SPEAKER:   Sally Adamowicz, Dept. of Integrative Biology

ABSTRACT:  Our research addresses the origin of species from two perspectives:  the geographic origins of lineages colonizing novel environments and the mechanisms of evolution of biodiversity. I will share examples from our work on the postglacial recolonization of the Arctic, the geographic origins and evolutionary diversification of an ancient lake species flock, and correlates of rates of molecular evolution in animals. Our work uses the comparative method in evolutionary biology—the macroevolutionary analogue of human twin studies—combined with large datasets from standardized gene regions to examine contingency vs. generality in the history of life. I will additionally highlight statistical approaches that we have applied to this research, which has involved collaboration with members of the Department of Mathematics & Statistics at the University of Guelph.