Profile

• Time Zone

  Eastern

  
  
• Organization

  University of Maine at Machias

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  While in graduate school I studied plant mating systems and phylogenetics. I focused on using what we know about the relationships among species of flowering plants to answer questions about how flowers evolved to interact with their pollinators. More recently I've also begun to research how best to teach, particularly math and science, in ways that are engaging for students. My hope is to help my students to be able to learn and retain information more easily and to be able to apply what they have learned to answer new questions. I'm also interested in how the philosophy of science interacts with societal pressures.

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  What lessons have you learned in your career about how science works?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

  I used to think that science was black and white, right and wrong. In fact it turns out that science can be messy and requires creativity. Our ability to describe and explore the natural world is a daring proposition. In some ways scientists are more brave than the average person because we dedicate years of our lives to attempt to answer questions the best we can when in the end we know that our answers are only tentative. Years from now someone may come along with a different idea or a new method and overturn our results. It took me a while to come to grips with that but, hey, that's the nature of studying nature.

  
  
• Profile Question 2

  What is the coolest thing you have discovered or learned about plants?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

  I've learned that two of the largest groups of organisms on Earth co-evolved with one another to produce a stunning array of members. Both Angiosperms (flowering plants) and insects evolved together through myriad relationships. Some insects are pollinators for plants, some insects eat plants, some insects protect plants from being eaten. I find it fascinating that these two extremely large groups of organisms, arguably the two largest, are as numerous as they are because they "grew up" together.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  What is your favorite plant? Why?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

  My favorite plant has to be the Bristlecone Pine (Pinus longaeva) because these pines can live up to 5,000 years and counting! It's amazing to me to think of being an organism that's been around for that long. It's on my bucket list to get to spend a day sitting with one of these trees, taking in the landscape that's changed so much around them during the last five millennia!

  
  
• Availability

  I am currently available for mentoring, please send me team match invitations

  
  
• In addition to English, I am comfortable communicating with students in the following languages:

  None of the Above

  
  
• Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

  3

  
  

Recent Posts

The corn makers-- project 11 Eric Hunter Jones Apr 2 at 01:26pm

Hey everyone!  My apologies for the delayed response.  It sounds like your corn is growing very well in some cases.  I would wager that the negative effects you are seeing is due to the fact that they are running out of room in their…

more

Hey everyone!  My apologies for the delayed response.  It sounds like your corn is growing very well in some cases.  I would wager that the negative effects you are seeing is due to the fact that they are running out of room in their pots.  You all described seeing roots poking out, which would support that hypothesis.  

It sounds like your two treatments differ with respect to nutrient availability.  In that case, I'd expect some to perform poorly.  If you were trying to harvest a crop I would suggest getting them in the ground. Since it sounds like the point of your investigation is to look at the effects of nutrients on growth, I suggest just recording your observations.

Some of the defects you're describing for leaves may be pathogens, like fungi or bacteria.  If that's the case there's not likely much you can do at this point to help those plants.  That happens sometimes.

I hope that helps but please let me know if not.  I will endeavor to be more attentive in the weeks ahead.  In the meantime, good luck!

Team M40 Eric Hunter Jones Apr 2 at 08:52am

How's it going folks?  I understand that your corn plants are growing and that there are distinct differences between the treatments that you're using.  What have you all noticed about your plants?  Have you run into any…

more

How's it going folks?  I understand that your corn plants are growing and that there are distinct differences between the treatments that you're using.  What have you all noticed about your plants?  Have you run into any issues?  I look forward to hearing how it's going and I hope to hear from you soon.  Cheers all!

Team M40 Eric Hunter Jones Feb 29 at 12:38pm

Not so much Marvens.  I'm in my mid-50s.  It turns out that how old you are, other than the count of years, is largely a state of mind.  I spend a lot of time working with young people and that helps me stay relative young at…

more

Not so much Marvens.  I'm in my mid-50s.  It turns out that how old you are, other than the count of years, is largely a state of mind.  I spend a lot of time working with young people and that helps me stay relative young at heart.  Cheers!