The Fish Laboratory
An Aquatic Animal Research Laboratory
THE F. W. OLIN BUILDING

Southwestern University Georgetown, Texas 78626 Phone: 512-863-6511

The Fish Lab is located on the first floor of the F.W. Olin Building. The lab is directed by Dr. Jesse Purdy of the Psychology Department. Dr. Purdy is a comparative psychologist with interests in animal learning and behavior. The lab offers the opportunity for students to conduct basic research with aquatic animals studying the evolution of intelligence, foraging strategies and defensive behaviors in aquatic organisms.

The laboratory houses various holding tanks containing both fresh water and salt water aquatic species. The research equipment includes computer controlled animal mazes that record the animal's behavior when presented with a various schedules of stimuli and rewards. The central equipment used in the video tracking and motion analysis of the animals is the EthoVision System manufactured by Noldus Information Technology. T he computer system managing the operant conditioning experiments is the National Instruments software package LabView

Psychology students obtain hands-on and practical experience in the laboratory in such courses as Research Methods, Animal Behavior, Animal Learning and Research in Biopsychology.

The Research Methods and Animal Behavior courses are taught in the The Psychology Lab on the second floor of the Olin Building.

Dr. Purdy has conducted research and presented and published work with 35 of his students. His work with cuttlefish has been featured on the Discovery Channel's "World of Wonder"

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Other Rooms:

  • The Forum
  • The Lecture Hall
  • The Electronic Classroom
  • The Computer Lab
  • The Psychology Lab
  • The Video Equipped Seminar Classroom

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