animals from museum collections not suitable for molecular work, specimens from new fieldwork are suitable for genomic analyses, and also try to include fossils in our analyses, for which we can only use some parts of their morphology.
CB: Your website displays an amazing slideshow of your study organisms…are you a photographer in addition to being a scientist?
GG: I am not a photographer, but I do photograph most of the species I collect, so I can use them in my publications, lectures, seminars, etc. But I must admit that I do enjoy photographing the animals and that some of my photos have been published in books and journals.
CB: What advice do you have for budding biologists?
GG: Never stop budding. We all are budding biologists after all as there is always so much to learn and discover from nature. And this is why we, biologists, love our work so much and continue working forever. But seriously, find a niche, an area of biology where you can really be passionate about, and enjoy it!
CB: Do you have any non-biological talents?
GG: I am an avid windsurfer—although I don’t have as much time for it as I used to. Did compete for many years and I was the Catalan windsurfing champion in 1997. I have a pretty good time for half-marathons and love to do many non-mainstream sports such as mountain biking, snowboarding, squash, and rock climbing.
CB: Guilty pleasures?
GG: Not really guilty, but I love good foods, especially seafood, and going out with my friends.
CB: If you could have 3 guests for dinner, alive or dead, who would they be?
GG: It may sound too topical and choosing three is quite hard. A great biological explorer, probably Alfred Russell Wallace, a great scientist, probably Albert Einstein, and a great musician and fighter for human rights, Bob Marley. But I could also add Charles Darwin, Cristobal Colón (= Christopher Columbus), Pablo Picasso, or Miguel de Cervantes. I’ll keep the living ones for myself, in case I can host them one day.
CB: What would you eat?
GG: Seafood paella.
CB: YUM! Thanks so much for stopping by this week Dr. Giribet, it’s been a pleasure to get to know you!
Lizard Love in Nerd Corner this Week…Introducing Dr. Manuel Leal
Dr. Leal is in the Biology Department at Duke University. He was kind enough to share some of his wisdom with me this week…
CB: Please explain your research interests in a nutshell (think filbert rather than Brazil!)
ML: My research is on behavioral and evolutionary ecology, with a particular interest in lizards. Two main lines of study are: A) elucidating the mechanisms shaping the evolution of behavioral traits, with a particular interest in animal communication and the possible role that behavior plays in promoting species diversity; B) understanding the effect of behavioral plasticity in promoting or buffering selection.
CB: I love that your website showcases the Anole lizards as being ‘lab members’. What are your thoughts on being an ecologist first and a naturalist second (as quoted from your website)?
ML: Glad you ask this question. I like to think of myself as a behavioral ecologist who strives to become a naturalist. What I mean by this is that natural history is central to my research program, and that in my research I strive to integrate multiple fields in order to elucidate the question at hand. This approach is currently labeled as integrative biology, but it was pioneered by early naturalists and helped to produce some of the most influential work in their respective fields.
CB: On the subject of being a naturalist, you have some amazing photographs on your website! Are you a photographer as well as a scientist?
ML: Thanks for the kind words about my photographs. By no means do I consider myself a photographer, however I do enjoyed taking photographs. I strongly believe that a camera is a ‘must have’ for people doing research, particularly in the fields of behavioral and evolutionary ecology. Photographs provide a great tool for documenting animal behavior, species interactions, and species diversity, and for sharing information with the general public.
CB: Where do you spend the bulk of your research time, lab or field?
ML: Whenever possible my research combines laboratory and field studies. I spend most of the summer in the field chasing lizards, collecting behavioral and ecological data, such as: habitat light conditions, relative humidity, temperature, and wind speed. Back in the lab, I conduct research on a number of topics, from lizard cognition to physiology.
CB: Where does the bulk of your field work take place?
ML: Throughout the Caribbean. For the past couple of years, I’ve mostly worked on the island of Puerto Rico and in The Bahamas.
CB: Can you describe a typical field-work day?
