Research
I am a clastic sedimentary geologist whose research focuses on (1) reconstructing the processes by which ancient floodplains were constructed, (2) interpreting past climates using sedimentary proxies, and (3) the impact of past climate change on fluvial ecosystems, including the depositional system and the flora and fauna inhabiting that depositional setting. I use sedimentary proxies, particularly paleosols, to interpret precipitation changes during Eocene hyperthermals (periods of dramatic and rapid temperature rise) and how the climate changes affected the nature and rate of sediment deposition on Eocene floodplains. In collaboration with other geoscientists, I also work to understand how the changes in climate and paleoenvironment affected the nature of and rates of biotic change and the nature of fossil preservation.