Research Projects

Mentor: Xavier Jenkins

Discipline: Paleontology

Topics: Evolutionary Biology, Paleontology

Bio: I am a vertebrate paleontologist and postdoctoral fellow here at the AMNH, and this is my second year mentoring with SRMP. I am originally from Arizona (go sun devils!) and finished my PhD in Idaho in 2025. I enjoy playing tabletop games like Dungeons and Dragons, and when I don’t have free time I am wrangling my two toddlers back at home.

Project Background: Living tetrapods include amphibians, reptiles, and mammals, yet their evolutionary origins over 300 million years ago are poorly understood. Unanswered questions that Team VP will work to address include the assembly of the mammalian body plan from a reptile-like ancestor, how major ecological transitions influence anatomy, and just how diverse small-bodied organisms were during the dinosaur-dominated ecosystems of the Cretaceous.

Research Question/Goal: There is a substantial gap in our understanding of tetrapod origins due to the rarity of early tetrapod fossils and their small size, which makes it difficult to study their fossils using the naked eye. We will use high-resolution X-ray scanning to three-dimensionally reconstruct the skulls of fossil tetrapods, paying special attention to never-before-seen aspects of their anatomy, including hard-to-study regions such as the bones supporting the brain, the ear, and the palate. Each student will study their own fossil organism(s), and present on their discoveries at the end of the year.

Skills students will build: 

• CT-scan Segmentation and 3D reconstruction using software such as Dragonfly
• Understanding scientific literature

Mentor: Ryan Thoni

Discipline: Ichthyology

Topics: Bioinformatics, Conservation, Cultural Anthropology, Taxonomy and Systematics, Ecology

Bio: I am Ryan Thoni, a recent NYC transplant from California. I got my Ph.D. studying fishes of the Himalayas, and I love to travel there whenever I can! I also love spending time outdoors, and am learning how to adjust to make that make sense in the city. Now that I am here I am basically touring the city and state on my bike, one pizza slice at a time. I love going to concerts, fishing, and I grow a forest of Thai basil in my apartment for all the Thai dishes I cook!

Project Background: For this project I want us to use museum specimens for us to dissect and digest (using chemicals - not our gut!) leaving behind only microplastic material. We can do this with specimens through time and over space in New York, to see if there is any effect of urbanization on microplastic accumulation. We will select species based on abundance in our collection and of other institutions, and abundance over a spatial scale. Would you expect to find more microplastics in fishes in urban areas? Or maybe it doesn’t matter? How about time? When did they show up? What are the trends over time? Let's find out!

Research Question/Goal: Is there any temporal and spatial influence on microplastic levels in New York fishes?

Skills students will build:  The Ichthyology Collection, microscopes, dissecting tools, microplastic identification skills, protein digestive chemicals (KOH), PPE, database use, literature libraries/databases, teamwork skills, and hopefully the use of maps/GIS.

Mentor: Richard Baker

Discipline: Genomics

Topics: Bioinformatics, Genetics & Genomics, Evolutionary Biology

Bio: After receiving my PhD in 1999, I conducted research at University College London and the Joint Genome Institute (near San Francisco, CA). I joined the Genomics Lab at AMNH in 2007 and have been mentoring SRMP students for the past fifteen years. I live in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn.

Project Background: Spiders are one of the most dominant predators of insects on the planet and have evolved numerous specialized structures that allow them to capture their prey efficiently. Silk, spun in the form of different types of webs, is the best-known adaptation that spiders use for hunting but they also utilize specialized venoms, sensory systems and behaviors. In this SRMP project, we will study the genetic basis of unique foraging strategies that have evolved in different spider groups.

Research Question/Goal: The primary research focus will be to identify which genes are important in the foraging system of the spiders and examine how those genes have evolved. This will involve ‘annotating’ a spider genome which means we will categorize all the genes present within that genome. Then we will measure how those genes are activated under different circumstances to isolate which genes are likely most important in their foraging system. Once we have discovered a set of candidate genes we will compare the DNA sequence of these genes across a group of spiders to see how they are evolving. The exact spider group that we work on will depend on collecting done in September but possibilities include the yellow and black garden spider, bolas spiders that uses a unique lasso-like silk and glue system to catch moths or the ogre-faced spider that hunts actively at night with a web it holds in its legs and has evolved huge eyes that provide it with some of the best night-vision found in any animal.

Skills students will build: This research will involve bioinformatic computer analysis and, wet lab molecular techniques associated with both RNA and DNA sequencing. Most of the first semester will be spent in the molecular lab and most of the second semester will be spent conducting computer analysis of the sequence data collected in the fall.

