The Daily Bulletin

Please join the Biology Department and the Great Lakes Center for the seminar “An Empiricist’s Guide to Using Ecological Theory,” presented by Tess Grainger, assistant professor in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Guelph, on Monday, April 22, at 3:00 p.m. in Science and Mathematics Complex 151. Attendees are welcome to enjoy coffee and cookies during the seminar.

Abstract
Although the benefits of feedback between theoretical and empirical research is widely acknowledged, this link is still not as strong as it could be in ecological research. This is in part because theory can feel inaccessible to empiricists. In this talk, Dr. Grainger will discuss the origins of this barrier and ways to overcome it by focusing on four specific ways to use theory to motivate empirical work: adopt a theoretical framework, test theoretical predictions, use mathematical equations, and test theoretical assumptions. She will then present her research on coexistence and rapid evolution framed within the context of these four approaches. She hopes that helping to empower empiricists to embrace theory in their work will move the field closer to a full integration of theoretical and empirical research.