That Georgia Biologist

My week has been good :) While there is still lots of new stuff to learn, overall it is a very smooth transition academically. The grad students are welcoming, the professors friendly, and yes I still remember how to crank with a capitol C!!  Yesterday evening as a bit of a reprieve I spent some time at the botanical gardens. I really enjoyed my time; and especially was delighted at all the butterfly photos I was able to capture. I hope you enjoy them! :) -Austin  Happy happy happy! I like the color yellow  :D  Beautiful setting for a bench.  Not sure what species this flower is, but it sure is lovely! :)  Such an inviting path...   Jatropha integerrima above, and very likely Helianthus annuus below.  Some pretty periwinkle - I want to learn the exact species!  A Firey Skipper butterfly above, and Red-Banded Hairstreak butterfly below!  Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Georgia's state butterfly! This is my f

Well hey there everyone! I'd just like to add a disclaimer, if you will, to this blog...I'm pretty sure the majority of the content on here will be turning into "this week at the botanical gardens", and less of what I'm actually up to. But so be it! :D This week was good. I went through almost eight hours of orientation by the UGA Graduate School, and now I feel properly oriented ;) I'm very impressed with the culture of respect, integrity, and academic excellence - stuff I can definitely get behind. Everyone has been so welcoming and friendly and I feel super grateful and excited to be here. I even have my own desk!! :D Had my first three days of class, and I'm happy to report that they went well. I'm taking two honestly pretty fascinating classes - one on how to clearly communicate your science to laypeople, and the other on generally how to be a good graduate student. Both are going to be a really good investment of my time, I can tell al