Profile

• Time Zone

  Pacific

  
  
• Organization

  University of Oregon

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  My research focuses on plants as whole organisms. Currently, I am working on several projects including the intersection between leaf traits, phylogenetics, and climate change, maximizing carbon sequestration and riparian restoration, and the effects of biodiversity on asymbiotic nitrogen fixation under climate change. I have a strong focus on plant identification and taxonomy, environmental impacts on plants, and changes to plant communities. My skills include using dichotomous keys, GIS, and coding in R.

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  Can you describe your attitude toward science when you were in high school?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

  In high school, I was convinced that science was boring and that scientists just followed pre-set experiments all day. It wasn't until college that I discovered I could do field botany and, through field botany, I found out how much creativity and exploration science demands. Now I work both in the field and the lab, with physical plants and statistical coding, and find my job anything but boring!

  
  
• Profile Question 2

  What is a typical day like for you?

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

  In the summer, a typical day is spent out at my field site describing the plant community and collecting samples to be processed in the lab. I also work with other lab members at their field sites, helping them collect data and samples.
  During the rest of the year, I'm busy processing samples both for my own project and others, analyzing data, writing up results, and doing the small things that help the lab run smoothly.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  (not set)

  
  
• Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

  (not set)

  
  
• Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

  3

  
  

Recent Posts

The Power of Sunlight TEAM 8 Hilary Rose Dawson Apr 21, 2021

An excellent question and I look forward to seeing your results. How did you choose the amount of baking soda that you will put in each cup? Why 1 and 2 tsps?

The Power of Sunlight TEAM 8 Hilary Rose Dawson Apr 18, 2021

It sounds like you saw a small difference between the leaves in baking soda water versus the leaves in pure water. Thinking back to your initial responses about where the mass of a plant comes from, why do you think that more of the baking soda…

more

It sounds like you saw a small difference between the leaves in baking soda water versus the leaves in pure water. Thinking back to your initial responses about where the mass of a plant comes from, why do you think that more of the baking soda leaves rose to the top compared to the pure water leaves? What did the baking soda provide the leaf that the pure water didn't have?

vfshweissspring2021 project 4 Hilary Rose Dawson Apr 18, 2021

Hello Katelyn, Kristen, Damon, and Jacob,

1. It's hard for me to choose a favorite tree species! One of the trees I've been most excited to see is a tree fern. It's hard to decide if tree ferns are officially "trees" or not.…

more

Hello Katelyn, Kristen, Damon, and Jacob,

1. It's hard for me to choose a favorite tree species! One of the trees I've been most excited to see is a tree fern. It's hard to decide if tree ferns are officially "trees" or not. Many people say that they aren't because they don't have secondary woody tissue--they don't produce wood. (Palm trees also have this issue.) But it's incredible to see and touch a fern that's taller than a person, and when they grow in large groups tree ferns really do look like they should be called trees. 

2. A tree's survival without roots would depend on just how "dead" those roots were. Just like with branches, trees can regrow roots that are chopped off. However, the tree needs some living tissue left to make the new roots. Either way, the tree would be very stressed to regrow lots of roots.