By SORTEE | March 14, 2022
[SORTEE member voices is a weekly Q&A with a different SORTEE member]
Name: Maxime Fraser Franco.
Date: 06 July 2021.
Position: PhD Student.
Research and/or work interests: My main research interest is on predator-prey interactions. I focus on studying the ecological and proximal mechanisms that shape the coexistence of foraging specialists and generalists within predator populations. More precisely, I evaluate how individual differences in predator foraging specialization defines individual differences in the type of prey they capture. These dynamics can be shaped by prey behaviour, habitat structure, and predator experience.
Testing ecological hypotheses of individual behavioural variation in wild populations of free-ranging predators can impose considerable ethical, logistical, and financial challenges. Thus, to circumvent some of these difficulties, a part of my work is done using online multiplayer video games as my study system. Virtual worlds contain structured environments where complex trophic and social interactions occur. Some video game types, such as asymmetrical multiplayer horror games, can realistically reproduce a predator-prey interaction within multiple types of habitats. For instance, in these games, players vary in the strategies they use to succeed, while managing navigation and interactions within the virtual environment. Thus, although video games come with their own biases (as any study system) and are a simplified representation of reality, I believe they can provide valuable ecological insight for ecologists.
What ‘ORT’ practice have you introduced into your research practice that you’ve found really helpful?
Using data and code sharing platforms within my framework. It changed considerably the way I do my science, but most importantly, I think that it can indirectly affect other scientists in a positive way. What I mean by that is that sharing code and data on platforms such as “GitHub” and “Open Science Framework” can help other scientists in acquiring knowledge about coding, computational tools, and “ORT”, as it did for me. A fair amount of my own expertise in “ORT” was developed by looking at the code and data that authors in my field of study shared along with their scientific articles. Thus, I believe that sharing our data and methods will help and encourage other scientists to follow along and adopt “ORT” practices within their work.
Where is someplace you’ve never visited but would like to? Why do you want to visit there?
I would love to visit Brazil, and more precisely, São Paulo. There is something about Brazil and this city that attracts me. Is it the food (I think I haven’t even tried Brazilian food), the culture, the language, I don’t know. One thing for sure is that my father always made me listen to Brazilian music (particularly bossa nova) when I was young, and I’ve been in love with it ever since. I also remember that watching the movie “Cidade de Deus” (even though the movie takes place in Rio de Janeiro) cemented my interest in visiting the country at least once in my life.