Anna Thanukos is Principal Editor at the University of California Museum of Paleontology. She holds a Masters in Integrative Biology and a PhD in Science Education from UC Berkeley. A former community college biology teacher, Anna is a primary author for the award-winning Understanding Evolution (http://evolution.berkeley.edu/) and Understanding Science (http://undsci.berkeley.edu/) websites. She has also served as an editorial board member and contributing author of the journal Evolution: Education and Outreach and has taught professional development courses for instructors on the teaching of evolutionary biology. She is broadly interested in the design of educational materials for the teaching and learning of biology (especially evolutionary theory and population genetics), public understanding of evolution and the nature of science, and the ramifications of these understandings in people’s everyday lives.
Current Projects
Beyond the Understanding Evolution website, Anna currently works on a number of projects related to evolution education, including:
The National Evolutionary Synthesis Center’s Evolution Concept Inventories Working Group. Anna is working with a group of researchers and educators to develop a concept inventory on genetic drift.
The National Evolutionary Synthesis Center’s DRYADLab project. This project aims to develop activities for advanced placement, undergraduate, and graduate-level courses that encourage students to interact directly with authentic scientific data and develop critical analytic skills. Anna is currently working with other researchers and educators on a project about extinction risk.
Teaching Evolution through Human Examples. Anna will act as an advisor to this new project from the Smithsonian’s Human Origins Program, which aims to increase students’ and teachers’ understanding of evolution and develop materials for teaching human evolution.
Related Publications
Thanukos, A., J.G. Scotchmoor, R. Caldwell, and D.R. Lindberg. 2010. Science 101: Building the foundations for real understanding. Science. 330: 1764-1765.
Lombrozo, T., A. Thanukos, and M. Weisberg. 2008. The importance of understanding the nature of science for accepting evolution. Evolution: Education and Outreach. 1(3): 290-298. (http://www.springerlink.com/content/f82518w0p8531512/fulltext.html)
Scotchmoor, J. and A. Thanukos. 2007. Building an understanding of evolution: An online resource for teaching and learning. McGill Journal of Education. 42(2):225-244. (http://mje.mcgill.ca/article/view/2221/1691)