Circus enthusiast and University of Georgia PhD candidate Uma Nagendra used her aerial talent to create this year's winning "Dance Your PhD" video. The contest is sponsored by Science AAAS and challenges scientists to use dance to translate their work. For the contest, Nagendra joined forces with her aerialist colleagues to produce the above video based on her research on how tornadoes can alter the dynamic of the ecosystem.
Science recently reported:
Tornadoes are destructive events, ripping up the surface of Earth, crushing buildings, and tossing automobiles in their paths. And based on some models of climate change, they are likely to become more frequent and damaging. But according to a study of forest soil ecology, tornadoes also do some good—for trees, that is. It turns out that tree seedlings get a respite from certain parasitic fungi in a tornado’s aftermath, allowing them to flourish.
For winning the BIOLOGY category and the overall prize, Nagendra receives $1000 and a free trip to Stanford University in May 2015, where her video will be screened.
Previously: “Dance Your PhD” finalists announced
