RESEARCH INTERESTS
Carbonate geochemistry, my principal area of specialization in the geological
sciences, utilizes the chemistry and fabric of carbonate minerals to reconstruct
the conditions present in ancient environments. For example, the isotopic
and elemental chemistry of carbonate , whether formed as the shell of an
organism or through abiotic chemical reactions, captures a record of the
temperature and chemistry of fluid from which it was formed. As such, carbonate
chemistry serves as a important proxy for deciphering Earth history. Studies
undertaken in my program have developed new analytical methodologies and
interpretive approaches which have been applied to several areas of exciting
research in the earth sciences. These include: evaluation of secular changes
in ocean chemistry over the last billion years; reconstruction of latitudinal
thermal gradients during times of global warming; and resolution of intra-annual
temperature seasonality for continental settings. The objectives of such
studies are significant for these provide constraints on the directions
and magnitudes of change and the rates at which at these have occurred
in the past. |