Spotlight Sessions
What are they and how to apply
The Evolution conference in Cleveland in 2020 will feature six Spotlight sessions that will follow a format that is similar to symposia at the European Society for Evolutionary Biology (ESEB) congresses. During sign-up for a regular contributed talk, you will have the option of indicating whether you want to be considered for a spotlight session. Talk sign-up becomes available once you have paid your registration (by visiting your Profile Home in the registration system). Spotlight organizers will choose among the candidate submissions to assemble a set of high quality presentations while maintaining a balance of gender identity and career stage. Candidate submissions that are not chosen will automatically be scheduled into the regular talk sessions.
Why apply?
- Increased visibility - your talk will be part of a special session that is advertised online and during the conference
- Better audience - your talk will be part of a set of talks focused on a specific topic that is likely to attract a large and highly relevant audience
- Make connections - meet other speakers working in your research area
- Competitively chosen - cite your talk in your CV as 'selected' or 'competitively chosen'
- No cost/risk - if your talk isn't chosen, it will be scheduled during a general session the same as all other talks that did not apply
Things to keep in mind
- Spotlight submissions require an abstract of 300 words or less in addition to key words.
- The deadline for spotlight submissions (and for all talk submissions) is May 1 or earlier if capacity is reached.
- Submit your talk early to reserve your spot - you can can edit to change your title, authors, keywords, and abstract after your initial submission (until May 1).
- Spotlight sessions may have one or two keynote speakers in addition to the talks chosen from among the candidate submissions.
- Talks will be chosen based on their fit to the spotlight topic along with consideration of a balanced representation of gender and career stage.
- Talks chosen for spotlights will be announced by May 20.
- If your talk is not chosen for a spotlight it will automatically be scheduled with the regular sessions based on the keywords that you submit. Keywords are critical for organizing sessions so choose then carefully.
Timeline
- During fall of the year prior to the annual conference spotlight organizers are recruited.
- Early January - Spotlight topics are announced (see below).
- Early February - Conference and talk registration opens.
- April 15 - Deadline for spotlight submissions and regular session submissions **OR EARLIER IF CAPACITY IS REACHED**. Early-bird registration deadline and all talk submissions close.
- May 20 - Talks chosen for spotlights are announced. Talks not chosen will be included in the regular session talks alongside other talks that did not indicate any interest in being considered for a spotlight.
- Early June - The program for all talks and poster sessions will be made available.
Session Titles and Descriptions
The role of behavior in evolution
Organizer: Martha M. Muñoz, Yale University.
Keynote speaker: Elizabeth Derryberry (UT, Knoxville)
Description: Behavior is a major pacemaker for evolution. Through behavior, organisms have the power to enhance or erode nature selection and, therefore, promote or stymie evolution. The goal of this session is to highlight theoretical and empirical work examining how behavior impacts phenotypic evolution and speciation, as well as how behavior itself evolves. Studies examining the signature of behavior at both micro- and macroevolutionary scales are welcome. We also will highlight studies integrating field experiments with genomic/phylogenetic approaches. Topics can include (but are not limited to): the role of plasticity in evolution, the evolution of animal communication, evolution of the extended phenotype, the Bogert effect, thermoregulatory behavior and evolution, and the genetics of behavior.
Organizer: Martha M. Muñoz, Yale University.
Keynote speaker: Elizabeth Derryberry (UT, Knoxville)
Description: Behavior is a major pacemaker for evolution. Through behavior, organisms have the power to enhance or erode nature selection and, therefore, promote or stymie evolution. The goal of this session is to highlight theoretical and empirical work examining how behavior impacts phenotypic evolution and speciation, as well as how behavior itself evolves. Studies examining the signature of behavior at both micro- and macroevolutionary scales are welcome. We also will highlight studies integrating field experiments with genomic/phylogenetic approaches. Topics can include (but are not limited to): the role of plasticity in evolution, the evolution of animal communication, evolution of the extended phenotype, the Bogert effect, thermoregulatory behavior and evolution, and the genetics of behavior.
The evolutionary ecology of microbe-host interactions
Organizer: Diana Rennison, UC San Diego
Keynote speaker: Daniel Bolnick (University of Connecticut)
Description: The time is here to move past descriptive comparisons of microbiomes, and hone in on elucidating the evolutionary and ecological processes that shape microbial communities and their hosts. This session will highlight recent and on-going work examining selective factors and the fitness or ecological effects that are associated with shifting microbiomes.
Organizer: Diana Rennison, UC San Diego
Keynote speaker: Daniel Bolnick (University of Connecticut)
Description: The time is here to move past descriptive comparisons of microbiomes, and hone in on elucidating the evolutionary and ecological processes that shape microbial communities and their hosts. This session will highlight recent and on-going work examining selective factors and the fitness or ecological effects that are associated with shifting microbiomes.
Evolution in a social context
Organizer: Joel McGlothlin, Virginia Tech
Description: Most organisms interact with conspecifics in some capacity, and these interactions can lead to social effects on phenotypes and fitness. A large body of theory dating back to the 1960s has attempted to describe how social interactions should affect the evolutionary process. This SSE Spotlight Session will focus on empirical work testing these predictions in laboratory and natural populations and will showcase new approaches to tackling longstanding questions in social evolution.
