Conference Description
Geobiology is the study of the co-evolution of life and Earth, merging disciplines such as paleobiology, sedimentology, geomicrobiology, geochemistry, geology and evolutionary biology. Geobiology has developed a wide arsenal of tools to document the record of the evolution on a living planet, which, in turn, raises the question of which evolutionary processes led to geobiological diversity and functioning on the planet today, as well as the role(s) of these processes in generating such diversity and functioning deep in Earth’s past.
In this Gordon Research Conference, the scientific sessions are centered around nine open questions within the realm of Geobiological evolution, each of which focuses on a process that is key to understanding the co-evolution of a living planet. Throughout this conference we will explore the mechanisms that have enabled life to thrive and survive at the surface of the planet for more than 3.5 billion years, the roles that theory and evidence play in understanding the record of co-evolution on a living planet, and new approaches from sibling fields to Geobiology allow us to explore these ideas further."
The topics, speakers, and discussion leaders for the conference sessions are displayed below. The conference chair is currently developing their detailed program, which will include the complete meeting schedule, as well as the talk titles for all speakers. The detailed program will be available by September 30, 2021. Please check back for updates.
Ecology, Evolution and Existence in Extreme Environments
Discussion Leaders
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John Spear (Colorado School of Mines, USA)
Speakers
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Jackie Goordial (University of Guelph, Canada)
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Trinity Hamilton (University of Minnesota, USA)
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Juan Liu (Peking University, China)
Microbial Persistence in the Real World
Discussion Leaders
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Steven Finkel (University of Southern California, USA)
Speakers
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Jessica Labonté (Texas A&M University at Galveston, USA)
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Nagissa Mahmoudi (McGill University, Canada)
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Ember Morrissey (West Virginia University, USA)
The Evolution of Stable Isotope Geobiology From Product to Process
Discussion Leaders
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Kate Freeman (Pennsylvania State University, USA)
Speakers
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Xiaobin Cao (Nanjing University, China)
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Maya Gomes (Johns Hopkins University, USA)
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Elise Wilkes (California Institute of Technology, USA)
The Evolution of Photoautotrophy in Space and Time
Discussion Leaders
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Patricia Sanchez-Baracaldo (University of Bristol, United Kingdom)
Speakers
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Jeffrey Cameron (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
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Naomi Levine (University of Southern California, USA)
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Jodi Young (University of Washington, USA)
Comparing Theories and Evidence for the Co-evolution of Life and Earth
Discussion Leaders
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Lee Kump (Pennsylvania State University, USA)
Speakers
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Christopher Kempes (Santa Fe Institute, USA)
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Stephanie Olson (Purdue University, USA)
The Biogeochemical Record of Early Life: Constraints From Rocks to Proteins
Discussion Leaders
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Lindsay Hays (NASA Headquarters, USA)
Speakers
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Eli Moore (Rowan University, USA)
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Eva Stueeken (University of St Andrews, United Kingdom)
From Eukaryogenesis to Multicellularity: Contrasting Geological, Genetic and Organismal Evidence
Discussion Leaders
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Phoebe Cohen (Williams College, USA)
Speakers
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David Gold (University of California Davis, USA)
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Jana Milucka (Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, Germany)
Geobiology of Critical Intervals: The Causes and Consequences of Mass Extinctions
Discussion Leaders
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Jeremy Jackson (Scripps Institute of Oceanography, USA)
Speakers
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Seth Finnegan (University of California Berkeley, USA)
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Pincelli Hull (Yale University, USA)
Experimental Macroevolution: Directly Testing Geobiological Hypotheses
Discussion Leaders
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Michael Travisano (University of Minnesota, USA)
Speakers
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Nkrumah Grant (University of Idaho, USA)
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Maria Rebolleda Gomez (University of California Irvine, USA)
The GRC Power Hour™
Organizers:
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Clara Chan (University of Delaware, USA)
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Karen Lloyd (University of Tennessee, USA)