Mentor: Brett Butler

Discipline: Ichthyology

Topics: Genetics & Genomics, Taxonomy & Systematics, Conservation, Bioinformatics, Evolutionary Biology

Bio: Hi, I’m Brett, a postdoctoral researcher at the AMNH. I am originally from Virginia, and I recently moved to New York after finishing my PhD in Mexico City. I enjoy being in nature and looking for reptiles and amphibians. I also like to rock climb and watch movies. I am always exploring new places with the philosophy of learning something new every day.

Project Background: How do species evolve? When does population divergence turn into new species? What even is a species? These questions have been studied by evolutionary biologists for centuries. This project will expand on previous research on the Yucatan Banded Gecko Coleyonx elegans by examining morphological and genomic divergence across an environmental cline in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, southern Mexico. Applying an integrative approach to taxonomy, we will review the academic literature related to species concepts and Banded Geckos, take measurements, scale counts, and detailed photographs of museum specimens, and perform geometric morphometric analyses of head scales. Additionally, we will learn pipetting skills in the wet lab, extracting DNA and performing PCRs to generate new sequence data. To complement the morphological and genetic work, we will perform ecological analyses in R to associate observed divergences with environmental variables across space and time. Ultimately, this project will walk students through the scientific research process of integrative taxonomy, applying a toolbox of modern and traditional approaches and analyses.

Research Question/Goal: What are the morphological and genetic differences between divergent populations of geckos? What historical factors may have played a role in their divergence?

Skills students will build: 

• Wet lab: pipetting, DNA extraction, PCR
• Collection work: measuring, counting scales, and photographing specimens
• Analyses: population genetics, geometric morphometric, R-studio

Mentor: Francisco Ardevol-Martinez

Discipline: Astrophysics

Topics: Earth and Planetary Sciences, Observational Astrophysics

Bio: Originally from the Canary Islands in Spain, I moved to Madrid to study physics, then to Copenhagen to do my master’s and then the Netherlands for my PhD, moving to New York in January 2025. I love freediving: exploring the ocean without tanks, just on my own breath. I also love traveling, photography, working out, and cooking.

Project Background: We now know that almost all the stars we see in the sky at night, like our sun, have planets around them. However, they are so so far away that we can’t get a clear look at them. Understanding what these planets look like will help us understand the diversity of planets in the Milky Way (there’s planets out there completely unlike any of the ones in out Solar System!) and will tell us how ‘normal’ our Solar System is. In the next few decades, studying these planets will also help us answer the age old question of whether we are alone in the Universe.

Research Question/Goal: This project aims to understand how we can extract physical and chemical properties of exoplanet’s atmospheres from their spectra. The project also aims to study which properties can be reliably inferred from observations.

Skills students will build: Students will learn basic machine learning technique. They will learn how to build and train random forests to extract information out of exoplanet observations, using them to determine their chemical composition, their size, and their temperature. They will build coding, visualization, and analysis skills. The main tools they will use are python and jupyter notebooks.

Mentor: Daniel Lopez

Discipline: Center for Biodiversity and Conservation

Topics: Conservation, Ecology

Bio: I'm a Computer Scientist from Colombia working with the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the AMNH. Passionate about learning and using technology for positive impact, I enjoy exploring new ways of solving problems. When I'm not at work, you can find me playing soccer, watching movies, exploring the city, or trying new food. While I love Japanese cuisine, I also enjoy experimenting with Colombian recipes at home.

Project Title: Large Language Models to Enhance Information Retrieval in Conservation Practice

Background: Hello! I’m originally from Bogotá, Colombia, and I’m a Computer Scientist who found my passion working alongside other researchers to help protect biodiversity. Today, I work at the American Museum of Natural History as a Biodiversity Informatics Specialist in the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation. Outside of work, I love staying active with soccer, playing board games with friends, and catching live music at concerts. I’m a huge coffee enthusiast (a true Colombian tradition!) who loves exploring new cafes. While I enjoy almost any food, Japanese cuisine is my top choice. Looking forward to welcoming you to the lab!

Research Question/Goal: Can we design an AI Agent that evaluates a user's choices throughout their modeling process and provides peer-review-style feedback to help students and scientists catch oversights, follow best practices, and build more reliable models to support conservation work?

Skills students will build:  Species Distribution Models, AI Agents, LLMs, Programming

Mentor: Laura Gonzalez Mozo

Discipline: Entomology

Topics: Taxonomy & Systematics, Genetics & Genomics, Evolutionary Biology

Bio: I am an entomologist, currently a Postdoc at the Ware Lab where we study insect biodiversity. I am originally from Colombia. I love swimming, biking and running. I also enjoy traveling and exploring beautiful places. I love arepas, chips and guac, sushi and creme brulee.

