Hi, I’m Amy, a big fan of genetics, conservation, and fishy science! I graduated from University of Victoria with a B.Sc. in Biology in 2019. Currently, I’m a master’s student with Dr. Eric B. Taylor, working with the great team at the Taylor Lab. My research is on “Species and Speciation in Western North American Char (which is a fish)”. For my thesis, I’m in the process of testing molecular tools to differentiate among char species and I’m also investigating the hybrid zone of two Dolly Varden subspecies in Chignik Lake Alaska.
At UBC, I’ve taught BIOL 230 – Fundamentals of Ecology, BIOL 121 – Genetics, Evolution, and Ecology, BIOL 121 (Land One), and BIOL 445 – Darwin’s Fishes. As an undergraduate at UVic, I taught BIOL 184, Evolution and Biodiversity.
I’m also a self-proclaimed pufferfish enthusiast.
You can find me on Twitter at @Tetraodontidaes, and check out the Researchers Revealed video on my work here: https://explore.beatymuseum.ubc.ca/researchers-revealed/a_liu/
What do you most enjoy about being a TA?
I enjoy making people feel excited, motivated, and passionate about what they’re learning because if it’s fun then learning is a positive experience and not a chore. I approach teaching like a solving a puzzle – I like taking concepts I found difficult when learning and teaching those concepts in an effective and simpler way. For example, I always had the hardest time wrapping my head around terms like genes and loci and how they relate. When teaching those terms, I always draw out the terms for my students and provide simple relatable examples for them to follow.
What has being a TA brought to your graduate studies experience?
Being a TA has taught me how to learn and communicate effectively – which is an incredible skill in my graduate studies because you never stop learning and communicating. In addition, it’s always great to refresh my memory on fundamental concepts. I always look forward to TAing a class because I am learning as much as I am teaching!
What has been an interesting outcome of your TA experience?
Being friends with so many cool professors I don’t think I would have interacted with otherwise. They’ve been great mentors and have provided me with a lot of laughs, cookies, and guidance when working together.
What opportunities relating to teaching and learning have you been a part of?
I have worked as a coordinator of the LEEF program connecting graduate students and teachers across the lower mainland to deliver classroom lessons on ecology and evolution. I also highly recommend attending the BioTAP workshops, which are always very informative, fun, and run by amazing instructors. I’m super grateful to be the recipient of the 2021 Killam Graduate Teaching Award.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I’m a traditional and digital artist. I like working with oil, and acrylic painting, and watercolour pencils. I also enjoy hiking, kickboxing, pickling vegetables, and video games. One day I’ll own a big fish tank. 🙂
What are your plans following graduation?
I’m going to take a break from academia after finishing my master’s and work on fishy science elsewhere! So far, I’ve only had 6 months of my graduate program out of COVID times, and I think I need some time to recuperate from the pandemic and really figure out what I’d like to work on. A job with income would be nice for now! And after that, who knows? I might come back to do a PhD and take the fish world by storm in due time.