Developmental evolutionary biologist. Entomologist. 
Bioinformatician. Keeper of the bugs. 

I grew up playing outside a lot in the exurban wilds of Alabama. I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Cornell University in Professor Jeffrey G. Scott’s lab. I received my Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in 2019 at the University of Connecticut in the lab of Professor Elizabeth Jockusch. I received my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Arizona State University, where I studied the history of embryo research as a member of the Embryo Project. In my transition from historian to scientist, I spent a salt-filled summer as an intern at the Marine Resources Center of the MBL in Woods Hole, MA. I taught two semesters of Core Science at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island before arriving in Connecticut.

My research concerns the evolution of novelty in arthropod physiology and morphology. My particular research object of interest is the novel treehopper helmet; this was the subject of my PhD dissertation. More recently, I am involved in investigating the evolution of metabolically mediated pesticide resistance in the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti. My primary methods are bioinformatic and comparative — whole genome sequencing and analysis along with RNA-sequencing for gene expression. Supporting these methods, I have developed phenotypic investigations using RNA-interference and direct toxicology assays. Check my Research Summary page for more specific information. 

I love bugs, and I love computers. I’m lucky that I’ve found a way to spend my time playing with both.