Project Background: Treehoppers are small insects that are true bugs (family Membracidae). They are well known for their strange shape as their bodies often resemble ants, thorns, leafs, seed or even birddroppings. Many of these species are hard to identify, especially as nymphs (juveniles), because they look so different from the adults. Our collection has specimens that have not been fully digitized or identified, and some nymphs cannot be easily matched to a known adult species by eye. Using morphology and DNA sequencing, we aim to solve the mystery of the identities of these treehopper species.

Research Question/Goal: Can DNA barcoding help us match treehopper nymphs to their adult forms, and might this reveal new, undescribed species? This project aims to: (1) digitize part of our treehopper collection, focusing on the Neotropical region; (2) use DNA barcoding to match unidentified nymphs to their adult forms; (3) depending on what we find, focus on a specific group for a genus-level revision.

Skills students will build: Digitalization of museum specimens, microscopy, morphological identification, PCR and DNA sequencing, compare molecular and morphological data (integrative taxonomy). Science communication; BLAST and GenBank searches to compare DNA sequences; basics bioinformatics: building phylogenetic trees to visualize relationships among species; insect morphology and identification; macrophotography; basic knowledge of softwares such as: ImageG, R and Affinity photo.

Mentor: Adam Jadhav

Discipline: Center for Biodiversity and Conservation

Topics: Conservation, Cultural Anthropology, Environmental History

Bio: Born and raised in the rural Midwest, I have also lived on both U.S. coasts and overseas (mostly in India). Before turning scientist-teacher, I held jobs including but not limited to (in approximate reverse chronological order): birding guide, farm manager, voiceover artist, scuba resort divemaster, political journalist, tavern bouncer, sideline reporter, newspaper editor, sports photographer, tennis instructor, phone surveyor, grocery stock boy, corn detasseler and lawn mower. My happy place is in or just next to the ocean. I dive, paddle, fish and cycle; I have side hustles/obsessions with carpentry, Lego and DnD.

Project Background: What is today neighborhood on the margins of Brooklyn, Sheephead Bay was originally inhabited by the indigenous Carnarsee until dispossession by European settlers; the “bay” then largely remained a sleepy fishing hamlet until the second half of the 19th century, when cycles of urban development began transform both the region and its fisheries. A fishing boom following World War II eventually saw severe ecological declines that decimated the commercial multi-species fishery (once targeted by as many as 50 large public fishing “head boats”).

The story of Sheepshead Bay is emblematic of transformation and urbanization of New York City’s waterfront over centuries. This history also represents a continually shifting relationship between Gotham and the sea. Yet much of the narrative, and with it traditional ecological knowledge and memory, risks being lost as fishing culture and marine biodiversity dwindle. Environmental history research then is needed to understand what has been lost and why, and what might yet be sustained or recovered.

Research Question/Goal: How and why was Sheepshead Bay transformed from fishing hamlet to the epicenter of New York fishing in the post-war era? What has driven its subsequent decline and the near collapse of the commercial fishery and “head boat” tradition?

Skills students will build: Students will learn all about: archival research (including in Museum collections), historical cartography, basic Geographic Information Science (GIS), critical political ecology theory, and maritime history.

Mentors: Tessa Garces & Alex Idso

Discipline: Vertebrate Paleontology

Topics: Physical Anthropology, Evolutionary Biology

Bios: Tessa: I’m originally from Westchester, but I lived in Boston for 5 years for school, and Queens for the last 4. In my free time, I like to knit, make jewelry, bake, and hang out with my cats. I also love to hike whenever I get a chance to leave the city.

Alex: I am originally from North Dakota, but have lived in California, London, and New York for the last 6 years. In my free time I like to run, read, crochet, and play video games.

Project Background: Chimpanzees are our closest living relatives. Young chimpanzees spend most of their time clinging to their mothers and climbing in trees, but as they grow up they spend more and more time knuckle-walking on the ground. As that happens, the bones of the hand and wrist don't just get bigger, they change shape. This is especially true for the inside part of our bones, which change in response to how we use them. Nobody has ever measured how full bones inside chimpanzee wrists change across ages, from baby to adult. We also don't actually know whether a young chimp's hand bones can handle the same forces an adult's can.

Research Question/Goal: How does the bone density of chimpanzees' wrists change as they age? Do these changes reflect their different uses? And do hand bones at different ages handle forces equally or are there certain ages where the bone's shape doesn't seem quite ready for the forces it's starting to experience?

Skills students will build: Students will work with advanced tools like micro CT scans and 3D surface scans to analyze bone structure. They will learn how to interpret and process imaging data, use software for 3D and biomechanical modeling, and assist in data analysis. By engaging with these technologies, students will develop skills in scientific research, data visualization, and the use of advanced imaging techniques.

