biology

Margaret Sordahl

Margaret Sordahl is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Margaret Sordahl rather than just read about it. In short: Margaret Sordahl (1906 – 1995) was an ornithologist who worked for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. She collected two holotype specimens, Erythropygia coryphaeus abboti and Serinus albogularis sordahlae, the latter of which was named in her honour.

Key takeaways

Margaret Sordahl belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Margaret Sordahl to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Margaret Sordahl from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Margaret Sordahl (1906 – 1995) was an ornithologist who worked for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. She collected two holotype specimens, Erythropygia coryphaeus abboti and Serinus albogularis sordahlae, the latter of which was named in her honour.

Biography Margaret Froiland was born in 1906 in Milan. She married Lois Sordahl, who became Field Director for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. The couple met at St. Olaf College.

Whilst the couple were stationed at the Smithsonian's Brukkaros Solar Observatory in Namibia, Sordahl collected many specimen's for the museum's natural science collections, including the holotype for a species of canary, Serinus albogularis sordahlae. The species was subsequently named after her. As an eponym, she was honoured since she "maintained her interest in zoological collecting under rather trying and difficult circumstances". She described the bird and its behaviour, stating that "these birds stay on the mountains during the whole year, living on top of the mountain during the hottest months of the year". Sordahl also collected another new species of robin, Erythropygia coryphaeus abboti, which was named after Charles G. Abbot, who was Director of the Smithsonian. Twenty-seven species were collected by her - ten were new to the Smithsonian's collection and two were new to science. Other birds collected, included a starling, a shrike that "whistles like boys", a bulbul and other desert-dwelling species. Margaret's brother also accompanied the couple to Namibia.

Death and legacy Margaret Sordahl died in 1995 in Friendswood. Her field notebook and other archival material relating to her time in Namibia, is held by the Smithsonian Institution Archives.

References

External links Diary entries - 1930-1932 Explorations and field work of the Smithsonian

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Margaret Sordahl

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Margaret Sordahl claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Margaret Sordahl before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Margaret Sordahl ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Margaret Sordahl

In research: Margaret Sordahl appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Margaret Sordahl in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Margaret Sordahl is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1906 births, 1995 deaths, 20th-century American women biologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Margaret Sordahl outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Margaret Sordahl in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Margaret Sordahl means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Margaret Sordahl out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Margaret Sordahl in simple terms?

Why does Margaret Sordahl matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Margaret Sordahl?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Margaret Sordahl.