Resources

Books on my to-read or read list

Currently reading:

  • Sentient: How Animals Illuminate the Wonder of Our Human Senses by Jackie Higgins
  • Dog Behavior: Modern Science and Our Canine Companions by James C. Ha and Tracy L. Campion
  • The Emotional Lives of Animals by Marc Bekoff
  • The Curious Naturalist: Nature’s Everyday Mysteries by Sy Montgomery
  • Mind of the Raven by Bernd Heinrich
  • Metazoa by Peter Godfrey-Smith
  • The Inner Life of Animals by Peter Wohlleben

Read:

  • Tamed and Untamed: Close Encounters of the Animal Kind by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas and Sy Montgomery
    • Excellent book that made me look at and interact with my cat in a whole new way.
  • The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey
    • Heart warming. Made me look at the small creatures differently.
  • The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery
    • Wonderful book. Beautifully written and wondrous.
  • Spying on Whales by Nick Pyenson
    • Got a little bored from time to time admittedly. Think the book just felt slow.
  • What a Fish Knows by Jonathan Balcombe
    • Changed the way I looked at fish.

To read:

  • Fish with Fingers, Whales with Legs by Carl Zimmer
  • An Immense World by Ed Yong
  • The Light Eaters by Zoe Schlanger
  • Sing Like Fish by Amorina Kingdon
  • Night Magic by Leigh Ann Henion
  • How to Speak Whale by Tom Mustill
  • The Ocean of Life by Callum Roberts
  • Beyond Words by Carl Safina
  • The Breath of a Whale by Leigh Calvez
  • Animalkind by Ingrid Newkirk and Gene Stone
  • Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal
  • Super Fly by Jonathan Balcombe
  • Spineless by Juli Berwald
  • Reef Life by Callum Roberts
  • The Hidden Lives of Owls by Leigh Calvez
  • The Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner
  • The Mind of a Bee by Lars Chittka
  • Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior by Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson

Courses on my to-take or taken list

Courses I’m currently taking:

Courses I’ve taken:

  • Coursera: Writing in the Sciences (Stanford University) – good course but very intensive. Will improve your science writing. 2020.
  • CDC: Basic Microscopy – (P.A.C.E.® Certificate). 2025.
  • CDC: Routine Microscopy Procedures – CDC (P.A.C.E.® Certificate). 2025.
  • Lane Community College: Biology Course. 2020.
  • Oregon State University: Scientific Diving Course & Certificate. 2018.
  • Fort Hays State University: Grant Proposal Writing Certificate. 2016.

Courses I intend to take:

My vaguely relevant memberships

  • Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) – MSDT
  • National Association of Science Writers – professional
  • Animal Behavior Society – fellow
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science – full member
  • American Academy of Underwater Scientists (AAUS) – full member
  • Society for Conservation Biology – full member
  • National Marine Educators Association – professional member