EEB Special Seminar: Incorporating geography into statistical methods for population genomics

One of the fundamental goals of evolutionary biology is to quantify patterns of genetic diversity between populations and study the processes that shape them. However, the development of key statistical methods in population genetics lags behind the generation of datasets that require them for analysis. In particular, methods for studying population structure, admixture, demography, and selection in continuous space are still lacking, leading to a gap in our ability to answer basic questions in evolutionary biology. My research is focused on understanding the role of geography in structuring patterns of population genetic variation and on learning about the processes that have shaped these patterns. To further this goal, I develop and implement novel population genetic models and statistical methods for describing population structure and admixture, as well as studying local adaptation and natural selection.