Hi! I’m Griffin, and I started my PhD in the Vision Group in September. My project, supervised by Stanley Heinze and Tobias Uller, will focus on using synapse-level neuron reconstructions to analyze how evolution adapts neural circuits under differing ecological conditions.
I’m from the US, where I did my undergraduate at the University of Chicago. In Chicago, I worked in Bobby Kasthuri’s lab, focusing on using computer vision to compare ommatidia morphology between nocturnal and diurnal Lepidoptera. This work sparked my interest in studying the interplay of behavior and anatomy, and how they adapt to each other in different environments. After university, I moved to England and worked in Cambridge’s Drosophila Connectomics Group, focusing on systematic synapse-level reconstruction of every neuron in the whole brain and ventral nerve cord of Drosophila melanogaster.
I’m interested in using connectomics to explore how neural circuits adapt to ecological challenges. Even the most phylogenetically similar species can exhibit vastly distinct behaviors, and the most diverse set of species can respond similarly to a stimulus. The huge variety of behaviors that complex animals demonstrate is mediated through the incredibly complex network of neurons that make up a nervous system. Through electron microscopy, we can view every neuron in an organism in nanometer resolution, permitting us to study the morphology and connections of each single cell in a brain. I have been fascinated by the black-and-white objectiveness that this level of detail gives us, as well as the beautiful variety of neurons that exist beyond our unaided eyesight.
My PhD project in focuses on comparing the connectomes of the central complex from a diverse set of insect specimens. By comparing the structure and corresponding behaviors and ecosystems of these species, we can start to discover what the basic units of neural change are in both convergent and divergent evolution.
I look forward to meeting and working with you all!
