What the Antlion Knows

Our guest is Becky Hansis-O’Neil, a Ph.D. student at the University of Missouri, St Louis, and our co-host for the new "Animal Intelligence" season. Becky shares her background on how she got into the field of behavioral intelligence and biology.

Guest

Becky Hansis-O’Neill: Becky is a PhD student in the biology department at University of Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL). She received her BS in Psychology and MS in Biological Sciences from Idaho State University (ISU). She has conducted research on topics such as behavioral pharmacology, developmental neurobiology, pollinator ecology, parasite-host interactions, population ecology, and stable isotope analysis. During her time at ISU, Becky discovered a passion for science communication while teaching undergraduate labs in general biology, ecology, and human anatomy and physiology. After her MS, she worked as the Education Specialist for the Idaho Museum of Natural History (IMNH), managing educational programs and designing and implementing digital interactive components for public exhibits. Because of this, Becky moved on to work at an exhibit design firm, Ideum. She led full exhibit design-build projects that integrated interactive multimedia, custom software development, and both print and digital content creation while managing the Creative Services department. Currently, she is a doctoral candidate at UMSL studying learning and behavior in tarantulas and bumblebees. Becky hopes to continue her career as a researcher when she is finished. In her spare-time she enjoys nature photography, dog training, gardening, and creating digital art.