As a child growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., Max Taub developed an unusual fascination with houseplants.

"My mom still raves about some of the plants I was able to grow," he says. "But I never thought it would have anything to do with my career."

In fact, it wasn't until Taub was a graduate student that he decided to change the focus of his studies from animals to plants. "While I was at Stony Brook, I began thinking about global changes, specifically the affects of rising CO2 levels on climate. I wanted to know how natural ecosystems might respond to these changes, and the first response comes from plant life. Animals just respond to the plants."

While he had never considered teaching, part of his graduate school education required it. He attended a three-day teaching workshop that he says opened his eyes. "It was an incredibly intense few days. The guy who led the workshop was crazy, but he had some really good ideas about teaching that I hadn't thought about. I saw it as an incredibly difficult challenge—finding a way to reach individual students despite the constraints you are given in a college setting."

After completing his Ph.D. in ecology and evolution, Taub put teaching plans on hold and accepted a post-doctoral research position at the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nev. He spent three years studying how rising CO2 levels affect a plant's ability to tolerate high temperatures.

In the fall of 2000, he got his first full-time teaching job as a visiting assistant professor of biology at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn. He arrived at Southwestern last June. "I really enjoy it here. This is a cool job. I get to talk about things that I find interesting."

Taub believes it is important for his students to participate as much as possible during class so that he can see how well they understand the subject matter. "I want to give them as much feedback on what they are doing as possible and give them multiple opportunities to respond to that feedback."

One of the ways he accomplishes this is by giving daily quizzes that can only help, not hurt, their grade. He'll also hand out multi-colored flashcards for students to hold up in response to a question. "That gives me a better idea of how many of them are with me and how many aren't. I always look for ways to increase communication."

Taub is now gearing up for the biology summer research program, during which he will work closely with two students examining the physiological reasons that cause some grass species to grow in high-fertility soils while others thrive in low-fertility soils.

He also is busy planning for a May wedding. He and his fiancé, Miriam, knew each other as children in New York and met again 23 years later when he moved to Austin. They already have a dog, Emma, and two cats, Tipper and Frida.

Calling himself an "anti-gourmet," Taub loves to experiment in the kitchen. "My cooking philosophy is to get 95 percent of the quality of gourmet for an eighth of the cost and a fourth of the work, while making it healthy at the same time."

He's also a guitarist and enjoys playing blues, bluegrass and folk music.