Joe LaManna

Postdoctoral Research Associate

“I did something called the New England Literature Program, which was fantastic. We went out for two months and lived at a campground in cabins. We journaled every day, immersed ourselves in nature, read a lot of New England poets and wrote as much as we could. Not just writing creatively but also any of our scientific observations. Writing about nature led me in this roundabout way back to science. It got me into nature writing, which was always something that attracted me. Writers like Gary Snyder, Thoreau, Emerson and Emily Dickinson, brought me back to science.

We can talk about the stats, means, averages, trends, and data, and that speaks to one type of person very well. But in my experience, it helps to have something else to latch onto. Writing about nature from a creative or an artistic perspective helps me in my scientific writing. I guess what I'm saying is that an effective way to communicate about science and to bring people into science is with music, art, and poetry.”

Joe is a member of Jonathan Myers' Forest Biodiversity team. Learn more about his prescribed fire experiment here.