Dr. Pranav Minasandra
Postdoc
Research Group Strandburg-Peshkin
Main Focus
My work deals with animal behavioural processes at various scales, and uses quantitative techniques and novel theoretical approaches. In my PhD, I have uncovered common patterns in behavioural sequences at the fine-scale across species. I also work on the spatio-temporal coordination of vigilance in meerkats, and synchronisation of daily activity patterns in spotted hyenas. You can read my PhD dissertation here. Currently, I primarily focus on the dynamics of active and inactive behaviours in baboons.
Extra information
I am a computational biologist and ethologist trying to understand the fundamental decision-making elements that shape behaviour across species. Instant-to-instant, animals decide what to do based on complex, hierarchical decision-making rules and goals, factoring in internal, social, and environmental factors. The grand sum of all these rules can be thought of as a behavioural 'algorithm' by which the animal decides its actions. Although deciphering these algorithms in their entirety is beyond current human ability, my goal is to find fundamental elements and aspects of such decision-making that holds true across species. I use accelerometer data and machine learning methods as well as a range of methods from mathematics and physics to address this problem.