I am a first year graduate student in the Department of Plant Biology. I am broadly interested in the dynamics of plant interactions with their biotic and abiotic environments. More specifically, I am interested in implementing genomic techniques to ask old questions about plant ecological theory in new ways. For example, how do changes in gene expression due to water stress ultimately affect the biochemistry, physiology and ecology of plants? How might these specific changes in gene expression influence a plant's ability to compete for resources or facilitate the growth of other plants in a community? How might the dynamics of these interactions change under future climate scenarios? To ask these broad ecological questions, I have chosen to work within the Poaceae (true grass) family because of their ecological and economic importance. To start this investigation, I will be working in maize at the Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) facilities here in Urbana, IL and wheat in Horsham, Australia.

www.soyface.uiuc.edu 

http://www.jcci.unimelb.edu.au/FACE/FACEOutline.htm

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