(Posted November 1, 2005)

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Juniata College biologist and nationally known author of several comic book series, Jay Hosler, will talk on "Comic Book Science" as part of the Bookend Lecture Series at 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 9 in Neff Lecture Hall in the von Liebig Center for Science on the Juniata campus.

The lecture is free and open to the public. The talk is part of the Bookend Seminar series, which features afternoon lectures each month by Juniata College faculty.

Science has always relied on illustrations or visual images to help people understand concepts and theories. In his talk Hosler will explain what role comic books can play in helping readers understand scientific concepts and ideas.

Hosler will open his lecture by outlining the rise and fall of the American comic book in popular culture. He will then transition into his own career as a cartoonist and comic-book author. Hosler has created two comic book series: "Clan Apis," a story centering on the life cycle of a bee, and "The Sandwalk Adventures," which tells the story of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution through the prism of a very small organism. Finally, Hosler will talk about some preliminary data he has investigated on how readers perceive information through comic books.

Hosler came to Juniata in 1999 from Ohio State University's Rothenbuhler Honey Bee Research Laboratory where he was a National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Fellow. He earned a bachelor's degree in biological sciences in 1989 from DePauw University. Hosler earned a doctoral degree in biological sciences in 1995 from the University of Notre Dame.

As a postdoctoral researcher, Hosler was awarded a National Research Service Award from the National Institute of Health to study olfactory processing in honey bees. He has published articles and abstracts in various journals including the Journal of Experimental Biology, Behavioral Neuroscience, the Journal of Insect Physiology, the Journal of Experimental Psychology, and the Journal of Comparative Psychology.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.