Heather Jamniczky, PhD

Broadly, our research is focused on the development and evolution of phenotypic variation in vertebrates, and on measuring three dimensional learning.

Evolution of variation

How and why do different animals look different? How does development structure the phenotype? How do different tissues interact to generate a phenotype? How does natural selection work on the phenotype? How does form influence function? These are all questions we explore in our research on the evolution of variation in vertebrates. Our current work focuses on threespine sticklebacks in collaboration with Sean Rogers and Tim Higham, and mice and other rodents with Heidi Schutz and Jessica Theodor.

Imaging and morphometrics

My laboratory is part of the MicroCT Laboratory at the University of Calgary. Our research makes extensive use of three-dimensional imaging and morphometric tools. We use both x-ray and computed microtomography, and an extensive suite of image processing and analysis software.

Neural correlates of spatial learning

What is the difference between 2D and 3D learning? With collaborators Kent Hecker and Olav Krigolson, we are working to establish a research program that examines brain activity in association with different types of image processing. This work bridges the gap between teaching and research, as we seek to quantify neural correlates of spatial learning.