Mentor: Seth Cunningham

Discipline: Genomics

Topics: Genomics, Conservation, Taxonomy & Systematics

Bio: I have been interested in science and conservation for most of my life and am currently the Ancient Biomolecules Research Assistant at the AMNH. I grew up outside St. Louis, Missouri spending my summers at the zoo and visiting many of the country's National Parks. I was also fortunate to spend a lot of time outdoors while in the Boy Scouts and continue to enjoy getting outside; whether that's in Central Park or upstate New York. In the past few years I have also gotten really into biking and love exploring the city on two wheels. Finally, I follow sports pretty closely and love talking all things NBA.

Project Background: Recently, using genetics, the Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) was found to consist of two distinct species - Crocodylus niloticus and Crocodylus suchus. Currently, the sacred crocodile (C. suchus) is found throughout Central and West Africa, while the Nile Crocodile is found down Eastern Africa into Southern Africa and on the island of Madagascar. However, DNA from centuries old museum samples and Ancient Egyptian crocodile mummies indicate that both species used to co-occur in the Nile River of Egypt. Visually, these two species look extremely similar, so telling them apart is challenging, even for experts.

Natural History museums house millions of preserved organisms from all over the world. These collections include samples dating back hundreds of years and are used by scientists to better understand the natural world. Scientists use these specimens to identify new species, compare species to one another, catalogue the diversity of life on Earth, and to answer so many other interesting and important questions. All of this work is predicated on the museum collections having correct information. In our case, we now know that this is most likely not the reality. There are hundreds of museum samples collected as far back as the 1800’s that are currently identified as the Nile crocodile, that may in fact be this newly recognized species. Since the sacred crocodile has only been recognized for about a decade, all museum samples collected from Africa have been identified as the Nile crocodile until very recently.

Research Question/Goal: For this project we will collect tissue from museum samples currently identified as Nile crocodiles, as well as some Ancient Egyptian crocodile mummies. We will then genetically barcode these individuals to determine if they are in fact Nile crocodiles, or this newly recognized species, the sacred crocodile. Natural history museums will use this information to update their collections and we will use it to better understand when and where these two species occur(ed) across the African continent.

Skills students will build: This project will involve some work in the museum collections, lots of lab work, some bioinformatics, and some exploration of crocodile natural history. In the lab we will extract, amplify, and analyse DNA to identify species. This lab work will be conducted in specialized labs for getting DNA from historic and ancient specimens.

Mentor: Thomas Davoren 

Discipline: Meteoritics

Topics: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Bio: I grew up right on the edge of rural New York State, and I have always enjoyed being outside. I got my college education in Connecticut, and then I spent a few years working at a California State University, Long Beach an Earth Science Technician before joining the AMNH to work with the rock and meteorite collections. My favorite cuisines are Lebanese and Mexican. Listening to music is a big part of my life, but I don’t play any instruments. I like to spend my free time at the beach or in the woods with friends and family and playing soccer.

Project Background: The Earth & Planetary Science department has a bucket of unclassified meteorites from Northwest Africa (NWA)—this means they are not official meteorites yet and do not have a name. I have picked 5 meteorites from this bucket that are currently being made into thin sections. After initial classes on the background of meteoritics, students will pick 1 of the 5 meteorites and attempt to classify it with its associated thin section. We will start lab work by looking at the thin sections from the AMNH meteorite collection under the microscope to identify key features of different types of meteorites. Then we will look at the thin sections of the unclassified NWA meteorites. Classification will involve describing the texture and shock state of the samples using a petrographic microscope and then getting quantitative mineral data using the electron microprobe. Once we determine the meteorite type and description, we might be able to submit our findings to the Meteoritical Bulletin for potential official classification.

Research Question/Goal: We will be attempting to classify meteorites that are new to the scientific community. These meteorites came from the Sarahan Desert and have yet to be researched.

Skills students will build: Electron microprobe, petrographic microscope, rock saws and polishing equipment, and thin/thick sections.

Mentor: Fernando Melendez Vazquez

Discipline: Ichthyology

Topics: Bioinformatics, Taxonomy and Systematics, Genomics

Bio: I’m a marine biologist from Puerto Rico, now living in NYC after finishing my Ph.D. I love exploring the city’s parks and museums, trying spicy food, and attending baseball games. I’m a big fan of VR gaming and comic books, and I’m always experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen. I ride my bike everywhere. I’m passionate about science communication and love making videos about why different fishes are so cool. Even though I don’t eat fish myself, my hidden talent is being able to tell you exactly what different species will taste like.

