Dr. Scott Edwards, Alexander Agassiz Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University, will give the Department of Biological Sciences’ Oliver H. Smith Memorial Lecture on Friday, Sept. 6, from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Wehr Life Sciences 111.
Edwards will present on “PhyloG2P: the new science of connecting genomes to phenotypes via phylogenies.” No RSVP is required.
Edwards is an internationally recognized evolutionary biologist and actively engaged in increasing workforce diversity in evolutionary and environmental sciences. His research focuses broadly on avian evolutionary biology, including phylogenetics and biogeography, disease ecology, population genetics, and comparative genomics. He has been at the forefront of using DNA sequences to untangle the evolutionary relationships of species and the development of novel methods to build evolutionary trees using multiple genetic loci.
Dr. Edwards’ research has significantly improved our understanding of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in birds, a gene complex involved in fighting infectious disease and mate choice. More recently, he has been studying genome structure and evolution to investigate macroevolutionary patterns in birds, including the origin of feathers and the evolution of flightlessness. Dr. Edwards is a strong advocate and community leader for museum collections and the vital role that they play in biological research and conservation.
Edwards received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Harvard University and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. He was an Alfred P. Sloan Postdoctoral Fellow in Molecular Evolution at the University of Florida. In 1994, he became an assistant professor in the Zoology Department and the Burke Museum at the University of Washington. Edwards moved to his current position at Harvard University in 2003, serving as curator of ornithology in the Museum of Comparative Zoology and chair of the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology in addition to his professorial role.
