OLST/FORS 380 Outdoor Recreation Management in New Mexico

BIOL 360/362 Cell Biology and Lab

BIOL 254/256 Anatomy & Physiology I

Vertebrate Biology

Biology 462/464: Comparative Chordate Anatomy, with Lab

Herpetology

BIOL 331/333 Biology of Algae

Ph.D. Analytical Chemistry, 2015-2022, The University of Texas at Austin

I am a paleontologist focusing on aquatic ecosystems in deep time. I use fossil algae and lake sediment chemistry to reconstruct past environments and climates in order to better understand how aquatic ecosystems respond to rapid climate/environmental change.  Lake sediments preserve single-celled algae (specifically, diatoms), allowing scientists to look back in time. As the diatoms die, they fall to the bottom of the lake where they build up over hundreds or thousands of years, creating a record of past ecosystems. By studying the layers of mud, scientists can look back in time and reconstruct the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the lake. This information can give us valuable information about past environments and climate. For example, reconstructing lake level can reveal patterns of drought including intensity and frequency over thousands of years. The question then becomes, what caused those droughts and how did humans adapt to those periods with lowered precipitation.

Stanford University BA with honors, BS with distinction, Phi Beta Kappa 1977