Project Background: Why do the world's largest sharks have tiny teeth? Whale sharks, basking sharks, and megamouth sharks feed by filtering plankton from the water, yet they have retained thousands of small teeth that appear to have little role in feeding. Students in this project will help investigate how shark teeth have evolved by collecting measurements from museum specimens and comparing tooth shape across shark species with different diets and lifestyles. By combining anatomy, evolution, and phylogenetic comparative biology, students will contribute to research exploring why these mysterious teeth have been retained over millions of years.

Research Question/Goal: How has tooth morphology evolved across sharks, and why have giant filter-feeding sharks retained tiny teeth despite no longer relying on them to capture prey?

Skills students will build: Museum specimen measurement, CT scan imaging data, R programming, and evolutionary statistics

Mentors: Megan Wallace & David Kizirian

Discipline: Herpetology

Topics: Ecology, Evolutionary Biology

Bios: Megan: Hi, I’m Megan! I’m from New Jersey but spent the better part of my life exploring both NYC and Upstate NY. In my free time, I love reading fantasy novels, crocheting, rock climbing and hiking, traveling, and spending time with my husband, John, and Golden Great Pyrenees rescue dog, Chance. I also love baking, particularly cakes (I baked my own wedding cakes)!

David: I've lived on both coasts and in the middle. Growing up, I had a microscope, telescope, and field guides for everything in between. My favorite thing is to hang out with my kid, who is also a biology nerd.

Project Background: The bog turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii), North America’s smallest turtle, is one of several critically endangered species within Emydidae, a turtle family that is genetically and evolutionarily understudied. Smaller, more isolated populations can heavily influence how species overall change both phenotypically and genetically, which can have devastating impacts on a species’ ability to survive and thrive. Museum collections provide a unique opportunity to glimpse into the past and study how populations change over time when compared with modern counterparts, information which can help guide conservation methods. Students will examine specimens from AMNH’s Herpetology collection to investigate and measure differences in morphological features; learn molecular wet lab skills such as DNA extraction, PCR, gel electrophoresis, and nucleic acid quantification using Qubit; and perform phylogenetic and statistical methods to analyze data. Results from this project can be used to recommend how conservation management strategies could be updated to better protect this species. Overall, students will walk away with basic collections and molecular lab skills, as well as learn how museum collections can be used to further genetic and conservation work.

Research Question/Goal: How have bog turtles evolved over time? How distinct are populations, morphologically and genetically? Do the results of the study call for any changes to the conservation strategies currently employed to protect the species?

Skills students will build: Students will learn to use microscopes to examine specimens from the Herpetology collections and molecular lab equipment and protocols to collect DNA sequence data. The data will be analyzed using statistical and phylogenetic methods.

Mentor: Celine Martin 

Discipline: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Topic: Geology

Bio: I am a French geologist living in NYC and working at the museum since Winter 2013. Before that I spent 2 years in Belgium working on meteorites (and I hated it). I was born and raised in Nancy, a small town not too far from the German border, and I got my PhD there in 2009. When I am not looking at rocks, I like reading, cooking and knitting. I am also the mom of a 4 year old and a doggy.

Project Background: We will study the rocks formed during the collision between present-day USA (then called Laurentia) and present-day Africa (then called Gondwana) around 500 million years ago.

Research Question/Goal: Studying them allows reconstructing the successive steps of the collision and identify which area was already Laurentia, which area is a piece of Gondwana left after the opening of the Atlantic Ocean.

Skills students will build: Making thin sections of rocks, Raman and FTIR analyses, EMPA analyses.

Mentor: Marina Gemma

Discipline: Earth and Planetary Science

Topics: Cosmochemistry

Bio: My name is Marina Gemma, and I am a postdoctoral researcher at the AMNH. I’m a meteoriticist (also known as a cosmochemist) meaning I use skills and knowledge from astronomy, chemistry, and geology to study extraterrestrial material that is delivered to Earth in the form of meteorites. I use some of the many meteorites in the museum’s collection to address unanswered questions about our Solar System’s history. I grew up in Southern California, but I moved to NYC at 18 years old for college and have been here ever since! When not working on meteorites in the lab, I love to read, rock climb, and try new coffee shops across NYC.

Project Background: The origin of the earliest materials in our Solar System, preserved for 4.56 billion years in primitive meteorites, is poorly understood, in part because of the lack of detailed analysis on individual minerals within these solids. These early solids are the building blocks of the planets we see today, and fossilize the chemical and physical conditions that existed at the time of their formation. By studying the structure, chemistry, and components of primitive chondritic meteorites, we can reveal the chemical environment, structure, and origin of our Solar System.

Research Question/Goal: What was the chemical environment like in the early Solar System? How did chondritic meteorite components form, accrete, and evolve during the time of planet formation? This research will use chemical and structural data from the oldest objects in our solar system to help decipher the conditions of the early solar system that led to the formation of the diverse planets we see today.

