Dr. William G. Wright
Email: wwright@chapman.edu
Website: https://sites.chapman.edu/wwright/
College: Schmid College of Science and Technology
Department: Life and Environmental Science
Overview of scholarly research/creative activity: I am excited in equal measure by:
-the scientific discovery of a new phenomenon heretofore unknown,
-the excitement in my undergraduate collaborators by that discovery.
We ask focused questions about marine invertebrates that cross disciplinary lines, ranging from cellular neurophysiology to evolution.
Specific projects working on: Present research efforts include:
Research on learning and memory at neural, behavioral, ecological, and evolutionary levels.
Marine Invertebrate Behavior Under Global Climate Change: When do predators attack, when do prey avoid, and how are these interactions impacted by global climate change? We aim to understand these interactions at neural, behavioral, and ecological levels.
Ecology of Dislodgment in the Rocky Intertidal. Dislodgment is a critically important risk for limpets (a kind of snail) in the intertidal. The MIB lab investigates multiple manifestations of this risk, including bail-out behavior, damage or dislodgment by wave-born rocks, dislodgment by waves during high-speed territorial chase, dislodgment by aggressive territorial response, behavior change after new territorial experience, and survival after dislodgment.
Number of students looking to work with: 3-4
Time commitment for students: Meet once per week, 9 h per week commitment.
When students are needed: Not this AY
Requirements for students who work with you: A solid 9-h per week effort all semester long!
What would students be expected to do: Lab and field experiments, discussion of the science, literature review, planning data collection, etc.
Additional Information: Historically the Marine Invertebrate Behavior lab has been a cauldron of discovery and excitement. I will be coming off of a sabbatical year, and will be very interested in new interesting collaborations. Please see web page:
https://sites.chapman.edu/wwright/