Biography

I am an Associate Research Scientist in the School of Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University. I work at the interface of disciplines to show how innovations in plant structure-function relationships impact evolution and diversity. Most of this work follows two parallel and connected paths: (1) understanding how the allometry of genome size and cell size influence cell, tissue, and organism structure and function, and (2) characterizing the physiological dimensions of flower evolution.

My research seeks to define the factors that constrain or promote phenotypic and functional diversity. While most of my work focuses on vascular plants, many of the principles I elucidate are applicable to other kingdoms of life.

I actively collaborate with evolutionary genomicists to understand the evolution of genome size and structure and with soft matter physicists to understand the 3D structure, organization, and biomechanical function of plant tissues. This work has been supported most recently by the U.S. National Science Foundation.