Bio
The primary goal of research in the Patek laboratory is to examine the dynamic interplay between evolutionary processes and the mechanics of organisms.
Education
- Ph.D. Duke University, 2001
Positions
- Professor of Biology
Awards, Honors, and Distinctions
- Guggenheim Award. John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. 2015
- Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program. National Science Foundation. 2013
- Christopher Clavius, S.J. Award . Sigma Xi, St. Joseph’s University. 2009
- George A Bartholomew Award. Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. 2008
- Radcliffe Institute Fellowship. Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. 2008
- Brilliant 10 Award. Popular Science Magazine. 2004
Courses Taught
- BIOLOGY 791T: Tutorial
- BIOLOGY 590S: Seminar (Topics)
- BIOLOGY 493: Research Independent Study
- BIOLOGY 429S: How Organisms Move
- BIOLOGY 329L: Principles of Animal Physiology
- BIOLOGY 293: Research Independent Study
In the News
- Duke 100 Trailblazer: Sheila Patek (Nov 14, 2024 | Duke Centennial)
- Blink and You’ll Miss These Plants Shooting Their Seeds (Aug 23, 2023 | Duke Today)
- Undergraduate Research: Moving from Absorbing Knowledge to Creating It (Dec 9, 2022 | Trinity College of Arts and Sciences)
- A Better Way to Find Student Research (Feb 1, 2022 | Duke Research Blog)
- Baby Mantis Shrimp Don’t Pull Their Punches (Apr 29, 2021)
- Tiny Crustacean Redefines Ultra-Fast Movement (Feb 8, 2021)
- Five New Bass Professors Named for Excellence in Teaching and Research (Apr 23, 2020)
- Leaping Larvae! How Do They Even Do That Without Legs? (Aug 8, 2019)
- Why a Robot Can't Yet Outjump a Flea (Apr 26, 2018)
- Mantis Shrimp Size Each Other Up Before Ceding a Fight (Jan 17, 2018)
- Why Do Research for the Sake of Knowing? (May 31, 2016 | Duke Today)
- Sheila Patek: Why research for the pure sake of knowing is enough (May 26, 2016 | PBS NewsHour)
- Here’s what happened when a group of scientists went to confront their congressional tormentors (Apr 15, 2016 | The Huffington Post)
- Professor Patek Goes to Washington, Talks Up Research (Apr 15, 2016)
- The Benefits of 'Strange Science' (Apr 5, 2016 | Duke Magazine)
- Is Mantis Shrimp Research a Waste of Money? How 'Wastebook' Misses the Big Picture (Dec 7, 2015 | Duke Research Blog)
- Mantis shrimps avoid deadly fights by pummeling each other (Sep 23, 2015 | The Atlantic)
- Fisticuffs Among the Mantis Shrimp (Sep 23, 2015 | Duke Research Blog)
- The ant that blasts itself out of danger with its face (Aug 7, 2015 | Wired)
- Sheila Patek: Ant-Man's real-life rivals (Jul 17, 2015 | National Geographic)
- How mantis shrimps spar (Jun 18, 2015 | Science News)
- How Mantis Shrimp Evolved Many Shapes with Same Powerful Punch (Feb 27, 2015)
Representative Publications
- Jorge, Justin F., Sarah Bergbreiter, and S. N. Patek. “Pendulum-based measurements reveal impact dynamics at the scale of a trap-jaw ant.” The Journal of Experimental Biology 224, no. Pt 5 (March 2021): jeb232157. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.232157.
- Longo, S. J., W. Ray, G. M. Farley, J. Harrison, J. Jorge, T. Kaji, A. R. Palmer, and S. N. Patek. “Snaps of a tiny amphipod push the boundary of ultrafast, repeatable movement.” Current Biology : CB 31, no. 3 (February 2021): R116–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.12.025.