Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability


Showing 101-147 of 147 Results

  • Joshua Ott

    Joshua Ott

    Ph.D. Student in Aeronautics and Astronautics, admitted Autumn 2021
    Ph.D. Minor, Earth and Planetary Sciences

    BioJoshua is a fourth-year Ph.D. Candidate in Aeronautics & Astronautics at Stanford University and is a recipient of the Stanford Graduate Fellowship (SGF) in Science & Engineering. He is currently serving on Active Duty in the United States Air Force through the DAWN-ED PhD fellowship. Joshua is a researcher in the Stanford Intelligent Systems Lab (SISL) where his research focuses on decision making under uncertainty for autonomous systems. Joshua has also conducted research in collaboration with SISL and NASA JPL related to the DARPA Subterranean Challenge.

    Joshua earned his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2020. During his time at UC Berkeley, Joshua's work focused on optimization methods for bioinspired design, machine learning for real time manufacturing control, and experimental multi-phase flow analysis. Joshua has also interned at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

  • Ayla Pamukcu

    Ayla Pamukcu

    Assistant Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences and, by courtesy, of Geophysics

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI have long been fascinated by magmas and volcanic eruptions, for reasons ranging from purely academic (trying to understand the magmatic construction of Earth’s crust) to purely practical (developing effective monitoring and mitigation strategies for volcanic eruptions). Consequently, my research revolves around understanding how, when, where, and why magmas are stored, evolve, and ultimately do (or do not!) erupt.

    Within this context, I focus on two main themes: (1) the temporal, chemical, and physical, evolution of magmas, and (2) the interplay between magma storage conditions in the crust and magmatic processes. I employ a multi-faceted approach to explore these topics, integrating data from multiple scales and perspectives; my studies capitalize on information contained in field relations, crystal and melt inclusion textures (sizes, shapes, positions), crystal and volcanic glass geochemistry, geochronology, phase-equilibria and numerical modeling, and experiments. As a function of this approach, I am also engaged in the development of novel methods to address petrologic problems in new, better, and more refined ways than is currently possible.

    A major focus of my research has been on supereruptions – gigantic explosive eruptions the likes of which we have never seen in recorded human history – but I am continually exploring other kinds of magmatic systems. I am currently particularly interested in the links (or lack thereof) between extrusive (i.e., erupted) and intrusive (i.e., unerupted) magmas, similarities/differences between large- and small-volume eruptions, and similarities/differences between magmas generated at different levels of the crust. I have also had a longstanding interest in the interactions and relationships between humans and their geologic surroundings (particularly volcanoes).

  • Nidhi Utkarshbhai Patel

    Nidhi Utkarshbhai Patel

    Ph.D. Student in Earth and Planetary Sciences, admitted Autumn 2023

    BioPlants display enormous diversity of forms today that, have evolved over geological timescales after plants successfully colonized land. Currently, I am interested in learning more about evolutionary changes in plant structures including specialized reproductive organs of seed plants. I study plant fossil record from deep time and living plants with the aim to develop a better understanding of origins of plant reproductive structures and drivers of morphological evolution in plants. Previously, I have looked at spore-pollen record preserved in sedimentary rocks from Canada. These microscopic fossils and their distribution in space and time can help us elucidate the response of vegetation to past extinction events.

  • Jonathan Payne

    Jonathan Payne

    Dorrell William Kirby Professor, Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and Professor, by courtesy, of Biology,

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy goal in research is to understand the interaction between environmental change and biological evolution using fossils and the sedimentary rock record. How does environmental change influence evolutionary and ecological processes? And conversely, how do evolutionary and ecological changes affect the physical environment? I work primarily on the marine fossil record over the past 550 million years.