Skills students will build: This is a sample-based project, but will involve a significant amount of computational analysis. You will learn how to use Python to analyze and visualize cosmochemical datasets, in addition to:

• hands-on experience working with meteoritic samples; foundational planetary science knowledge
• scientific collaboration and communication skills
• processing and manipulation of chemical and structural cosmochemical datasets
• optional: development of machine-learning based tools for meteorite data analysis

Mentor: Niall Whiteford 

Discipline: Astrophysics

Topics: Earth and Planetary Sciences, Observational Astrophysics

Bio: I’m Niall, an Irish astronomer. I’m a fifth year postdoc working at AMNH as part of the Brown Dwarfs New York City (BDNYC) team. I’ve been in New York for 4.5 years. Before that I was in Edinburgh (Scotland) for 4.5 years and before that I lived in Belfast (Ireland). I’m an avid sports fan, especially soccer and ice hockey, but I'll really watch any and all sports. Recently I got my motorcycle license and will be getting a bike very soon.

Project Background: We’ve been studying exoplanets (planets beyond our solar system) for 30 years now. We have detected 6000+ exoplanets and studied their atmospheres using dozens of telescopes across both Earth and space. However, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which was launched in 2021, has dramatically changed the game. This is especially true for giant exoplanets akin to Jupiter. For the last 4 years we’ve been collecting incredible observations that are allowing us to investigate the properties of exoplanet atmospheres in more detail than ever before. For example, we are diving deep into the chemical and cloudy makeup of their atmospheres. My main avenue of research is trying to understand the weather (4D nature) present on these worlds and how their atmospheres change with time - see links!

• https://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/video/ssc2017-10v1-brown-dwarf-weather-animated-chart
• https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/nasas-webb-exposes-complex-atmosphere-of-starless-super-jupiter/

Research Question/Goal: What properties drive the weather signatures of extrasolar worlds which have been observed with JWST? Can we constrain their rotation rates using our latest JWST observations? How does the weather on these worlds change depending on their temperature? Can we precisely measure the change in brightness as they rotate for a sample of extrasolar worlds?

Skills students will build: 

• Python coding / Jupyter notebooks: For data analysis, visualization and figure making. 
• Nasa Planetary Spectrum Generator (PSG): For familiarization with telescope observing strategies, data and modeling.
• Spectral Time=series Analysis and Mapping Program (STAMP): An interactive tool for plotting and analysing JWST time-series (weather) observations. Fun fact: STAMP was developed by a former SRMP student from the class of ~2020 who is now a post-bac researcher in our group.

Mentor: Mark Popinchalk 

Discipline: Astrophysics

Topics: Observational Astrophysics, Theoretical Astrophysics

Bio: My name is Mark Popinchalk and I am an astronomer here at the Museum. I study the relationship between how quickly stars rotate and how old they are (think of how a spinning top slows down over time, but with stars!). Specifically, I look at young stars (ones formed after the Dinosaurs), and small stars (that are cooler than other ones, both in temperature and social status). I also engage in science outreach and education around the city, including planetarium shows here at the Museum, and my own science comedy theater show. When not working on science projects I like to bake bread, play board games, and run around playing ultimate frisbee.

Project Background: I want your help to learn more about a type of strange stars. M stars are the smallest kind of stars, and some of the youngest M stars have been seen to show a “regular irregularity” in the pattern of light they give off over time. It could be caused by leftover dust from when they formed, or plasma from the star’s surface, or maybe something we haven’t even considered before. There are only a few hundred of them known, so each one we find adds a major piece to the puzzle. We want to help understand why!

Research Question/Goal: This is a new class of objects that have only been discovered in the last 10 years, and only ~10 papers have been written about them. Last year, my SRMP students and I developed a new technique to look for these objects. When we used it to go “fishing” for more, we had a 10x higher success rate than normal! This year I want to refine the technique and gather up as many as we can! We will be trying to add to the research by finding more of them, and presenting this technique for a potential upcoming paper. 

Skills students will build: We will use python scripts, learn about the Lomb-Scargle periodogram and other data visualization methods. We will also learn to interface with NASA data pipelines.

Mentor: Linda Sohl

Discipline: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Topics: Exoplanets, Climate Modeling

Bio: I have always been fascinated by Earth and sky, which was a bit of a challenge growing up in the Bronx! It was probably as much my love of sci-fi/fantasy as of Earth sciences that ultimately led to the work I do now, thinking about the climatic conditions that could support life on other planets. When I’m not geeking out over the MCU or my favorite kaiju, I also like to read about human (pre)history, and human interactions with the natural world. You can never go wrong with pizza.

