Integrative Biology 84, Section 1
What's that animal doing? Behavioral research at Berkeley (1 unit, P/NP)
Professor Eileen Lacey
Tuesday 2:00-4:00, 5053 Valley Life Science Building, CCN: 43023

This seminar meets for eight weeks, beginning January 21 and ending March 11, 2010

Animal behavior is always interesting and often bizarre – how do biologists go about studying it? This eight-week seminar is designed to introduce students to the whys and the hows of behavioral research at Berkeley. During the first hour of each meeting, directed readings and class discussion will be used to introduce basic principles of behavioral research, including how to ask critical questions and test relevant hypotheses. During the second hour of each meeting, a different Berkeley faculty member who studies behavior will describe his or her research and demonstrate some of the techniques that he or she uses to understand animals. Thus, from spiders to hyenas and from VLSB to Tilden Park, students will gain a first-hand introduction to behavioral research on the Berkeley campus.

The seminar is open to all interested students, with the intent of informing them about the various majors on campus that include behavioral coursework and research. This is a Beyond the Classroom Theme seminar.

Eileen Lacey is a behavioral ecologist who studies the ecological and evolutionary bases for sociality in vertebrates, with an emphasis on mammals. Currently, Dr. Lacey's work focuses on the reasons for group living and cooperation in several species of South American rodents. Her analyses combine field studies of the behavior and ecology of these animals with molecular genetic analyses of patterns of parentage and kinship within social groups. At Berkeley, Dr. Lacey teaches courses in animal behavior, behavioral ecology, and mammalogy. Website: http://ib.berkeley.edu/labs/lacey/