  • Kenneth Peters

    Kenneth Peters

    Adjunct Professor, Earth & Planetary Sciences

    BioKen Peters retired as Geochemistry Advisor for Schlumberger in 2020 where he used geochemistry and numerical modeling to study petroleum systems. He has 42 years of experience with Chevron, Mobil, ExxonMobil, USGS, UC Berkeley, Stanford University, and Schlumberger and published >200 peer-reviewed geology, geochemistry, and basin modeling books and papers. He was Honorary Teaching Fellow at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and Visiting Professor at Jacobs University in Germany. He is a Schlumberger NExT instructor, an EAGE Lecturer, Fellow in the Geochemical Society, AAPG Charles Taylor Fellow, and Adjunct Professor at Stanford University where he is a founding co-principal in the Basin Processes and Subsurface Modeling Industrial Affiliates Program [https://bpsm.stanford.edu/]. He was Chair of the 1998 Gordon Research Conference on Organic Geochemistry, Co-Convener of two AAPG Hedberg Research Conferences on Basin and Petroleum System Modeling (2009 and 2016), Chair of the AAPG Research Committee (2007-2010), and AAPG Distinguished Lecturer (2009 and 2010). He is principal author of The Biomarker Guide (1993, 2005), editor for the 2009 AAPG compact disk Getting Started in Basin and Petroleum System Modeling and principal editor of the 2012 AAPG Hedberg Series 4 volume on Basin Modeling: New Horizons in Research and Applications. He is co-editor for the 2012 SEPM Special Publication 103 on Analyzing the Thermal History of Sedimentary Basins: Methods and Case Studies. He is Associate Editor for AAPG Bulletin, Journal of Petroleum Geology, and Organic Geochemistry. He received the 2009 Alfred E. Treibs Medal presented on behalf of the Geochemical Society for major achievements over a period of years in the field of organic geochemistry. He received the 2013 AAPG Honorary Member Award for service and devotion to the science and profession of petroleum geology and the 2016 EAGE Alfred Wegener Award for outstanding contributions to the scientific and technical advancement of petroleum geoscience [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxWei5Da2mI]. He twice shared the Schlumberger Henri Doll Prize for Innovation (2009, 2013). In 2017, he was one of 100 ‘Heritage of the Petroleum Geologist’ honorees selected by the Division of Professional Affairs of AAPG to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of AAPG. In 2019, Ken received AAPG’s highest honor, the Sidney Powers Memorial Award, at the AAPG ACE in San Antonio [https://www.aapg.org/videos/award/articleid/53126/ken-peters-receives-the-2019-sidney-powers-award]. In 2022 Ken became an elected Member of the National Academy of Engineering in recognition of development and application of geochemistry for basin analysis, hydrocarbon production, and biodegradation metrics [https://www.nae.edu/]. Ken has B.A. and M.A. degrees in geology from UCSB and a Ph.D. in geochemistry from UCLA. https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QvmmOJYAAAAJ&hl=en

  • Eliane Petersohn

    Eliane Petersohn

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2022

    BioI grew up in Curitiba, a city in southern Brazil, and, moved to Rio de Janeiro to join the Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) years ago.
    I have a strong grasp of the oil and gas industry, where I have been working for more than 15 years. I have a bachelor’s and master's degree in geology from the Federal University of Parana, Brazil and, I have become a public servant of the ANP, where I have held different technical and managerial positions. I spent these past 15 years working on the ANP’s large-scale strategic projects, conducting a geological evaluation for Brazil’s bidding rounds, and developing a multiyear geological and geophysical data acquisition plan for the Agency. I was also responsible for coordinating the first phase of the onerous assignment process, which authorized the Brazilian Government to onerously assign to NOC Petrobras up to 5 billion barrels of oil. I have also been directly involved in the location of two wells, which discovered two of the country's largest oil fields (Buzios and Mero fields). As a geologist researcher, my main objective aims at acquiring capabilities and developing the knowledge required to manage reservoirs to maximize oil recovery and extend the lifespan of oil fields as well as acquire a solid understanding of oil reservoir management to bring innovative knowledge to Brazil and help create guidelines to monitor oil field development and production in my country.

  • David Pollard

    David Pollard

    The Barney and Estelle Morris Professor of Earth Sciences, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research aims to understand how faults and fractures initiate and evolve in Earth's brittle crust, how they affect the flow of molten rock, groundwater, and hydrocarbons, and the crucial role faults and fractures play in earthquake generation, folding of sedimentary strata, and volcanic eruption.

  • Matthew Reinhold

    Matthew Reinhold

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2019

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsPlanetary habitability, specifically looking into the effects of tidal heating as both a source of energy to maintain habitable climates, and as a means of keeping small, terrestrial worlds warm, and thus geologically active for long periods of time. In addition, I am interested in the physical, geological and chemical processes on exotic worlds, like Saturn's moon Titan. How do the climates of such worlds evolve, and what kinds of geologic features would they produce on the landscape?

