Science Café at Overton Park

Shape & Scales: Understanding Animal Movement Through Mathematics

Have you ever strolled through the Memphis Zoo or Overton Park and wondered about the incredible diversity of animal shapes and sizes? These variations can often be traced back to the ancestors of modern species and the environments they’re adapted to. In this Science Café, we’ll explore how the fields of vertebrate morphology and biomechanics quantify and compare body shapes, revealing how these shapes directly influence animal movement.

Dr. Kelly Diamond is an integrative biologist with extensive experience in studying the relationships among various snake groups, investigating environmental factors that affect the migration of waterfall-climbing fish, and developing innovative methods for automating the collection of shape data from 2D and 3D animal images. Currently, she is focused on a variety of projects from fish swimming patterns to dog skull shapes and frog jumping performance.

This event is pay-what-you-can, with a suggested contribution of $5 per person.