Dr. Strand is a Biology professor at Cal Poly, well known among upper-division Biology students for the various anatomy and physiology courses she teaches. These classes range from 400-level Neuroscience and Cardiorespiratory Physiology to the lower-division Anatomy and Physiology courses. Regardless of your major, everone can benefit from learning a little bit more about Biology, especially from a professor that is as passionate as Dr. Strand!
HCCP: Let’s start with your background. Where are you from and where did you go to school?
I grew up in Wisconsin and attended a small liberal arts school near my hometown. From there, I went to graduate school at Arizona State University where I got a PhD in Biology and did research in neuroscience, specifically in neuroplasticity (process in which your brain’s neural synapses and pathways are altered as an effect of environmental, behavioral and neural changes).
HCCP: How did you get into doing your current research?
In grad school I studied how testosterone affects the parts of the brain that control singing behavior in songbirds. It helps us understand the seasonal affects on the brain, since their brains get bigger in the spring when they sing more and get smaller in the fall.
When I started at Cal Poly I worked a little bit with birds but it was challenging since we don’t have a lot of facilities to do captive experiments. So I started talking with Dr. Taylor who works with lizards and snakes and we tried to collaborate on topics such as spatial memory, especially in snakes. This got me started in the reptile neuroplasticity field.
My research now is more about things that affect spatial learning and memory in reptiles, such as territorial behavior. Expecting males to have higher hippocampal volumes (since this region is responsible for spatial memory) in reptiles when they are territorial during the breeding season. The past couple summers we’ve been finding that females have been found to have larger cortical regions during the breeding season!
HCCP: What classes do you teach on campus? Are there any campus organizations you’re involved in?
I teach upper level physiology classes for biology majors such as neuroscience, cardiology, endocrinology and histology and sometimes the non-major anatomy and physiology non-major classes. My favorite class to teach is definitely histology even though I come from a background in neuroscience and endocrinology.
I used to be the club advisor for the Neuroscience Club, but now I primarily help out with giving talks or performing demos. I’m also involved with the Health Professions Advising Office that runs mock interviews to help students prepare for medical or graduate school interviews.
HCCP: Are there any new classes for the Biology department?
Next year we want to do a class on digestive physiology and microbiology. When Cal Poly redesigned the new upper division physiology curriculum, we felt that digestion was left out. This class plans to incorporate digestion, physiology and microbiology, and how all of these affect the rest of the body.
HCCP: What other passions do you have?
I love traveling and experiencing new things. Especially getting away and escaping everything because it’s easy to get caught up at work when I’m home since I do love my job. My favorite trip was throughout Europe last summer and took the train throughout the various countries and got to see the cultures and scenery of all the countries!