Profile

• Time Zone

  Pacific

  
  
• Organization

  University of Pittsburgh

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  I am interested in how human technologies impact natural ecosystems. For my PhD thesis, I am researching the effects of pollution from a commonly used herbicide on wild plants and their interactions with other species. Thus far, I have found that pollution caused by herbicide ‘drift’, when herbicide particles move off-target via wind, affects plant growth and flowering, but these effects vary by plant species. I also found that exposure to herbicide drift reduces the benefit that plants receive from beneficial soil bacteria called rhizobia, which fertilize plants by fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere into plant-usable forms. Currently, I am investigating whether rhizobial strains with greater herbicide tolerance are better able to interact with plants in herbicide-polluted environments.

  
  
• Profile Question 1

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

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• Profile Question 2

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

  2