I’m an associate professor at Volda Universtiy College in the Department of Science and Mathematics. Previously, I was a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Dr. Yehuda Ben-Shahar in the Department of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis. I completed my PhD in the lab of Dr. Andrew Barron in the Department of Biological Sciences at Macquarie University. My research interests focuses on the evolutionary history of nervous system complexity and how different animals are able to solve the same problems using different neural architectures and solutions.

Publications:

• Søvik, E and Perry, C. J. (2016) The evolutionary history of consciousness Animal Sentience 1:19.

• Peso, M., Even, N., Søvik, E., Naeger, N.L, Robnson, G.E., Barron, A.B. (2016) Physiology of reproductive worker honey bees (Apis mellifera): insights for the development of the worker caste. Journal of Comparative Physiology 202:147-158.

• Søvik, E., Bloch, G., Ben-Shahar. (2015) Function and evolution of microRNAs in eusocial Hymenoptera. Frontiers in Genetics 6:193.

• Søvik, E., Perry, C. J., LaMora, A., Barron, A. B., and Ben-Shahar, Y. (2015) Negative impact of manganese on honeybee foraging. Biology Letters 11:3.

• Perry, C.J.*, Søvik, E.*, Myerscough, M.R., and Barron, A.B. (2015) Rapid behavioral maturation accelerates failure of stressed honey bee colonies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, U.S.A. 112(11):3427–3432 *joint first-author

• Søvik, E., Perry, C.J., and Barron, A.B. (2015) Insect reward systems: comparing flies and bees. Advances in Insect Physiology. 48:189-226.

• Søvik, E., Even, N., Radford, C.W., and Barron. A.B. (2014) Cocaine affects foraging behaviour and biogenic amine modulated behavioural reflexes in honey bees. PeerJ 2:e662.

• Scheiner, R., Toteva, A., Reim, T., Søvik, E., and Barron, A.B. (2014) Differences in the phototaxis of pollen and nectar foraging honey bees are related to their octopamine brain titers. Frontiers in physiology 5:116.

• Søvik, E. and Barron, A.B. (2013) Invertebrate models in addiction research. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 82:153-165.

• Søvik, E., Cornish, J.L., and Barron, A.B. (2013) Cocaine tolerance in honey bees. PLOS One 8:e65920.

• Barron, A.B., Søvik, E., and Cornish, J.L. (2010) The roles of dopamine and related compounds in reward-seeking behavior across animal phyla. Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience 4:163.