New Faculty
This article was originally printed in the November 1999 issue of CLASnotes.
Bernard Hauser, an assistant professor of botany, comes to UF from the University of California-Davis, where he worked as a postdoctoral researcher. He received his PhD in botany from the University of Georgia. His research focuses on ovule and seed development. "I analyze genetic mutations that alter the development of seeds," he explains. "By thoroughly examining the phenotype of a mutant seed, I can hypothesize the role that the mutated gene plays during seed formation. The information from these studies could furnish insights into how seeds develop and tools for improving crops." Hauser's outside interests include playing soccer, brewing beer and bicycling.
Assistant professor of geography Joshua Comenetz earned his PhD earlier this year from the University of Minnesota. During his doctoral study, Comenetz worked as a cartographer for the Institute on Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota Law School. He's interested in cartography, population, geography and geographic information systems and his current research includes assessing demographic data quality, developing new cartographic techniques and mapping ethnic and Jewish populations. He's currently teaching courses in cartography and population geography. In his free time, Comenetz enjoys travelling.
Assistant professor of linguistics Ratree Wayland comes to UF from University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) where she was an NIH post-doctoral fellow after earning her PhD from Cornell University. Her research interests include experimental phonetics, second language acquisition, sound symbolism and languages and cultures of Southeast Asia. Current projects include experimental research on the acquisition of English consonants and vowels by native speakers of Spanish, the acquisition of tones by speakers of non-tonal languages as well as acoustic investigation of phonation types (modal, breathy voices) in Southeast Asian languages. Her outside interests include reading, cooking, crafts and playing with her two children.
Fred Hamann, an associate professor of astronomy, earned his PhD at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and comes to UF from the University of California-San Diego, where he worked as research physicist. Hamann is interested in quasars, active galactic nuclei, the quasar-host galaxy connection, star formation and galaxy evolution in the early universe. He enjoys classical music, theater, biking, hiking canoeing and getting to know Gainesville and Florida.
