UROP Research Mentor Project Submission Portal: Submission #1289

Submission information
Submission Number: 1289
Submission ID: 21041
Submission UUID: 31191ecd-afa4-49a1-89c0-356f626534e8

Created: Mon, 08/18/2025 - 11:51 PM
Completed: Mon, 08/18/2025 - 11:51 PM
Changed: Mon, 08/25/2025 - 11:34 AM

Remote IP address: 71.229.5.70
Submitted by: Anonymous
Language: English

Is draft: No
Primary Research Mentor Name Niall Whalen
Research Mentor Preferred Pronouns
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Contact Email (FSU Email if affiliated) nwhalen@bio.fsu.edu
Position Title Graduate Student
Faculty Advisor Name Dr. Gregory Erickson
Faculty Advisor's FSU Email gerickson@bio.fsu.edu
FSU College (if applicable) Arts and Sciences
FSU Department or Non-FSU Organization Affiliation Biological Science
Headshot (optional)
Research Assistant Supervisor (if different from above)
Research Assistant Supervisor Preferred Pronouns
Research Assistant Supervisor Preferred Honorific?
Contact Email (FSU Email if affiliated)
Name of Other Faculty/Collaborator(s) (if applicable)
Other Faculty/Collaborator(s) Preferred Pronouns
Other Faculty/Collaborator(s) Preferred Honorific?
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Title of the Project Floral Turnover at the Extinction of the Dinosaurs: A Phytolith-Based Analysis
Project Keywords Botany, Paleontology, Biology, Geology, Anthropology, Environment
Are you currently looking for research assistants? Yes
Number of Research Assistants Needed 2
Relevant Research Assistant Major(s) Biology, Earth Science, Environmental Science, Anthropology
Project Location: On FSU Main Campus
If the project location is off campus, does the research assistant(s) need to provide their own transportation?
Please select the choice that most accurately describes your expectations for the research assistant(s): In-person
Approximately how many hours a week would the research assistant(s) need to work? 10
Roughly what time frame do you expect research assistant(s) to work? Flexible schedule (Combination of business and outside of business. TBD between student and research mentor.)
Overall Research Project Description 66 million years ago, a massive meteorite struck the Gulf of Mexico triggering the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction—a cataclysmic chain of events that wiped out 75% of all animal species including the dinosaurs. Plants played a central role in this extinction: the survival and loss of different plant groups determined what resources were available to herbivores at the base of the food chain. In this way, plant extinctions shaped the severity of the event for animals, while plant survivals guided ecosystem recovery and set the evolutionary stage for the development of today’s flora. Phytoliths—microscopic silica deposits formed within plant tissues—offer an as-yet-uninvestigated record of these changes. Because of their durable composition, phytoliths can persist in sediments for millions of years. Different plant species produce distinct phytolith shapes, allowing researchers to identify which plants once inhabited an area by analyzing the phytolith contents of sediments. These properties have led to the wide application of phytoliths in fields like archaeology and anthropology, where they have shed light on the history of human plant use—but extensive use of phytoliths in more ancient investigations are still forthcoming. In this project, you will assist in extracting and examining phytolith assemblages from sediments spanning the K–Pg boundary, providing new insights into the response of flora to mass extinctions and the role of plants in shaping the identity of recovering ecosystems. To this end phytoliths will be examined from fossil plants, geological strata, and even modern plants to create a comprehensive interpretive perspective of floral turnover at the K-Pg boundary. Through assisting in this project, you will gain valuable skills in laboratory procedures and specifically phytolith analysis; an emerging field with applications in biology, geology, anthropology, and environmental science, amongst others. Please reach out to my email (nwhalen@bio.fsu.edu) with any questions or to discuss the project further.
Research Tasks You will assist in steps all throughout the phytolith extraction and interpretation pipeline. This will involve a variety of tasks such as cataloging specimens, preparing solutions for treating sediments, running centrifuges to separate out sediment constituents, and photographing phytoliths under the microscope.
Skills that research assistant(s) may need: No specific skills required, but the ideal candidate will be:
Conscientious
Detail-oriented
Well-organized
Mentoring Philosophy My mentoring philosophy is rooted in collaboration and the exchange of ideas. I aim to provide mentees with both the technical skills and the conceptual frameworks needed to pursue their own questions, encouraging them to think critically and creatively about problems rather than seeking predetermined answers. I believe mentorship should balance guidance with autonomy—offering support, resources, and constructive feedback while allowing space for exploration, mistakes, and growth. Above all, I see mentoring as a collaborative process, one that not only advances scientific discovery but also cultivates confidence, integrity, and a lasting passion for inquiry.
Please provide a link to your publications, a video clip, or a website for your research project (if applicable):
Please add any additional information here (if applicable):
Are you interested in participating in the UROP Research Mentor Roundtable? No
Roundtable times and Zoom links
Mentor Handbook, FAQs, and Communication Yes
UROP Performance Evaluation Yes
Materials Grant Yes
UROP Poster Presentation Yes
Faculty Advisor Confirmation Yes
Are you interested in attending in a UROP Research Mentor Workshop Series? No
Year 2025
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