Project Background: Ever since telescopes have allowed astronomers to see features of our neighboring planets, people have wondered if life ever developed elsewhere – or if Earth was unique as a host for life, intelligent or otherwise. Some 30 years ago, we knew of only one planet outside of our Solar System; now, with the help of powerful space telescopes, we’ve found more than 6,300 confirmed exoplanets, and more are being found regularly. We don’t have the ability to look at each of these exoplanets closely for signs of life, so we need to take other approaches – like reconstructions of past Earth climates, or theoretical studies of climate on other worldsto understand what range of surface conditions are able to support life (at least, as we know it!).

Research Question/Goal: Climate models are complex computational models that simulate features of a planet’s atmosphere and oceans. We use these models to explore the range and combination of environmental factors that are more likely to support life. Past climates in Earth history, which are often very different from modern Earth, serve as examples of a variety of habitable conditions – but sometimes, exoplanets are so different that we simulate their climates directly. All these climate experiments allow us to test hypotheses about which large-scale environmental factors – like orbital configuration (how is the planet positioned with respect to its star?), atmospheric composition (which greenhouse gases are present, and how much?), and land/sea distribution (where are the continents, and how large are they?) – can be important in supporting the persistence of life on Earth in the past, as well as on other Earth-like exoplanets more generally.

Skills students will build: As part of my team, you’ll learn about how climate models work – what goes into a model, what comes out, what the limitations for using models are, and how researchers design experiments to test hypotheses. You’ll also learn how to use Panoply, a scientific visualization app developed at NASA, to create effective visualizations of output from a state-of-the-art NASA exoplanet climate model; then you’ll use those visualizations to analyze experiments of various past Earth and/or exoplanet climate scenarios. We’ll place all that information into the context of how planets are being discovered and targeted for future observations. Along the way, we’ll also have a lot to talk about: what makes a planet “Earth-like,” and why researchers don’t always agree; what ethical concerns surround the search for life; what counts as “life” worth discovering; and how might we know if we’ve discovered life that’s not from this Earth.

Mentor: Genaro Suarez 

Discipline: Astrophysics

Topics: Earth and Planetary Science, Observational Astronomy, Theoretical Astronomy

Bio: My name is Genaro Suárez and I am originally from Mexico. I am a postdoc at AMNH working in the Brown Dwarfs in New York City research group. Before coming to NYC, I was a postdoc in Canada and got a PhD in Astrophysics in Mexico. When not researching, I love playing and watching sports, especially soccer. I also enjoy dancing, exercising, and cooking. My favorite food is Mexican Cuisine, especially spicy dishes.

Project Background: Stars and planets are two of the main types of objects in our universe. Between the smallest stars and the largest planets, however, lies a gap in mass occupied by brown dwarfs, which are objects more massive than planets but not massive enough to become stars. Brown dwarfs are especially exciting because they have complex atmospheres containing a wide variety of chemical species (such as water vapor) and dynamic weather patterns that provide clues about their formation, structure, and evolution.

Research Question/Goal: This project aims to understand how the physical properties of brown dwarfs, such as their temperature, gravity, age, and mass, affect the composition and atmospheric phenomena observed in their atmospheres.

Skills students will build: Students will learn how to estimate fundamental properties of brown dwarfs, such as temperature, age, and mass, using real data from both ground-based and space-based telescopes. They will learn to inspect, visualize, and analyze astronomical data using the Python programming language and Jupyter notebooks. The experience gained through this project is broadly applicable to other areas of astronomy and science. No prior research or programming experience is required to participate.

Mentor: Alessandra Vecino Gazabon 

Discipline: Vertebrate Paleontology

Topics: Earth and Planetary Science, Observational Astronomy, Theoretical Astronomy

Bio: My name is Alessandra Vecino Gazabón, I am originally from Barranquilla, Colombia and I just finished my Ph.D. in Comparative Biology right here at the AMNH. I love to read (books, comics, webtoons), watch anime, movies and k-dramas. My favorites are fantasy/sci-fi, horror, and action. I love to craft, especially if I’m crafting a cosplay to wear to comic con, ren faire or my favorite time of year, Halloween. I have a fluffy dog named Appa (after the flying bison in The Last Airbender) that loves going on long walks and exploring new places.

Project Background: Being bipedal is one of the key characteristics of humans and one of the ways we use to determine if a fossil is in the human ancestry family. But the fossil record is fragmented and incomplete, so we don’t fully understand how the progression from other types of locomotion (terrestrial or arboreal quadrupeds) to a fully bipedal behavior happened, or how other human ancestor species engaged in this type of locomotion. My research revolves around the femur (thigh bone) and its internal structure because it plays such an important role for bipedal and quadrupedal locomotion being the bone between the knee and the hip. By internal structure I mean, specifically, the hard portion of the bone (cortical bone) and how it is distributed throughout but also its geometry which tells us more about the biomechanical environment it was subjected to. We can do this because bone is a living tissue, and it reacts to loads placed on it repeatedly during a lifetime like in the case of locomotor behaviors.