  • Samantha Ritzer

    Samantha Ritzer

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2016

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsPh.D. student interested in biogeochemical cycles and how their signals can be used as proxies in the rock record. I'm especially interested in the effects that changing redox conditions have on the geochemistry of black shales and the implications for natural gas production.

  • Laura Schaefer

    Laura Schaefer

    Assistant Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences

    Current Research and Scholarly Interestsearly Earth atmosphere; planetary differentiation; rocky exoplanet atmospheric chemistry; planetary interiors; atmosphere-interior exchange on Earth-like planets; planetary habitability; Venus atmospheric evolution; volcanic gases on Io and volatile loss

  • Allegra Hosford Scheirer

    Allegra Hosford Scheirer

    Physical Sci Res Scientist

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsResearch
    Allegra Hosford Scheirer is a research geophysicist at Stanford University, specializing in basin and petroleum system modeling. Her work is centered on the strong belief in the integration of geological, geochemical, and geophysical data in a unified working environment.

    Teaching
    She co-teaches courses and co-advises several graduate students with a focus on basin and petroleum system modeling and investigative methods for exploring conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons.

    Professional Activities
    Prior to joining Stanford, Allegra was a member of the Geophysical Unit of Menlo Park and the Energy Resources Program at the U.S. Geological Survey, where she constructed three-dimensional geologic models for use in the resource assessment process. Allegra has led and participated in numerous field programs at sea and in the United States. She is the editor of U.S.G.S. Professional Paper 1713 and a past Associate Editor of Journal of Geophysical Research.

  • Erik Sperling

    Erik Sperling

    Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences and Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment
    On Leave from 01/01/2024 To 08/31/2024

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe research interests in the Sperling Lab are Earth history and the evolution of life, and the interactions between the biosphere and the geosphere. As such this research can generally be considered paleontology, insofar as paleontology encompasses all aspects of the history of life.

    Consequently, we define our research agenda by the questions we are interested in, rather than the tools used. This research incorporates multiple lines of evidence, and multiple tools, to investigate questions in the history of life. These lines of evidence include fossil data, molecular phylogenetics, sedimentary geochemistry, and developmental and ecological data from modern organisms. Ultimately, the goal is to link environmental change with organismal and ecological response through the lens of physiology.

    Our field research takes place all over the world--current areas include:

    -NW Canada (Yukon and Northwest Territories): Research has been conducted on the early Neoproterozoic Fifteenmile Group, Cryogenian and Ediacaran Windermere Supergroup, and on the Ordovician-Devonian Road River Group in the southern Richardson Mountains
    -Southern Canadian Cordillera: Work here has focused on the early Cambrian Mural Formation and its soft-bodied fauna.
    -England and Wales: Cambrian-Silurian successions in the Welsh Basin
    -Namibia: Ediacaran Nama Group
    -Upwelling zones: We study the oxygen minimum zone offshore California as an analogue for ancient low-oxygen oceans.

  • Jonathan Stebbins

    Jonathan Stebbins

    Professor of Geological Sciences, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly Interestsstructure and dynamics of crystalline, glassy, and molten inorganic materials and how these relate to geologically and technologically important properties and processes; solid state Nuclear Magnetic Resoance (NMR); mineralogy; igneous petrology; glass science

  • Sonia Tikoo-Schantz

    Sonia Tikoo-Schantz

    Assistant Professor of Geophysics and, by courtesy, of Earth and Planetary Sciences

    BioI utilize paleomagnetism and fundamental rock magnetism as tools to investigate problems in the planetary sciences. By studying the remanent magnetism recorded within rocks from differentiated planetary bodies, I can learn about core processes that facilitate the generation of dynamo magnetic fields within the Earth, Moon, and planetesimals. Determining the longevities and paleointensities of dynamo fields that initially magnetized rocks also provides insight into the long-term thermal evolution (i.e., effects of secular cooling) of planetary bodies. I also use paleomagnetism to understand impact cratering events, which are the most ubiquitous modifiers of planetary surfaces across the solar system. Impact events produce heat, shock, and sometimes hydrothermal systems that are all capable of resetting magnetization within impactites and target rocks via thermal, shock, and chemical processes. Therefore, I am able to use a combination of paleomagnetic and rock magnetic characterization to investigate shock pressures, temperatures, structural changes, and post-impact chemical alteration experienced by cratered planetary surfaces.

