New contributor Melissa DeBiasse
This week we’re pleased to welcome a big group of new contributors to the blog. By way of introduction, I asked each of them to answer a few quick questions about him- or herself. —Jeremy
My name is Melissa DeBiasse and I am interested in the mechanisms that determine the distribution of genetic, phenotypic, and physiologic variation in marine invertebrates. My dissertation research in Mike Hellberg’s lab at Louisiana State University used multi-locus model-based methods to infer phylogeographic history and species boundaries in the Caribbean coral reef sponge Callyspongia. As a postdoc in Morgan Kelly’s lab at LSU, I am using experimental methods and transcriptomic data to understand the genomic basis of local adaptation in Tigriopus copepods. I am also interested in increasing the participation of underrepresented groups in STEM fields. When I’m not doing science, I love to run, sew, and enjoy the great food, music, and culture Louisiana has to offer.
