Dr. Quinn is a Professor in the Department of Geological Sciences and the Director of the Institute for Geophysics. He teaches classes in Geoclimatology, Marine Geology, and Paleoceanography.

Dr. Quinn's research interests focus on using the geochemistry of coral reefs, marine sediments and stalagmites to investigate climate variability in the geologic record. Most recently he and his students have investigated modern and Holocene and Quaternary climate in the western Pacific Ocean, tropical Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.

Dr. Quinn supervises the Analytical Laboratory for Paleoclimate Studies (ALPS), which is one of the four stable isotope laboratories in the DGS. This facility currently houses two stable isotope ratio mass spectrometers with the capabilities to measure various light stable isotopes in carbonates, waters and organic matter. The lab also contains an inductively coupled plasma-spectrometer (ICP), wet chemistry facilities, student space and coral and stalagmite sampling facilities.

Areas of Expertise

Paleoclimatology, paleoceanography, sedimentary geology and geochemistry


Current Research Programs & Projects

Modern and Holocene climate variability in the western Pacific warm pool

Modern climate variability associated with the South Pacific Convergence Zone

Modern climate variability in the western tropical Atlantic

Modern and Holocene climate variability in the Gulf of Mexico


Jackson Research Excellence Fellow - Jackson School of Geosciences - UT Austin (2007 - 2009)

Distinguished Visiting Jackson Fellow, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at Austin - University of Texas at Austin (2005 - 2006)

USF Outstanding Research Achievement Award - University of South Florida (2004 - 2004)

Teaching Incentive Program (TIP) Award for Outstanding Teaching - University of South Florida (1995 - 1995)

Alternate Selection, USF Presidential Young Investigator Award - University of South Florida (1995 - 1995)

Alternate member, SASAC, Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, (2006 - 2008)

Member, Steering Committee, ESH (Earth System History), advisory panel to NSF-OCE-ATM., (2005 - 2007)

Associate Editor, Coral Reefs, (2004 - 2007)

Member, Science Planning Committee (SPC), Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, (2003 - 2006)

Member, Steering Committee, CUSP (Conference on US Participation in IODP), JOI/USSSP Workshop, Washington, DC, (2002)

Member, Steering Committee, MESH (Marine aspects of Earth System History), advisory panel to NSF-OCE., (2001 - 2005)

Co-Chair, JOIDES PPG Scientific Drilling of Shallow Water Systems, (1997 - 2000)

Co-Organizer, International Workshop on "Submerged Coral Drilling", St. Petersburg, Florida, ( - 2000)

Dr. Quinn's students are involved in research projects in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and the Gulf of Mexico.


Postdocs

Deborah Khider


Graduate Students

Kelly A Hereid, Ph.D., expected 2012

Christopher R Maupin, Ph.D., expected 2013

Meaghan K Gorman, Ph.D., expected 2016

Kaustubh Thirumalai, Ph.D., expected 2016
My current research involves the reconstruction of paleoceanographic parameters such as sea-surface temperature and salinity over the Holocene utilizing planktic foraminifera in marine sediment cores. Comprehensive observations of climatic fluctuations (temperature, salinity, precipitation etc.) in the ocean and atmosphere have only been measured (with varying degrees of quality) for the last ~150 years, a mere geological instant. In order to understand the variability of climate over large timescales and different forcings, the aid of natural recorders (which are preserved in time) is required. I utilize stable isotopes and trace metal ratios locked in the calcite shells of the foraminifera to catch a glimpse of the climatic and oceanic conditions when they lived. My field area is the northern Gulf of Mexico. I am also interested in statistically quantifying uncertainties in paleoceanographic/paleoclimatic proxies. How can we best listen to what the proxies (foraminifera, corals etc.) are telling us? Another line of research that I am actively involved in is coral paleogeodesy with Fred Taylor. I am interested in deformation patterns of the land on short time scales and the earthquakes through which they are manifest. To discover how the land was moving hundreds of years ago, I turn to corals which carry a detailed year-by-year record of sea-level. Dating and mapping fossil corals can give us precise information about the earthquake cycle. For my current project, I work in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific.


Undergraduate Students

Marissa Vara


Invited seminar speaker, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Florida (2004)

NSF Workshop, Guidelines for Best Practices in the Development of Scientific Drilling Projects, NSF, Minneapolis, Minnesota (2003)

Holocene Research Initiative Workshop, NSF-MESH (Marine Aspects of Earth System History), NSF-MESH, - (2002)

Invited seminar speaker, Eckerd College, Department of Marine Science, Florida (2002)

Workshop on Alternate Platforms: Europe as the Third Leg of IODP, ESF and JEODI, Brussels, Belgium (2001)

Conference on Alternate Platforms as part of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, ESF and JEODI, Lisbon, Portugal (2001)

first ARTS (Annual Records of Tropical Systems) Open Science Meeting, PAGES-CLIVAR, Noumea, New Caledonia (2001)

COMPLEX workshop on the future of Scientific Ocean Drilling, Ocean Drilling Program, Vancouver, Canada (1999)

International Symposium on Paleoecology of Reefs and Carbonate Platforms: Miocene to Modern, International Association of Sedimentologists, Aix-en-Provence (1999)

Climate of the Last Millennium, CLIVAR-PAGES Workshop, Venice, Italy (1999)

PAGES Data management workshop, WDC and IGBP PAGES, Boulder, Colorado (1998)

Workshop on cross-validation of high-resolution climate proxies and instrument records, Univ. of Washington, Washington (1997)

Annual Records of Tropical Systems Workshop, PAGES-CLIVAR, Hawaii (1996)

Coral records of ocean-atmosphere variability, La Parguera (NOAA), Puerto Rico (1992)

GEO 416M Sedimentary Rocks (Undergraduate)

GEO Geoclimatology (Graduate)

Information for Prospective Students (pdf)