  • Tiziana Vanorio

    Tiziana Vanorio

    Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences and, by courtesy, of Civil and Environmental Engineering and of Geophysics

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsRock Physics, Fossil Energy Exploration, Volcanic and Geothermal Environments and Microseismicity

  • Anjani D Varma

    Anjani D Varma

    Assistant Director of Student Services, Earth & Planetary Sciences

    Current Role at StanfordStudent Services Officer for Undergrads, Coterms & Masters at Materials Science and Engineering Dept.

  • Adrian A. Wackett

    Adrian A. Wackett

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2022

    BioAdrian A. Wackett was born and raised in Saint Paul, Minnesota (unceded Wahpekute/Dakota lands). He double majored in Chemistry and Geosciences at Trinity University (TX) before returning to Saint Paul and completing his MS degree in Land & Atmospheric Sciences (specifically pedology/biogeochemistry) at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, where he studied global w'o'rming. Before coming to Stanford as an NSF GRFP Fellow he traveled extensively through Latin America and SE Asia (by bike) and worked as an independent researcher affiliated with the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences at Umeå University and the Climate Impacts Research Centre in Abisko, Sweden. He is broadly curious in learning how the world works, and this informs his outlook towards research. Previous topics of inquiry include: coupling ant bioturbation to the erosion and weathering of hillslope soils in SE Australia, exploring earthworm invasions and their deterministic effects on soil carbon stocks and forms in Fennoscandian and Alaskan forests, and examining the biogeochemical diversity of ‘black smoker’ plume particles at deep-sea hydrothermal vents.

  • Xiaolong Wei

    Xiaolong Wei

    Postdoctoral Scholar, Geological Sciences

    BioXiaolong Wei is a postdoctoral research fellow in the department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Stanford University. He is a member of the Stanford Mineral-X Initiative. Xiaolong focuses on addressing significant challenges associated with mineral exploration, and leading to a step change in the discovery of new mineral deposits. Xiaolong is currently working with Prof. Jef Caers on exploring mineral resources as well as quantifying the uncertainties of deposits using geological, geochemical and geophysical measurements.

  • Jane Kathryn Willenbring

    Jane Kathryn Willenbring

    Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences and, by courtesy of Earth System Science

    BioJane Willenbring joined Stanford as an Associate Professor in the summer of 2020. Jane is a geologist who solves problems related to the Earth surface. Her research is primarily done to understand the evolution of the Earth’s surface - especially how landscapes are affected by tectonics, climate change, and life. She and her research group use geochemical techniques, high-resolution topographic data, field observations, and, when possible, couple these data to landscape evolution numerical models and ice sheet models. The geochemical tools she uses and develops often include cosmogenic nuclide systems, which provide powerful, novel methods to constrain rates of erosion and mineral weathering. Jane has also started to organize citizen science campaigns and apply basic science principles to problems of human health with an ultimate broader impact goal of cleaning up urban areas and environments impacted by agriculture. She received her B.Sc. with honors from the North Dakota State University where she was a McNair Scholar and in the NDSU scholars program. She holds a Masters degree from Boston University. Her Ph.D. is in Earth Science from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada where she was a Killam Scholar. She was a Synthesis Postdoctoral Fellow through the National Center for Earth Surface Dynamics at the Saint Anthony Falls Lab at the University of Minnesota, and an Alexander von Humboldt Postdoctoral Fellow and then subsequently a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Helmholz GFZ Potsdam, Germany. Jane was previously an Associate Professor in the Geosciences Research Division and Thomas and Evelyn Page Chancellor's Endowed Faculty Fellow at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego where she was the director of the Scripps Cosmogenic Isotope Laboratory (SCI-Lab). She was also a tenure-track professor at the University of Pennsylvania. She will be a Stanford University Gabilan Faculty Fellow in 2021-2023. She is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America and was the inaugural recipient of the Marguerite T. Williams award from the American Geophysical Union.