ML: It is funny you asked this question. A couple of years back I created a blog (http://chipojolab.blogspot.com/) with the purpose of providing a window to our fieldwork. The blog provides a daily account of the many activities related to one of the projects that my colleagues and I are currently conducting in the Bahamas. Getting back to your question: when you do field-work there is not such a thing as a “typical” day – something unexpected almost always seems to happen! In general though, most days consist of long hours – up and ready to begin data collection before sunset and usually finishing up with field-work at sundown. This translates to a 10-12 hr period, under hot and humid conditions, of carrying around a series of gadgets (e.g., video camera, spectroradiometer, data loggers, and write-in-the-rain notebooks) and walking a considerable amount between sites. Usually, after getting back to “home away from home” there are a few more hours of data collection (e.g., video analysis, spectroradiometry, morphological measurements) before going to bed. However, I enjoy every single day and having the opportunity to observe first-hand how lizards are able to cope with the complexity of the environment and their social interactions is central to the development of my ideas.
CB: What a fantastic idea about the blog! I wish more researchers did this!!
CB: What is your most recent publication?
ML: A “news and views” that I co-authored with my colleague J. B. Losos, and that was published last month . We did not collect any data for this publication. If I can mention a second publication, in which there is actual data, I am proud of a paper that that I co-authored with L. Fleishman. This was a very fun project in which we had the opportunity to integrate data from visual physiology, behavior, and habitat light conditions, to address the hypothesis that selection favors the evolution of signals that are more detectable under the habitat conditions in which species or populations are commonly found.
CB: What advice do you have for budding biologists?
ML: First, regardless of your field of interest you should get involved as early as possible. In my opinion, hands-on experience beats most courses by showing you how science is actually done and gives you the opportunity to explore if this is a career path you would enjoy. I was extremely lucky that a graduate student, Javier A. Rodríguez-Robles, took me under his wing and fostered my interest in natural history. Javier was extremely passionate about his work, and willing to deal with an undergraduate who had very little interest in the classroom (a view diametrically opposed to his), but a strong interest in understanding why animals behave the way they do. To this day, I am a grateful for the opportunity he gave me. Second, you don’t need to be a “nerd” — grades are over-rated. In fact, this is the first time in my academic life that I have had the honor of being called a nerd. Instead, follow your passion and be prepared to face many setbacks. When you do research in ecology or behavior, you should be prepared to fail half of the time. Thus, if you are passionate about what you do, you will take those setbacks as part of the learning process and will use them to improve the design of the next experiment.
CB: Do you have any non-biological talents?
ML: Not sure that I would call them TALENTS, but I enjoy photography, woodworking, and cooking. My wife, Lourdes, usually compliments my cooking, which at home is mostly limited to grilling, but her opinion might be biased. My graduate students also compliment my cooking skills, particularly when we are doing fieldwork, but again their opinions might be biased. We need to keep in mind that when I cook there is one less chore for them to do.
CB: A supervisor who cooks meals for the students while in the field…AWESOME!!!
CB: Gulity pleasures?
ML: Having a few cups of coffee on a daily basis.
CB: If you could have 3 guests for dinner, alive or dead, who would they be?
ML: You might get this response all the time, but one has to be Charles Darwin, the others – Niko Tinbergen and José Martí. I cannot pass up the opportunity to discuss the value of Natural History with the most influential figures in evolutionary biology and with a Nobel Prize winner and to hear their opinions on the current view that Natural History mostly consists of bird watching, bug collecting, or lizard catching. As a revolutionary and philosopher, Martí should provide balance to our discussions. Also in the purpose of full disclosure, my grandmother would be really proud with the fact that I was hosting José Martí.
CB: What would you eat?
ML: In honor of Martí, we would have a traditional Cuban meal: arroz congri, yuca and puerco en la varita. For those unfamiliar with this traditional Cuban meal, it usually takes between 10 and 12 hrs for a pig-in-stick (“puerco en la varita”) to be finished cooking, thus we will have plenty of time to chat.
