Zachary Zeisler — Personal Website

The academic website of Zachary R. Zeisler, PhD, a systems neuroscientist studying the structural and functional organization of frontal and limbic circuits that support advanced cognition in primates.

Purpose

This site documents ongoing and published research on:

• Comparative neuroanatomy of amygdala–frontal circuits (mice, macaques, humans)
• Circuit physiology of reward learning in behaving macaques
• Population dynamics and intrinsic timescales across species

Primary audience: neuroscience colleagues, students, collaborators, and reviewers in the primate systems-neuroscience community.

Sections

1. Hero — Name, research focus, affiliation, links to CV and academic profiles
2. About — Research interests and brief biography
3. Recognition — Cajal Club Krieg Cortical Scholar Award (2025)
4. Research — Three thematic threads spanning PhD and postdoctoral work
5. Publications — Peer-reviewed papers and invited book chapters
6. Invited Talks & Selected Presentations — Conference and departmental talks
7. Appointments — Current postdoctoral position, PhD, and undergraduate training
8. Teaching, Mentoring & Outreach — TA, mentorship, and STEM-advocacy service
9. Contact — Email and academic profile links

Design Choices

Dark Theme

• Background: Deep near-black (#050508) for a clean, low-glare academic reading experience
• Cards: Slightly elevated dark (#0a0a10) with subtle borders
• Text: High contrast white primary text with muted secondary text

The dark theme is professional, screen-friendly, and avoids the visual heaviness of light themes for long reading sessions.

Bento Grid Layout

• Sections arranged as modular "tiles" on a 12-column grid
• Creates clear visual hierarchy without the rigidity of stacked sections
• Each tile is self-contained and can be re-ordered without layout breakage
• Fully responsive — collapses gracefully on tablet and mobile

Color Palette

• Primary accent: Cyan (#06b6d4)
• Secondary accent: Blue (#3b82f6)
• Borders: Very subtle white transparencies for depth without harsh lines

Typography

• Headings: Outfit (modern, geometric sans-serif)
• Body: Inter (highly readable, designed for screens)

Both Google Fonts are loaded via CDN for fast, consistent rendering.

Tech Stack

• HTML5 — Semantic, accessible markup
• CSS3 — Custom styles with CSS variables, Grid, and Flexbox
• JavaScript — Minimal (mobile nav toggle only)
• No frameworks — Lightweight, fast-loading static site
• Deployed via GitHub Pages — Free hosting with custom domain support

Deployment

1. Push changes to the main branch
2. GitHub Pages automatically deploys from / (root)
3. Custom domain zachzeisler.com configured via CNAME

File Structure

/
├── index.html              # Main page content
├── style.css               # All styles
├── script.js               # Mobile navigation
├── _config.yml             # Jekyll config (for GitHub Pages)
├── CNAME                   # Custom domain
├── assets/
│   ├── headshot.jpg        # Profile photo
│   └── cajalclub_award.jpg # Cajal Club award ceremony photo
├── Zeisler CV.pdf          # Downloadable academic CV
└── README.md               # This file

Updating Content

• Edit index.html to change text content
• Edit style.css to modify styling
• Replace images in assets/ folder
• Update Zeisler CV.pdf with the latest CV version
• Commit and push changes — deployment is automatic