Research Question/Goal: I’m trying to understand how bipedalism evolved in humans. To do so, I’m analyzing how the thigh bone in different primate species is impacted by different factors. Does the structure change in different populations of the same species? Do same behaviors in different bone shapes impact the bone in the same way? Does the frequency of engaging in a behavior impact the bone differently? Learning more about living primates and the impact seen in the internal thigh bone allows us to better understand and interpret what we see in fossil remains.

Skills students will build: To study the internal structure of bone, you will use advanced imaging tools like microCT data (high powered x-rays) and learn to read and interpret CT scans. While taking part in this research, you will also learn overall human anatomy and anatomy of the thigh bone, gain a working understanding of evolutionary biology and human evolution, and basic bone biomechanics (using engineering concepts and methods on bone i.e. how the shape of a bone can affect how much stress and strain it can sustain). You will also learn how to use CT visualization software to process scans (Avizo, Dragonfly 3D World, FIJI), and how to extract and process large datasets for statistical analysis and visualization using the programming language R and R packages. 

Mentor: Vicens Vila-Coury 

Discipline: Ornithology

Topics: Taxonomy and Systematics, Bioinformatics, Evolutionary Biology, Genetics & Genomics

Bio: My name is Vicens. I was born in Barcelona, Spain, but grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. While growing up there, and through trips to visit family in Spain, I became fascinated by the natural world. It was that initial excitement for nature that motivated me to pursue graduate school in evolutionary biology. Today, I live in New York City and enjoy taking advantage of the city’s many perks when I have time away from research. These include going to free summer concerts, enjoying the Friday night fireworks at Coney Island, exploring the city's other incredible museums, or a casual bike ride around Central Park. I look forward to working with you to develop your research skills and your scientific interests!

Project Background: Occasionally, animals within the same species look different from each other across their range. This is especially true for species that are distributed over large areas. Why these differences arise can be the product of natural selection, or other less predictable evolutionary forces.

Research Question/Goal: We will be assessing whether the Bananaquit (a bird widely distributed throughout South and Central America) exhibits regular differences between populations. First we will organize the AMNH Ornithology Department’s Bananaquit specimens and then proceed by measuring specimens to gather data on their anatomy. Once this data is collected, we will compare these patterns across this species’s distribution to identify if regular morphological patterns emerge.

Skills students will build: Students will become familiar with how to organize and handle avian museum specimens, obtain morphometric measurements, and analyze data in python or R.

Mentor: Prescott Vayda 

Discipline: Invertebrate Paleontology

Topics: Taxonomy and Systematics, Evolutionary Biology, Earth & Planetary Sciences

Bio: My name is Prescott Vayda. I am a postdoctoral fellow at the AMNH. Before this, I completed my PhD at Virginia Tech, and my Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees at The Ohio State University. I love hiking, camping, and being outdoors. I wasn’t sure if I would like living in a big city, but there are so many things to do and so many places to eat delicious food, that it might be growing on me. I like to read science fiction, and my favorite book is Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke. My favorite pass time is to play board games.

Project Background: Just over half a billion years ago, nearly every major group of animals all show up in the fossil record almost simultaneously. We still do not know what caused this rapid diversification, sometimes referred to as the Cambrian Explosion, at this particular time. Hypotheses include biological factors (such as the evolution of key regulatory genes), ecological factors (such as the predator-prey arms race), or environmental factors (such as an increase in oxygen). In order to better understand the origin of animal life and how these factors played into their evolution, we must first collect and describe the fossils.

This project will focus on identifying and describing fossils from a new deposit in Yukon Canada. This deposit is one of only a few in the world that preserves one of the oldest sponge reefs with fossils that can be easily extracted from the rock and studied. The fossils range in size from less than a millimeter to up to one centimeter and include organisms such as sponges, mollusks, trilobites, worms, and weird things that don’t even fit into our modern animal groups.

Working under a microscope, we will sort out all the fossils (thousands!) and compare them to the scientific literature to identify species and possibly describe new ones.

Research Question/Goal: What did early animal ecosystems look like? How was their composition similar to or different from modern ecosystems?

Skills students will build: Using a stereomicroscope, curating microfossil collections, preparing samples for Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), preparing samples for micro X-ray computed tomography (micro-CT), processing micro-CT data, taxonomy and identification of various fossil invertebrate groups, and basic coding in R to create graphs and conduct statistical analyses.