Current Postdoctoral Associates
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Fire is a critical catalyst of climate and vegetation change across the globe. Future shifts in fire regimes-associated with anthropogenic change-may alter ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles on a global scale. I propose to synthesize published data on fuel production, climate, and ignition sources with reconstructed fire histories to investigate the determinants of fire frequency. Results will provide insights into historical fire patterns and bolster predictions of future fire regimes in an era of accelerating global land-cover and climate change. (NSF-NCEAS)
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Products traditionally made from natural materials are being replaced by man-made materials such as plastics that are lighter, cheaper, more durable, and less flammable. When these materials reach the end of their life, they are discarded as waste. When this waste is not managed properly, these man-made materials enter marine habitats where they can harm organisms, reduce the quality of our seafood, and contaminate habitats and waterways used for recreation (e.g. swimming, surfing, and running). I am investigating where marine debris comes from, where it goes, and what effects it has on wildlife and humans. In doing so, I am providing information about the types of problems, where and when they occur, and how best to reduce them.
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The effect of a species going extinct depends on its role in a food web and the structure of the food web itself. To understand these consequences, I’m interested in bringing together the fields of biodiversity-ecosystem function research and food web network theory. At NCEAS, I will focus on developing theory relating food web network structure to trophic transfer and compare these results to experimental and time-series data.
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 Mariah Carbone (805) 892-2520 mcarbone  nceas [dot] ucsb [dot] edu (Email)Website |
I am broadly interested in the response of terrestrial ecosystems to environmental change, and their role in Earth’s climate system. Specifically, I study carbon cycling in plants and soils, with expertise in the application of isotopes as tracers of processes. My NCEAS research will synthesize existing soil respiration datasets that span a range of ecosystem types, with particular emphasis on arid ecosystems, to improve our basic understanding of controls on soil respiration and its mechanistic representation in global climate models.
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My research will evaluate the effects of climate change on endemic plankton communities in one of the world’s largest lakes: Lake Baikal, Siberia. Using a unique 60-year data set, I will determine the main environmental drivers of zooplankton community dynamics and evaluate whether endemic species are likely to be replaced by common cosmopolitan species. My analyses will contribute to a collaborative project aimed at evaluating the potential impacts of climate change on the food web of this distinct ecosystem.
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Evolutionary processes (e.g., natural selection and evolution) may have strong, contemporary effects on population dynamics. However, understanding the overall magnitude and importance of these effects requires further evaluation. My research uses information on the form and magnitude of natural selection to quantify the effects of trait variation and selection on population dynamics. One goal of this research is to quantify the demographic costs of trait variation and selection for broad variety of traits and organisms. (NSF NCEAS)
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(805) 892-2512
lancaster
nceas [dot] ucsb [dot] edu (Email) |
It is generally unknown whether communities currently exhibiting relatively high biodiversity also promote the evolutionary process of diversification (i.e. speciation). At NCEAS, I am comparing diversification rates among temperate angiosperm clades that have diverged in community membership and niche use. I hope to determine key biological interactions or abiotic conditions which may generally promote speciation and/or reduce extinction across diverse clades. My goal is to target some habitats and communities most important for conservation of future biodiversity. (NSF NCEAS)
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I am intrigued by ecological processes at several scales, from populations to ecosystems, and the challenge to translate them to tractable models serving conservation purposes. Building on my experience in indicators of fishing effects, with emphasis on biodiversity metrics, at NCEAS I am contributing to the development of a methodology to globally assess ocean health. The goal is to combine indicators of the relevant ecological and socio-economic parameters within a framework that is, at the same time, scientifically sound and understand-able to the wider public. (Ocean Health Index)
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The C3 and C4 photosynthetic pathway is a fundamental physiological and ecological distinction in tropical savannas and grasslands. Although C4 plants account for 20-25% of global terrestrial productivity, large uncertainties remain regarding their response to climate variability and future climate change. My research addresses the spatial and temporal response of C3 and C4 grasses to interannual climate variability such as El Niño-Southern Oscillation using herbarium, climate, and satellite data over several decades. (NSF NCEAS)
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As a member of the DataONE project, I help create and evaluate learning resources and communication strategies for engaging environmental researchers, students, and educators in sound data management practices. I support the growth of the DataONE user community and interactions between its members, and enhance DataONE visibility to researchers, decision makers, and educators. I also work toward improving public communication about science related to controversial environmental issues such as global climate change through algorithmic processing of text and content analysis of visual images.
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Understanding the extent and cause of tropical insect diversity is challenging and comprehending that diversity generally requires two approaches: 1) rigorous surveys and taxon inventories of insects at particular sites; and 2) reconstructing quantitative food webs demonstrating trophic interactions between species. These two approaches lead to insights on the structuring of insect communities and encompass the major goals of my NCEAS project, which synthesizes extensive biodiversity and genetic datasets for a dominant group of tropical parasitic wasps from Costa Rica. (NSF NCEAS)
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As a participant in the CAMEO project, I will be compiling existing long-term plankton data sets from a variety of marine ecosystems and using a multivariate autoregressive (MAR) model to assess the trophic structure and stability of those systems. This model has been applied previously to freshwater datasets, but must be adapted for use with low resolution, highly variable marine data. The ultimate goal of this project is to produce new modeling tools that will help us better understand and manage marine ecosystems. (NSF-NOAA CAMEO)
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To date, scientists from different disciplines have mainly studied parts of the global seafood marketplace in isolation, without understanding the linkages between the drivers of seafood trade and consumption and the ecological consequences of its production.This project seeks to apply global value chain analysis to commercially significant seafood species to identify lead firms, governance and institutional components, and leverage points in the value chains that, if targeted, could lead to better outcomes for marine social-ecological systems.
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Stephanie Pau
Josephine Rodriguez
