Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
2010 - Present: California Institute of Technology Ph.D. Candidate, Geobiology
2005 –2009: Brown University Honors in Bachelor of Sciences; Concentration: Geo-Biology Thesis under Professor Jessica Whiteside: “Pleistocene-Like Orbital Forcing of mid-Devonian Ecosystems”
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
July 2008 – May 2009: Undergraduate Student Researcher at Brown University Researcher in the Whiteside terrestrial paleoclimatology lab: chemical and isotopic analyses of bulk and compound-specific organic carbon matter, quantization of preserved alkane abundances, and spectral analyses of cyclical isotopic and ecological proxy patterns.
Sept – Dec 2007: Lab Assistant at Brown University Preparing Pennsylvanian terrestrial sedimentary samples for use in paleoclimate reconstruction, under Professor Jessica Whiteside.
Nov 2006 – August 2007: Lab Assistant at Brown University Preparing and selecting appropriate foraminifera species from Pliocene ocean sedimentary samples for use in paleoclimate reconstruction, under Professor Tim
Oct 2006: Field Assistant for GSA Field Trip Assistant for Paul Olsen and Jessica Whiteside at Fall GSA (Geological Society of America) Field Trip.
May – July 2006: NSF Undergrad Student Researcher in Earth Sciences Dept, USC Performed a preliminary isotopic study on carbonate-associated sulfate (CAS) during the Triassic-Jurassic Mass Extinction under Professor Dave Bottjer and Professor Frank Corsetti: prepared samples for study, isolated sulfates, petrographic analyses of thin sections of samples, analysis of trace element and sulfur isotopic data, a final presentation and write-up, and a presentation to a geology group at fall GSA meeting.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Sept – Dec 2008: Teaching Assistant at Brown University Mentor and teaching aid for 80-90 college students in Physical Processes in Geology at Brown University; Co-led exploratory laboratories to support and strengthen class lessons; Co-led a field trip group to explore hands-on geology; Assisted in both group review sessions and individual help; Graded homework assignments and lab write-ups.
Sept – Dec 2007: Teaching Assistant - Stratigraphy and Sedimentation Mentor and teaching aid for ~20 college students at Brown University; Co-led exploratory laboratories to support and strengthen class lessons; Co-led two weekend field trips to explore hands-on geology; Assisted and led both group review sessions, computer programming lessons, and individual help.
PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS
Grogan, D., Whiteside, J.H., Trewin, N. H., Johnson, J.E., Linking Fossil Fish Cyclicity and Paleoenvironmental Proxies in the mid-Devonian. American Geophysical Union, Abstract # PP31B-1308.
Johnson, J., Whiteside, J., Trewin, N., Andrews, S., Johnson, C., 2008, Orbital forcing of Devonian lacustrine ecosystems. Eos Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 89(53), Fall Meeting Supplement, Abstract #PP21B-1424.
EXTRACURRICULARS
Aug – Nov 2009: Program Assistant and Caregiver at an NGO in Nepal Wrote grant proposals, reports, case histories in Nepal at a Friends of Needy Children care center for children with HIV; Assisted with general fundraising for the center; Created a website and blog for the center (www.fnc-nepal/fnc-projects/mspn-nepal and www.mspnnepal.wordpress.com); Cared for 6-12 HIV-positive children; Assisted with teaching math and English to children ranging from 4 to 10.