Sydney Hunt

I have always been fascinated by the brain; a single organ responsible for every decision we make. As I began my journey into research, I quickly discovered the power of model organisms and became interested in studying these simpler systems to understand how the brain processes information from the environment to make decisions.

As my research journey continued, I discovered that it is not only important to study how specific information is processed in one model system but also equally critical to investigate how nature has shaped the brain to solve the same problems across development and evolution. Understanding this phenomenon will provide important insight into how change in underlying circuits informs change in behavior.

To study this, I am interested in comparing how visual information is processed to elicit certain behaviors in zebrafish larvae and juveniles, as well as in other distantly related fish species.

When I’m not working, I’m usually bouldering, hiking, spending time with friends, discovering new food spots, trying to learn to drink Pils instead of Helles, or off traveling the world!