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Marjorie
M. Holland ’74
What do I remember about
Dr. Elizabeth Horner? Enthusiasm, love of the living world,
interest in her students, love of Smith College, commitment
to her research, and incredible respect for each and every
animal she ever met. I remember taking a class in Animal
Behavior with Betty Horner in the Fall of 1973 while she
was director of the live animal quarters in the basement
of Burton Hall. Dr. Horner gave each student a choice as
to what species we wanted to work with, and we had permission
to visit these animals and to record our observations of
their activities. I chose a family of mice, and would sit
on the floor of their cubicle for hours waiting for them
to come out of their hiding places so I could see them. On
the day that they all scurried across my lap, I had to let
Betty know what had transpired. Betty was as excited as I
was about the behavior of the individual mice. After I told
her about my observations, she proceeded to share stories
of various collecting trips across the American southwest
and throughout Australia. As a graduate student I was very
impressed by her enthusiasm for everything. Years later when
Betty joined my students and me for a course in Costa Rica,
my undergraduates were equally impressed with Betty's enthusiasm
for everything we could find in the Monteverde cloud forest. |
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