I am a current Ph.D. student at New York University (NYU) and the New York Consortium of Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP).
I have four years of experience in molecular plant biology, studying epigenetic mechanisms of plant defense, and hope to apply this knowledge to mammals, particularly non-human primates.
My aim is to enhance our understanding of environmental response systems at the regulatory level, their biological cause/consequences, and underlying epigenetic mechanisms, especially in long-term field sites.
I have a strong background in genetics (molecular, bioinformatics/sequencing techniques, and statistics), evolutionary biology, archaeology, anthropology, and programming (R/UNIX).
As an anthropologist, I am interested in proximate outcomes of evolution (the "how" or functional questions), as well as understanding the role of environmental plasticity and stress response in mediating health and fitness in our close relatives. I hope my work will have implications for many populations (primate or otherwise) facing current global climate disruption.
In my spare time I volunteer at local tutoring/creative writing centers, and am an avid rock climber and hiker.
