September 22 - Knight Science Journalism at MIT Offices, E19-623, 4pm
Gauging Ecosystem Response to Climate Change
Charles Marshall, Director, Museum of Paleontology, Department of Integrative
Biology, University of California, Berkeley.
The fossil record is evolution's time machine. The Marshall lab uses
paleontological data, typically in conjunction with neontological data and
computer simulation, augmented with numerical analysis, to understand the
history of life and the processes that have shaped it.
"I am interested in how paleontology informs our understanding of the history
of life, especially the processes that control it," Charles says. He has broad
research interests, including integrating both paleontological and molecular
phylogenetic data to look at speciation and extinction rates at different times
in the past. A confessed math-lover, he also develops quantitative methods to
compensate for the incompleteness of the fossil record; his work looks at the
rapidity and timing of mass extinctions, diversification, and the calibration
of molecular clocks. His research also has a strong empirical component — he
has published papers on the functional morphology of diverse taxa, including
fossil plants, marine invertebrates, and the fish-amphibian transition. His
current research examines the synergy of tectonic processes, climate change,
and changes in diversity on geologic timescales, as well as the importance of
new genomic data in our understanding of the Cambrian explosion.
For more information visit: http://ib.berkeley.edu/labs/marshall/
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