Profile

• Time Zone

  Pacific

  
  
• Organization

  Ascent Environmental, Inc.

  
  
• Role

  Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online

  
  
• Research Interests (300 words)

  I am a botanist that studies how species evolve using DNA and other evidence. My graduate studies focused on the molecular systematics of a group of 25 plant species in the morningglory family called the California bindweeds (Calystegia). I used DNA evidence to understand biogeography and evolution within the lineage. Since graduating I have been teaching part-time, writing a wildflower book, and doing botanical consulting for environmental compliance. I have also worked on conservation genetics projects, meaning that I have looked at genetic patterns within a species to understand the "genetic health" of rare species.

  
  
• Profile Question 1

  What is your favorite plant? Why?

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

  During COVID I expanded on my interest in plants by growing them in a garden setting. One of the plant groups that captivated my interest during that time is the beardtongues (Penstemon). The beardtoungues have large, showy flowers that are displayed in large clusters. The floral displays attract a variety of pollinators including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. They can also manage to produce flowers during extreme weather conditions, when most other species are dormant. They are a reminder that one of the best ways to find inspirations is to look at biological diversity and the questions presented by the species themselves.

  
  
• Profile Question 2

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

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

  In high school one of my best subjects was biology. I always enjoyed the stories that come from asking questions about living things. I was also inspired by the improbability of it all. How could it be that 3.7 billion years ago there was no life, and then molecules organized themselves into what we understand as life. Also, how is life even defined initially? This was all very compelling and satisfying to me as a high school student, more so than other explanations about how and why humans exist.

  
  
• Profile Question 3

  What is the coolest thing you have discovered or learned about plants?

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

  One of the neatest finding from my graduate school work involved long distance dispersal patterns that shaped the evolutionary history of a group of morning-glory species in California. DNA evidence showed that half of the species that occur in California evolved from an ancestor in Australia, whereas the other half came from eastern Asia.

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

  2