From Indonesia and China to Spain and Costa Rica, hundreds of Trinity Tigers have spent time in 2017 studying abroad and making contributions to complex research.
More than 270 Trinity students traveled to 22 countries in 2017, with many of these trips yielding research that will continue to make an impact into this academic year and beyond.
Nancy Ericksen, assistant director at Trinity’s Center for International Engagement, says she is excited by the promise shown by students and faculty on these global ventures.
“For a small school in South Texas, we have an impressive, international faculty that provides excellent learning and field research opportunities for our students,” Ericksen says. “After going abroad, our students emerge more flexible, creative, and better able to deal with the unknown.”
COSTA RICA
Deep in the heart of the central American rainforest, biology professor David Ribble ’82 led 14 students on Trinity’s first-ever excursion to Costa Rica from June 4 to July 2. Through this course, “Costa Rican Ecology: Monitoring Changing Distributions,” Ribble’s cohort studied the ecosystems and elevations of several rodent and small mammal populations, all as part of a larger, decade-long project aimed at understanding how climate change affects these species.
Costa Rica, Ribble explains, has incredibly diverse terrain, ranging from low-lying coasts to mountains reaching 12,500 feet; different species are adapted to the habitats at these different elevations, but as climate changes these habitats will change, too, pushing species out of their comfort zones.
“Time will tell what sort of effect climate change is having on these species,” Ribble says. “But you can’t look at that until you’ve done this sort of research.”
The group spent almost a month of waking up at 5 a.m. to observe and document live animals, hiking through challenging, hilly terrain and dealing with extreme temperatures.
Javier De Luna ’20, says the trip was well worth the effort.
“We’re doing research on populations that aren’t that well documented,” he says. “There is plenty of research on climate change’s effect on bats, lizards, or birds, but not so much on small rodents.”
Biology major Bernardo Traversari ’18, who hails from Ecuador, also got a closer look at other fascinating mammals such as pumas and ocelots.
“So much of biology can feel like books and studying, but being in the field is a different way to do science,” Traversari says. “Just knowing how to create procedures and experiments in the field, that’s invaluable, and not all universities can say their students are doing that.”
Biochemistry major Claire Warkentin ’18, plans to go to graduate school and work for a sanctuary or wildlife preserve in the future.
“It was cool to see how our research fit into the world of living things, where everything is constantly moving,” Warkentin says. “This could alter how people view climate change itself.”
Students can contribute to this research by applying to be part of next year’s Costa Rica trip using Terra Dotta, with all applications due by Feb. 2, 2018. The course has two prerequisites and earns students four credit hours.
INDONESIA
While Ribble’s group focused on small mammals, psychology professor Kimberley Phillips took students Anna Rigodanzo ’18 and Ryan Reusch ’18 to Indonesia to study non-human primates on a small island off the Indonesian coast. There, Phillips’ group studied a population of long-tailed macaques, a species of primate known for their inventiveness and mischievous nature.
This ongoing research, in collaboration with Randy Kyes at the University of Washington’s Center for Global Study and Entang Iskandar at the Institut Pertanian Bogor, in Bogor, West Java, Indonesia, is yielding curious revelations about how hand and finger use is connected to the brain.
“We’re looking at dexterity, problem-solving, and what that all can tell us about the brain,” Phillips says. “We basically were getting up close to these animals—who are habituated to humans—and providing them with tasks to solve.”
The 2017 trip was the third year of this study. In 2015, Phillips conducted basic exploratory work at the base camp, while 2016 saw her group refining their experimental techniques.
“One of the really fun things about working with monkeys is that they will solve things or destroy tasks in ways you’ve never imagined,” Phillips recalls. “In our third year, we were … better prepared for the tricks they might pull on us.”
Reusch and Rigodanzo learned this the hard way.
“We found that if you set down anything—coffee, your phone, anything— and walked away from it, these monkeys would run off with your stuff,” Rigodanzo says.
While Rigodanzo and Reusch were the only undergraduates on the trip, the pair made their mark on the research by coming up with tasks for the animals to complete.
An example of such a task, Reusch explains, was presenting the macaques with a PVC pipe filled with ketchup, honey, or another treat. The pipe was too narrow for the animals to fit their hands inside, forcing them to use a tool. Phillips’ team was mostly interested in observing which hand—left or right— the macaques preferred to use.
“These tendencies can tell us about brain lateralization,” notes Phillips, who also intends to expand her collaboration with Kyes and Iskandar in future years. “We’re still learning things about the brain from these creatures: they can solve problems in ways you’ve never imagined before.”
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