WSGC Student Spotlight: Thomas Lavery

December 04, 2020

Congratulations to this week’s #WSGCStudentSpotlight, Thomas Lavery! Thomas is the recipient of a WSGC Undergraduate Scholarship and is currently studying Zoology at UW-Madison.

Thomas Lavery is a student studying Zoology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. During his freshman year, he worked in the university’s fossil lab, and in his sophomore year, he conducted research under David Lovelace into the claw morphology of Dromaeosaur dinosaurs. He later presented this as “How Deinonychus and Related Taxa May Have Hunted” at the Collegiate Paleontological Association of Wisconsin-Madison’s Spring Symposium the following year. After his sophomore year, he began working in Simon Gilroy’s lab and conducting research under Richard Barker into the biochemical pathways of plant responses to vibrations.

He plans to further his scientific education in grad school and pursue a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. He hopes that his research will help humans not only expand their reach beyond Earth but also find a way to do so in a safe and sustainable manner. 

Congratulations Thomas, and best of luck to you in your future!