Thomas J. Whitmore

Assistant Professor

Personal profile

About

My research specialty is in the field of paleolimnology, which can be defined as the study of the history of lakes based upon geochemical and biological evidence found in sediments. In particular, I study diatom assemblages in sediment cores, and reconstruct past water quality using statistical models that have been calibrated with sedimented diatom assemblages and water-quality measures for a large set of lakes. Past water-quality inferences are compared with other types of sedimentary evidence, including geochemistry, sedimented algal pigments, stable isotopes, and radiometric dating in order to interpret the patterns and timing of environmental change. This allows us to assess long-term climatic and human influences on lakes and watersheds.

Education/Academic qualification

Ph.D., University of Florida

Disciplines

  • Biology
  • Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
  • Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
  • Botany