Author Archives: lisapbarrett

Summer Research in San Diego

By Lisa Barrett You’ve previously read about my visit to Sri Lanka and my project with zebra finches in grad school at the University of Wyoming. This summer I conducted research with elephants at the San Diego Zoo as part of my Ph.D. dissertation with invaluable help from a UW Biodiversity Institute grant. Phase one of my research at the

Read more

Evaluating Your Teaching

For many graduate students, a teaching assistantship may bring along excitement, nervousness, stress, and a giant fear of not being prepared– after all, this may be one’s first “real” teaching experience. For a more experienced faculty member, teaching can be a fun (or time-consuming) part of being a professor. Both types of teachers can benefit from getting evaluated on their teaching efficacy.

Read more

Sage Grouse Lek Visit

For several weeks, I have been trying to hitch along with various undergraduate ornithology and wildlife classes on their sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) lek field trips, but due to normal Wyoming surprises (AKA March and April blizzards) the trips have been postponed. Last weekend I finally got to check this amazing experience off of my Wyoming bucket list! We woke

Read more

Personality and Pair Bonds

By Lisa Barrett Most people now recognize that their pets have notable personalities, and you probably know a timid, aggressive, or social dog or cat. But behavioral ecologists have been studying individual behavioral variation for some time. What once was deemed to be “statistical noise” or the result of inaccurate measurements, individual behavioral type, or personality, is now one of the

Read more

How to Write “a Lot”

by Lisa Barrett     Most academics need to write. There are grant proposals, magazine articles, manuscripts for publication, class assignments, and blogs. I recently discovered a great resource for getting writing done: How to Write a Lot by Paul Silvia. In his short guide, Silvia instructs graduate students and professors about how to overcome writing misconceptions and how to

Read more

Galápagos Highlights

By Lisa Barrett My recent trip to Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve and the Galápagos Islands with University of Wyoming students and professors was nothing short of magical. Since you already know why the Galápagos Islands are so interesting, you should not be surprised! A New Species The first stop on our two-week trip was to a cloud forest reserve near Mindo

Read more
« Older Entries Recent Entries »