Dr. Trevor Hamilton

MacEwan University

Associate Professor, Psychology

Ph.D. (Alberta)

B.Sc. (McGill)

Dr. Hamilton is a faculty member in the department of Psychology, is an adjunct at the Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute (University of Alberta), and a visiting scholar at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (University of California San Diego) and University of British Columbia (UBC).  He received his Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Alberta and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from McGill University.  He teaches a variety of courses including, Applied Neuropharmacology and Brain and Behaviour.  He has supervised many honours and independent study students on projects related to zebrafish and cichlid learning, memory, and anxiety.

Dr. Hamilton is also actively researching a variety of topics both in the zebrafish laboratory at MacEwan and in collaboration with other institutes.  At the zebrafish laboratory, his students have been examining the effect of elevated carbon dioxide (projected for the future) on zebrafish movement, memory, and anxiety.  Other research includes establishing novel and reliable tests of learning and memory in fish; namely the novel object recognition test and episodic-like memory tests.  A third area of interest is the effect of pharmacological substances on fish behaviour.  In the past his students have examined patterns of drug administration and the nature of addiction. 

Expertise
Neuroscience, climate change, ocean acidification, behaviour, zebrafish

Teaching and Research Interests

Teaching

• PSYC 104 Introduction to Psychology

• PSYC 275 Brain and Behaviour

• PSYC 375 Applied Neuropharmacology

• PSYC 405 Neuropharmacology of Zebrafish

• PSYC 406 Neuroscience of Climate Change

Research focus

• Learning and memory in zebrafish and cichlids

• Ocean and freshwater acidification and their impact on fish

• Psychopharmacology in zebrafish