" While color and brightness patterns are widely used in animal communications, some animals have evolutionarily discovered the use of polarized-light patterns for signaling. In this talk, I will discuss the use of polarization signals in a group of marine crustaceans, the stomatopods (commonly called mantis shrimps). These animals have unusual biological polarizers, some based on principles that are poorly understood and are not used in any artificial polarization systems. Even more unusual is their use of circularly polarized light for communication. Mantis shrimps are the only animals known to sense the handedness of circularly polarized light, and use this sensory modality in their signaling behavior."

Physics Bldg., room 401