People
Current Lab Members
Scott L Nuismer
Bob Week
Tanner Varrelman
Andrew Basinski
Nate Layman
Courtney Schreiner
Beth Tuschhoff
Scott is a professor in the Biological Sciences Department and affiliate faculty in the Department of Mathematics. He is trying hard to stay focused on coevolution but keeps getting dragged into all sorts of other interesting problems.
Contact:
snuismer @ uidaho.edu
208 885 4096
Life Sciences South
Room 266c
Bob is working on a PhD in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Bob's research focuses on developing new likelihood based methods for estimating the strength of coevolution in natural populations.
Tanner is a graduate student in the Bioinformatics and Computational Biology program working on a MS. Tanner's research focuses on understanding how heterogeneity in host populations influences the effectiveness of transmissible vaccines.
Andrew is a postdoctoral researcher working on developing mathematical models that evaluate the efficacy of transmissible vaccines. Andrew did his PhD work with Fred Adler at the University of Utah where he used mathematical models to study ant behavior.
Nate is a postdoctoral researcher studying the evolutionary dynamics of transmissible viral vaccines. Nate did his PhD work with Jeremiah Busch at Washington St. University where he used computer simulations to study plant polyploidy and mating system evolution.
Courtney is an undergraduate student majoring in Mathematics and is working developing mathematical models optimizing the delivery of vaccines to wildlife populations.
Beth is an undergraduate student majoring in Mathematics and is working on developing mathematical models of transmissible vaccine evolution.
Lab Alumni
Ryan May
Ailene MacPherson
Anahi Espindola
Florence Debarre
Francois Blanquart
Ben Ridenhour
Virginie Poullain
Benji Oswald
Ryan May was an undergraduate researcher in the lab until 2018 when he graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. Last heard he was working on developing an army of artificially intelligent self-driving cars.
Ailene started in the lab as an undergraduate and continued on to earn an MS in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Her research focused on modeling local adaptation and developing new statistical tools for understanding parallel evolution. Ailene is now working on a PhD with Sally Otto at UBC.
Anahi was a postdoc in the lab. Her research focused on understanding patterns of trait diversification in the interactions between oil collecting bees and their host plants in Chile. Anahi is now a postdoc working with Jack Sullivan and Dave Tank at the University of Idaho.
Florence was a postdoc in the lab. Her work focused on better understanding how dimensionality influences coevolution. Florence is now a researcher at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Biology, Paris.
Francois first visited the lab as an undergraduate. During this visit he worked on a model of coevolution and assortative mating and also tried his hand at field research. After finishing his PhD with Sylvain Gandon he moved on to a postdoc with Christophe Fraser at Imperial College.
Ben was a postdoc in the lab. His research focused on modeling spatially structured coevolution and developing new mathematical tools for studying coevolution in complex ecological communities. Ben is currently a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Idaho.
Virginie was a PhD student in the lab whose research focused on coevolution within ecological communities. Virginie used a combination of field studies, experimental evolution, and mathematical theory.
Benji was my first graduate student, earning a PhD in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Benji's research focused on understanding how plant polyploidy influences species interactions and combined mathematical, computational, and experimental approaches. Benji is currently the director of the computational resources core at the University of Idaho.