CB: Sounds amazing Manuel, thanks so much for stopping by this week!
~~~
Meet 2010 MacArthur Fellow Dr. Kelly Benoit-Bird!
CB: First of all, CONGRATULATIONS on being named a 2010 MacArthur fellow! How did you celebrate?
KB: My husband and I had planned a trip to the Oregon coast to relax and celebrate our anniversary. It turned out to be just a few days after I got the call from the MacArthur Foundation. It gave me a few days to eat good food, sleep in, and walk the beach while I let it sink in before anyone else knew.
CB: Please explain your research interests in a nutshell (think filbert rather than Brazil!)
KB: I study how animals interact with each other in the ocean. I’m most interested in why and how animals are grouped, how that changes over time and with variation in their habitat, and what effects animal grouping has on interactions with their prey and their predators.
CB: You use techniques like ‘passive acoustics, active acoustics and imaging optics’ to examine resource levels and other biotic interactions below the oceans’ surface. You have invented many of your own research techniques, how did you do this?
KB: My research is driven by the question I want answered and often, there is not an appropriate tool to gather the data necessary to address the problem so I get creative. Sometimes that means developing a sophisticated sonar while other times it means putting together inexpensive, off-the-shelf parts in new ways. I never really set out to develop instruments and techniques but I don’t like being stopped in my tracks because no one has thought of something before.
CB: The spatial scales of your work (from meters to entire oceans) and the size scale of your research organisms (from millimeters to massive) are extremely vast. What’s your favorite kind of system to work in and why?
KB: I work primarily in coastal ecosystems (within 100 miles of land). I like these best because they tend to me the most biologically productive and because the conditions lead to sea-sickness less often. I don’t really have a favorite animal group to work with – each presents its own challenges and rewards.
CB: Where does the bulk of your field work take place?
KB: I’ve worked in a large variety of places. Much of my early work was in Hawaii but I’ve spent more time recently in coastal upwelling systems off California, Oregon, and New Zealand. We just completed a large study in the Bering Sea and are beginning to do quite a bit of work in the Gulf of California.
CB: Can you describe a typical field-work day?
KB: It seems like no day in the field is ever typical but a day on a research vessel is (hopefully) a pretty boring one with lots of repetitive tasks in a specific order and little sleep. Having a boring day means we’re getting good data and haven’t had a crisis. But, after a month of that, the days all blur together and mealtime becomes the big source of excitement.
CB: What is your most recent publication?
KB: My most recent publication is one led by one of my graduate students who is now a post-doctoral fellow on the effects of upwelling on the timing of schools of sardines and anchovies. This paper is one of the most satisfying accomplishments in my lab over the last few months. It’s always exciting for me to see my students becoming independent scientists in their own right.
CB: You are expecting your first baby, so another round of congrats are in order! What is your game plan for tackling motherhood and academia?
KB: Our plan is to roll with whatever happens and to laugh a lot. I couldn’t do it without my amazing husband who is my partner at work (he’s my research technician) and in life.
CB: What advice do you have for budding biologists?
KB: Follow your passion. If you work to answer questions that excite you, you’ll be successful. Also, work with people who you enjoy spending time with as it always increases productivity and satisfaction.
CB: Do you have any non-biological talents?
KB: When I find time, I paint and tap dance. These days, I’ve been channeling my creativity into digital scrapbooking as it travels well and lets me document the amazing places I’ve gotten to go and the crazy things that happen at sea.
CB: Gulity pleasures?
KB: Coca-cola, ice cream, and a good TV drama – my current favorites are “The Closer” and “The Good Wife”.
CB: If you could have 3 guests for dinner, alive or dead, who would they be?
KB: Charles Darwin, Edgar Degas, and Gregory Hines
CB: What would you eat?
KB: Anything pickled.
CB: Indeed! Thanks for taking the time for a chat, and best wishes with your upcoming projects, scientific and otherwise!