Ep75 In memory of Dr Hal Markowitz. Autumn Sorrells on behavioural enrichment, connections, and making a difference for animals

<p>This podcast is dedicated to Dr Hal Markowitz (1934-2013)</p> <p class="_04xlpA direction-ltr align-start para-style-body"><span class="JsGRdQ">"<em>Hal argued that an unnatural stimulus is better than a natural environment with no stimulation.</em>"</span><span class="JsGRdQ white-space-prewrap">&nbsp;</span><span class="JsGRdQ">- Autumn Sorrells</span></p> <p>Let’s welcome Autumn Sorrell, the Animal Care Director at Elon Musk’s neuro-tech company, Neuralink. She attributes her career to being heavily influenced by the Father of Environmental Enrichment, Dr Hal Markowitz, with whom Autumn worked for the last 10 years of his life. As such, this podcast is the celebration of his life.</p> <p>Autumn undertook an undergraduate agricultural animal science programme at the University of Missouri, Columbia and graduate work at Purdue University. She was granted a scholarship from the USDA to study livestock behaviour and learned to ask animals questions about their environment and preferences. During her undergrad, Autumn pursued various internships in different zoos, reading journals trying to learn more about the behavioural design of enclosures, including one by Hal. This paper inspired her to contact Hal to complete a PhD under his wing.</p> <p>Following communications, Autumn discovered Hal was no longer taking students due to an upcoming surgery removing his throat and tongue. Despite this, she still went to his university where she learnt about lab animal husbandry, becoming the husbandry, behaviour and enrichment manager.</p> <p>Autumn then retells Hal's story, starting with no parental guidance by 14 years of age. He got into an engineering college in Pennsylvania, becoming a full-time engineer in Dougal aircraft company. He noted one part was broken but was dismissed. Following the planes launch, people died, leaving Hal traumatised causing him to leave. He then pursued a PhD in psychology.</p> <p>Hal then became a student-teacher of experimental psychology at Oregon State, where he met his future