Alyssa Y. Stark

I am interested in the functional morphology of organisms, specifically how particular morphological features, such as geometric structure and chemistry, relate to an organism's overall performance (like adhesion or wettability), behavior (how they use these features) and ecology (where they use these features). My primary focus is to investigate how particular ecological or environmental components can influence the morphology and subsequently behavior of an organism, allowing for improved performance in often complex and challenging conditions. I am also interested in taking this knowledge and applying the design principles of these systems for biomimetic and bio-inspired application. I see my current and future role in science as a highly integrated researcher that functions as a bridge between multiple fields of study; translating and facilitating collaboration between biology and materials science, physics, chemistry and the like.