Released: May 6, 1999

Anderson honored in Centre College research program

DANVILLE, KY -- Chris Anderson, a Mason County graduate and former Maysville resident, is one of seven Centre College students honored this year in the John C. Young Scholars program. The program provides a stipend for outstanding senior to collaborate with a Centre professor in advanced research. All of the scholars will present their results in a campus symposium set for May 15.

Anderson has collaborated with Michael Barton of the Centre biology program in a project focused on a certain type of fish native to New Providence Island in the Bahamas. Barton began a study several years ago to determine whether a new species of pupfish had evolved on the island in some of the many inland lakes.

Using a scanning electron microscope, Anderson has studied the scales of numerous pupfish looking for distinctive characteristics. Barton says Anderson has accomplished a great deal this year, and the Centre professor will report some of their work at science conference in June.

This is Anderson's third significant research experience as part of his undergraduate studies. During the summer of 1997, he collaborated with Barton in a broader study of pupfish on New Providence. During the summer of 1998, Anderson was chosen for a highly competitive research team at the University of California-Los Angeles. With that team, he studied the effect of hormones on brain development.

Anderson plans to pursue advanced study in evolutionary biology or ecology.

Anderson is a graduate of Mason County High School and is the son of Gregory and Carol Anderson, who now live in Louisville.

The John C. Young Scholars program is named in honor of the fourth president of Centre College.

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