Educational Background:

                   BSc: Geology (1997)

                   MSc: Geology (2003)

                   PhD Candidate: Marine Sciences (current)

My Interests are:

                 Music, fossil hunting, video games, movies, travel, cooking/baking.

Research Interest:

                  My interests in Geoscience is fueled by my continuous seek of knowledge on how nature imprints were left behind for us to discover and understand.  This initiative strengthened my research potential and allowed me to developed research projects in Puerto Rico and in parts of the Caribbean region.  These projects were related to the paleoecology and possible extinction patterns of foraminifera/ostracods in Puerto Rico (Cretaceous and Oligocene/Miocene boundary), Jamaica (Cretaceous), and Dominican Republic (Holocene) and the effects of heavy metals in shallow water foraminifera.  Each study has provided valuable preliminary significantly results related to Caribbean Geology and Tectonics.  The Oligocene/Miocene study shows a 50 m tectonic uplift of the island of Puerto Rico that coincided with its carbonate platform development.  On the other hand, Cretaceous sediments from Puerto Rico/Jamaica yielded charophytes assemblages indicative of fresh water environments providing insight into subaerial paleoenvironments along Island Arc terrains.  Finally, ostracod/foraminifera assemblages from Dominican Republic show the transition from marine-estuarine-freshwater settings which are related to tectonic uplift and/or possible climate change during the last 10,000yrs.

My career goals after finishing my PhD degree are: find a tenure track position in Geoscience; develop my research area of interest (micropaleontology, paleoceanography) and develop a micropaleontology laboratory related to Foraminifera studies; be a mentor to undergraduate and graduate students; develop teaching strategies to enhance the quality of science teaching at all levels; and incorporate active research with education through inquiry based learning.  Above all, my major goal is that my research serves as inspiration and guidance to newcomers in the field.