Principal Investigator Jeff Gore
The Gore Lab uses experimental microbial populations to study how interactions between individuals determine the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of populations. In particular, cooperatively growing populations can collapse catastrophically and may be susceptible to "cheating" behaviors. The laboratory is composed of an interdisciplinary group of scientists interested in learning from each other to effectively combine experiments, theory and modeling.
The Gore lab uses experimentally tractable laboratory microcosms to explore how interactions between individuals drives the evolution and ecology of populations.
Three primary areas drive research in the group:
(1) How do populations behave at "tipping points"? Might it be possible to get advance warning of an impending ecosystem collapse?
(2) How can cooperative behaviors evolve? How do ecological factors such as spatial dynamics and interactions between species influence the evolution of cooperation?
(3) What determines the diversity in communities?