As Evergreen faculty, my aim is to stimulate logical, creative, and critical thinking in an atmosphere that is both scientifically rigorous and respectful. The scientific process is a main theme in my teaching, and I strive to bring it to the foreground of students' worldviews, so that they become comfortable generating hypotheses for the patterns that they observe around them in the world.
Areas of teaching interest and background: Evolutionary biology, animal behavior, tropical ecology, herpetology, vertebrate zoology, field biology, epistemology, writing, physical anthropology.
Contracts & Internships
- I will not be sponsoring any contract or internship students in the 2007-2008 academic year. I will be considering contracts and internships during the Summer of 2008.
Current Program (Spring 2008)
- Vertebrate Evolution, an upper-division science program.
Future (teaching) programs
- Animal Behavior & Zoology, a new expanded year-long version of this upper-division science program, Fall, Winter & Spring 2008-2009. In Winter, there will be an international field component in Panama, with the option to stay in Panama while conducting research in Spring.
Past programs
- Evolving Communication, a sophomore - senior investigation into human and animal communication, with Susan Fiksdal, Fall & Winter 2007 - 2008.
- Animal Behavior, an upper-division science program, Spring 2007.
- The Extraordinary Science of Everyday Experience: A Day in the Life, a Core program, with Bret Weinstein, Winter 2007.
- Understanding Species, a Core (first year) program, co-taught with Jack Longino, Fall 2006.
- Population, Energy, & Resources (Masters in Environmental Studies (MES) core program), Winter 2006.
- Vertebrate Evolution, Fall 2005.
- Animal Behavior, Spring 2005.
- Forests through Time and Space: Introduction to Environmental Studies, with Paul Przybylowicz, FW 2004 - 2005.
- Fishes, Frogs and Forests, with Amy Cook, FW 2003 - 2004.
- Animal Behavior, Spring 2003.
- Freshwater Ecology, with Rob Cole, FW 2002 - 2003.
