Dr. Allison L. Beck  Allison  Beck 

Assistant Professor

Allison Beck, Assistant Professor of Biology, started at Augustana in 2006.  She received her B.S. in Biology from Georgetown University (1996) and then attended graduate school at the University of Chicago.  There she received both an M.S. (2001) and a Ph.D. (2004) in evolutionary biology. Allison's interests lie in organismal biology and evolution, which is also where her teaching interests are.  She currently teaches General Zoology, which is part of the biology major, and Human Anatomy.  In the 2009-2010 academic year, she will be teaching a senior inquiry course in comparative vertebrate anatomy and evolution as well.

Allison's research focuses on the origins of mammals.  Mammals first appeared in the fossil record some 190 million years ago, but their ancestry reaches much further back.  About 300 million years ago, a split occurred among the early land animals.  One branch led to the reptiles, including dinosaurs and their living descendents, the birds.  The other lineage, called the synapsids (formally called the Synapsida), led to a number of failed evolutionary experiments and one successful one - the mammals.  The evolution of these 'mammal-like reptiles' is documented by one of the better fossil records of  vertebrates and has provided scientists with a window into how mammals came to be.  Among the changes that led to mammals are the origin of fur, lactation, varied dentition, upright posture, and endothermy (warm-bloodedness).  Allison focuses particularly on the transition from a sprawling lizard-like posture to the upright posture of modern mammals, which may be linked to endothermy and the evolution of a foraging lifestyle.  The first mammals were small, nocturnal, and ate insects, but today they exist in a huge diversity of forms, filling niches from marine predators to arboreal (tree-dwelling) fruit-eaters.

Currently, Allison is working on identifying some material of non-mammalian synapsids from Antarctica.  One of the largest mass extinctions in earth's history occurred at the end of the Permian Period, some 250 million years ago.   The Permian Antarctic fauna, including some mammal-like reptiles, is part of the puzzle explaining the patterns of evolution and survivorship during mass extinction events.  Understanding the distribution of animals across this boundary will give us clues about what allowed some groups to survive into the Triassic Period while the majority went extinct.

Allison has undergraduates involved in other projects as well, including understanding the evolution of burrowing in dicynodont synapsids and scientific illustration of the Antarctic specimens.

Among Allison's extracurricular interests are running (she recently finished a half-marathon near the top of her age division), reading fiction, and spending time with her recently-acquired husband.

Contact

Phone: (309) 794-3366
E-mail: allisonbeck@augustana.edu
Address: Science 308