NIMBioS Seminar Series

In conjunction with the interdisciplinary activities of the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS), a seminar series on topics in mathematical biology will be hosted at NIMBioS every other Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. (unless otherwise noted) in the Hallam Auditorium, Room 206, Claxton Building, 1122 Volunteer Blvd. Seminar speakers will focus on their research initiatives at the interface of mathematics and many areas of the life sciences. Light refreshments will be served in Room 205 beginning 30 minutes before each talk. Faculty and students from across the UT community are welcome to join us.

Speaker: Dr. Shandelle M. Henson, Mathematics, Biology, Andrews Univ., Berrien Springs, MI; Editor-in-Chief, Natural Resource Modeling

Time/Date: Tuesday, September 4, 2018, 3:30 p.m.*

Location: Room 206, Claxton Building, 1122 Volunteer Blvd.

Topic: Climate change and tipping points for seabird colonies in the Pacific Northwest

Abstract: Changes in sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Northwest are associated with changes in reproductive and feeding tactics in colonial seabirds. Warm years in the El Niño–Southern Oscillation are associated with short-term "lifeboat" tactics such as egg cannibalism that are not sustainable over the long term. Mathematical models suggest that prolonged rises in sea surface temperature can create tipping points that allow colony collapse.

Shandelle M. Henson is Professor of Mathematics and Professor of Ecology at Andrews University with a PhD from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She uses dynamical systems theory to describe, explain and predict the dynamics of ecological systems and animal behavior. She is one of the senior scientists in the interdisciplinary Seabird Ecology Team, a research group funded by the National Science Foundation.

*Join us for refreshments at 3 p.m.

Seminar Flyer (pdf)

Watch seminar online. This seminar was streamed live. Live-streamed seminars are archived for later viewing on NIMBIoS' YouTube channel.

For more information about this and other NIMBioS Seminars, visit /seminars.

NIMBioS
1122 Volunteer Blvd., Suite 106
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-3410
PH: (865) 974-9334
FAX: (865) 974-9461
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From 2008 until early 2021, NIMBioS was supported by the National Science Foundation through NSF Award #DBI-1300426, with additional support from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.