Organizer: Joel McGlothlin, Virginia Tech
Description: Most organisms interact with conspecifics in some capacity, and these interactions can lead to social effects on phenotypes and fitness. A large body of theory dating back to the 1960s has attempted to describe how social interactions should affect the evolutionary process. This SSE Spotlight Session will focus on empirical work testing these predictions in laboratory and natural populations and will showcase new approaches to tackling longstanding questions in social evolution.
Multidimensional traits and macroevolution
Organizer: Michael Collyer, Chatham University
Keynote speaker: Dean Adams (Iowa State University)
Description: Multidimensional traits comprise sets of typically many variables that cannot be analyzed, independently. Testing hypotheses about species' evolution is challenged by a high variable to taxon ratio - the scenario multidimensional traits frequently present - because parametric methods require more taxa than variables. This challenge has become increasingly pervasive, concordant with increased ease to acquire and store high-dimensional phenotypic data. In this Spotlight session, we bring together both theoretical and empirical research that confronts the challenge of testing macoevolutionary hypotheses for multidimensional phenotypes. This session will focus on cutting edge research using high-dimensional phenotypic data and the rapidly evolving panoply of phylogenetic comparative methods. We encourage presentations by early-career scholars who are confronting analytical challenges with phylogenetic comparative methods for highly multivariate data, and who would benefit from discussion with other scientists working in evolutionary statistics.
Organizer: Michael Collyer, Chatham University
Keynote speaker: Dean Adams (Iowa State University)
Description: Multidimensional traits comprise sets of typically many variables that cannot be analyzed, independently. Testing hypotheses about species' evolution is challenged by a high variable to taxon ratio - the scenario multidimensional traits frequently present - because parametric methods require more taxa than variables. This challenge has become increasingly pervasive, concordant with increased ease to acquire and store high-dimensional phenotypic data. In this Spotlight session, we bring together both theoretical and empirical research that confronts the challenge of testing macoevolutionary hypotheses for multidimensional phenotypes. This session will focus on cutting edge research using high-dimensional phenotypic data and the rapidly evolving panoply of phylogenetic comparative methods. We encourage presentations by early-career scholars who are confronting analytical challenges with phylogenetic comparative methods for highly multivariate data, and who would benefit from discussion with other scientists working in evolutionary statistics.
The evolutionary consequences of global change
Organizers: Jill Anderson, University of Georgia; and Susana Wadgymar, Davidson College
Description: Human actions impose strong selection on natural populations, and can disrupt species interactions, reduce genetic variation, alter geographic distributions, and influence local and regional persistence. In this spotlight session, we will examine the evolutionary consequences of rapid global change in contemporary terrestrial, marine and freshwater systems. We define global change broadly, to including climate change, as well as habitat loss and degradation, overexploitation of key species, and expansion of invasive species. Talks in this session will explore adaptive, maladaptive, and constrained responses to novel selection, highlight important implications of this work, and suggest critical future research directions.
Organizers: Jill Anderson, University of Georgia; and Susana Wadgymar, Davidson College
Description: Human actions impose strong selection on natural populations, and can disrupt species interactions, reduce genetic variation, alter geographic distributions, and influence local and regional persistence. In this spotlight session, we will examine the evolutionary consequences of rapid global change in contemporary terrestrial, marine and freshwater systems. We define global change broadly, to including climate change, as well as habitat loss and degradation, overexploitation of key species, and expansion of invasive species. Talks in this session will explore adaptive, maladaptive, and constrained responses to novel selection, highlight important implications of this work, and suggest critical future research directions.
Evolutionary integration of sexually selected traits
Organizer: Mollie Manier, George Washington University
Description: Sexual selection can drive the rapid evolution of male and female traits directly and indirectly involved in obtaining matings, copulating, and mediating fertilization success, with potential consequences for reproductive isolation. Both pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection can also lead to co-evolution of interacting traits in males and females, such as between ornaments and preferences, genitalic structures, and gamete-recognition proteins. However, correlated evolution can also occur between traits within a sex, including seminal fluid proteins or different aspects of behavioral displays. Finally, sexually selected traits may co-vary with other morphological, behavioral, or life history traits. Such evolutionary integration can result from physiological constraint, developmental canalization, or genetic correlation. In this Spotlight Session, we will explore the myriad ways in which correlated selection can arise in sexually selected traits from molecular, developmental, and organismal perspectives.
Organizer: Mollie Manier, George Washington University
Description: Sexual selection can drive the rapid evolution of male and female traits directly and indirectly involved in obtaining matings, copulating, and mediating fertilization success, with potential consequences for reproductive isolation. Both pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection can also lead to co-evolution of interacting traits in males and females, such as between ornaments and preferences, genitalic structures, and gamete-recognition proteins. However, correlated evolution can also occur between traits within a sex, including seminal fluid proteins or different aspects of behavioral displays. Finally, sexually selected traits may co-vary with other morphological, behavioral, or life history traits. Such evolutionary integration can result from physiological constraint, developmental canalization, or genetic correlation. In this Spotlight Session, we will explore the myriad ways in which correlated selection can arise in sexually selected traits from molecular, developmental, and organismal perspectives.