  • Jeffrey Wong

    Jeffrey Wong

    Research Administrator 3, Earth & Planetary Sciences

    Current Role at StanfordJeff is responsible for supporting the Earth & Planetary Sciences Department’s sponsored grants portfolio and faculty members' financial accounts. Jeff assists faculty members with budgeting and submitting sponsored research proposals, and managing the financial aspects of their sponsored awards. Additionally, Jeff serves as a department financial liaison with other university departments and schools, the Office of Sponsored Research and other academic institutions involved in collaborative research projects.

  • Hong Yang

    Hong Yang

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2018

    BioHong Yang is currently a PhD student in Geological Science working with Wendy L. Mao. He joined Mao’s lab at Stanford University in 2018, after finishing his Master’s Degree at HPSTAR, Shanghai, where he was supervised by Jung-Fu Lin. His Master’s thesis focused on the experimental determination of iron isotopic fractionation behavior of lower mantle phases using the Synchrotron X-ray technique NRIXS. Before that, he was an undergraduate majoring in Geochemistry at the University of Science and Technology of China. There he performed the quality assessment of bottled drinking water and water from Lake Chao under Fang Huang’s supervision.

    Hong’s research interests include the chemical (especially isotopic) evolution of the Earth and other planetary bodies; structure and sound velocities of iron-alloys at high pressure; pressure-induced electronic, magnetic, elastic and structural transitions in materials; as well as high pressure photon science. His recent research was published on Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 506, 113-122 (2019), entitled “Iron isotopic fractionation in mineral phases from Earth’s lower mantle: Did terrestrial magma ocean crystallization fractionate iron isotopes?”.

  • David Zhen Yin

    David Zhen Yin

    Research Scientist

    BioDavid Zhen Yin is the co-founder and program director of Stanford Mineral-X to lead the research of sustainable critical minerals explorations for renewable energy transitions. He is also the principal scientist at Stanford Center for Earth Resources Forecasting and Co-PI of the Stanford-KoBold collaboration. He develops data-scientific approaches for prediction, uncertainty quantification, and decision-making in critical earth resources exploration and development.

    David developed broad experience working with complex projects involving academia and industry and broad knowledge of the fields. His research delivered several key technologies transferred as in-house technologies in Chevron, Equinor, and KoBold. In addition, his research developments have been implemented on various subjects, from Antarctica bed topography modeling, critical mineral explorations in Canada/China/US, and the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico projects.

    Before joining Stanford, David was a Research Associate at Edinburgh Time-Lapse Project in Scotland, leading a geophysical monitoring research project in collaboration with Equinor from 2016 to 2018. He was also a technology consultant at Equinor's Research Center in Bergen, Norway. Then, he was a Chevron CoRE Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford from 2018 to 2021.

    David received his Ph.D. in Geosciences from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK, in 2016. His research interests include data science for geosciences, geological uncertainty quantification, and decision-making under uncertainty. He has authored one book and tens of articles in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences.

  • Markus Zechner

    Markus Zechner

    Adjunct Professor, Earth & Planetary Sciences

    BioMarkus Zechner earned an MS degree in petroleum engineering from Mining University of Leoben. He joined OMV in 2008 as a reservoir engineer in Gaenserndorf, Austria. Zechner worked on gas, gas condensate, and oil reservoirs in the Vienna basin. During 2011 through 2013, he worked on the Technology and
    Reservoir Engineering Teams in the OMV Head Office on CO2 injection and sequestration, water injection under fracturing
    conditions, and polymer injection. In 2013, Zechner started his PhD degree at Stanford University on uncertainty quantification of enhanced oil recovery processes.

  • Andrea Zorzi

    Andrea Zorzi

    Ph.D. Student in Geological Sciences, admitted Autumn 2020

    BioBorn in Venice, Italy, I earned my BSc in Aerospace Engineering at Università degli Studi di Padova in 2017. For my MSc degree, I moved to the Netherlands and graduated in Aerospace Engineering at TU Delft in 2019, focusing on space flight, planetary sciences and radiative transfer modeling. Afterwards, I spent a year at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Göttingen (Germany), conducting research on neural network applications for cometary gas expansion studies.
    I've joined Stanford as a GS graduate student in Fall 2020 and I am part of the Planetary Modeling Group led by Prof. Schaefer.
    My focus is on planetary impacts, how they affect the climate and chemical evolution of the atmospheres of planets in their early stages.