Katie is organizing a one of the new “spotlight symposia” at the 2016 Austin Evolution Meetings, on behalf of the SSE. These new sessions combine talks of varying length (30-minute, 15-minute, and 5-minute lightning talks), all organized around a central theme. The theme for our session will be Understanding history and process in rapid diversification with genomic data.

To be more specific: As the availability of genomic data for non-model organisms increases, our ability to make detailed inferences about the history of even very rapidly diversifying populations and species groups has dramatically increased. However, these data also present new challenges, particularly in the goal of inferring process from pattern. We seek to understand population and species historical relationships, as well as the roles of selection, incomplete lineage sorting, drift, and introgression in structuring the genetic variation among recently and/or rapidly diverged species. However, accurately distinguishing among these processes can be challenging. In this symposium we welcome contributions from researchers working on these questions with genomic data in a diverse array of systems.

I will be looking for a variety of exciting talks related to these themes, so please apply if you do related work!

Submit an applications to Katie via email (catherine.wagner at uwyo.edu). The application should include: (1) Name, (2) Institution, (3) rank (e.g., student, pdf, faculty), (4) names & institutions of collaborators (5) a short abstract (max: 300 words), and (6) which talk types you are willing to give (30, 15, or 5; the more flexible you are the more likely you are to be selected). Please submit applications by the end of April, 2016. Unfortunately, no financial support is provided to selected speakers (i.e., speakers must pay their own travel, accommodation, registration, etc.).

You may still register to give a standard talk in an “open session” at the Evolution Meetings even if you apply to participate in a spotlight
 session. However, if you are selected to speak in the spotlight series, you will have to choose which talk slot to use as each attendee is allowed to give only one oral presentation.

These Spotlight Symposia are a great new idea by the societies to bring together folks with shared interests at the meetings. Each of the three societies will be hosting one spotlight symposia, so be on the lookout for information about the sessions being planned by the ASN and the SSB if this theme doesn’t fit your work!