Updated April 2016
Rachel L. Harris [email protected] | (+1) 336-883-5905 | http://scholar.princeton.edu/rlh6
HOME ADDRESS MAILING ADDRESS 403 West Pine Street Princeton University Mount Airy, NC 27030 Guyot Hall, Room 113 Princeton, NJ 08544
EDUCATION Princeton University, Princeton, NJ USA September 2014 - Present Doctoral Student, Dept. of Geosciences Advisor: Dr. Tullis Onstott ([email protected])
Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA USA August 2010 - May 2014 B.A. Biological Sciences; Minor: Russian Institutional Honors: Sigma Xi GPA: 3.41/4.00 | Major GPA: 3.57/4.00 Senior Thesis: “Hydrodynamic conditions in marine benthic environments affect nutrient uptake and biomineralization in cyanobacterial mats”
University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK January 2013 – May 2013 Study Abroad Exchange Program GPA: 3.43/4.00 (converted to US scale)
Russian State University for the Humanities (РГГУ), Moscow, Russia January 2012 Study Abroad Exchange Program GPA: 4.00/4.00 (converted to US scale)
Mount Airy High School, Mount Airy, NC USA August 2006 – June 2010 High School Diploma - Valedictorian GPA: 4.00/4.00
PUBLICATIONS Lau, C. Y. M., Kieft, T., Kuloyo, O., Linage-Alvarez, B., vanHeerden, E., Lindsay, M., Magnabosco, C., Wang, W., Wiggins, J., Guol, L., Perlman, D., Kyin, S., Shwe, H., Harris, R., Oh, Y., Yi, M. J., Purtschert, R., Slater, G., Smart, S., Sigman, D., Ono, S., Wei, S., Li, L., Sherwood Lollar, B., Onstott, T. Two-tiered primary production in a deep subsurface sulphuretum. Submitted.
Jahnke, L., Parenteau, M. N., Harris, R., Bristow, T., Farmer, J. D., and Des Marais, D. J. Lipid biomarker production and preservation in acidic ecosystems: relevance to early Earth and Mars. In Preparation.
Updated April 2016
Jahnke, L., Parenteau, M. N., Harris, R. L., Carlson, M. M., Farmer, J. D., and Des Marais, D. J. Synthesis of 3-methylbacteriohopanepolyols by purple non-sulfur anoxygenic phototrophs. In Preparation.
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE Aix-Marseille Université - Campus St. Jérôme, Marseille, France June 2014 – August 2014 Laboratoire Physique des Interactions Ioniques et Moléculaires (PIIM) Center National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Internship Advisor: Dr. Grégoire Danger ([email protected]) Optimization and quality control of the experimental set-up for Project VAHIIA (Volatile Analyses from the Heating of Interstellar/cometary Ice Analogues). Formation of cometary ice analogues using cryogenic and high vacuum technologies, as well as subsequent analysis of volatile organic compounds and organic residues coming from the heating of these analogues using GC-MS and Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry. The goal of my research was to obtain information on potential chemical reactivity occurring inside cometary grains as a point of reference for data incoming from ESA’s Rosetta mission.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA USA January 2014 – May 2014 Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program/Wellesley College Senior Thesis Advisors: Dr. Tanja Bosak ([email protected]), Dr. Vanja Klepac-Ceraj ([email protected]) My thesis concerns cyanophycinase mediation in carbon and nitrogen cycling of benthic, marine, Subsection III cyanobacterial mats. I am currently investigating of cyanophycin expression in various regions of the mat as it relates to morphological and ecological observations using immunoassays. I take geochemical measurements of local N concentration, nitrate vs. ammonia, N-fixation, and also conduct high-resolution stable-isotope mapping of labeled bicarbonate 13 - (H CO3 ). I will use these data in conjunction with morphological observations and gene sequencing (16s rRNA, nifH, and CphA). I hypothesize that cyanophycin composition and function will vary according to species composition and nutrient availability, as such results have been implied for freshwater cyanobacteria from Yellowstone National Park, WY USA.
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA USA June 2013 – August 2013 Exobiology Branch SSX Intern Advisor: Dr. David J. Des Marais ([email protected]) I continued to culture and characterize (via 16s rRNA sequencing) the same strain of anoxygenic purple non-sulfur bacteria species I had worked with in summer 2012. I also cultured several strains of Cyanidiales and Chlorella from Sulphur Works and Devil’s Kitchen localities. I developed a trial run of a volcanic rock dissolution experiment for the 2013-2014 Lassen Astrobiology Student Intern Program, which included mineral analysis of solid precipitates via XRD and comparison to alteration materials found in analogous hydrothermal sites in Lassen Volcanic National Park. I worked with the Geographic Information Systems software ArcGIS to develop a 3D hydrogeological map of California’s Southern Cascades. I participated in education and public outreach efforts at the 2013 Lassen Dark Sky Festival by giving field work Updated April 2016
demonstrations and public talks discussing the characteristics of Lassen that make it a Mars analogue site.
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA USA June 2012 – August 2012 Exobiology Branch SETI Institute Research Experience for Undergraduates Advisor: Dr. David J. Des Marais ([email protected]) My research focused on early habitable environments and the evolution of complexity in support of the NASA Astrobiology Institute. Specifically, my work included conducting pure culture isolation and fatty-acid methyl ester (FAME) characterization of acid-tolerant purple non- sulfur bacteria from hydrothermal features in Lassen Volcanic National Park. I also participated in education and public outreach efforts by contributing to curriculum development of a NASA- sponsored astrobiology internship for high school junior and seniors – the Lassen Astrobiology Student Intern Program.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA USA May 2011 – August 2011 Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences MIT Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program Advisor: Dr. Tanja Bosak ([email protected]) In the Bosak Lab, I examined the microstructure of microbial mats produced by cyanobacteria under laboratory-controlled conditions, and compared these structures with those of fossils belonging to their 1-3 billion year-old (Ga) stromatolite ancestors. This process was developed to gain an understanding of the environmental conditions that existed in intertidal zones during the Precambrian, as well as the chronology of conditions that allowed for the rise of atmospheric oxygen – and consequently complex aerobic life – on Earth. In addition to hands-on research, I conducted literary research through my translation of primary scientific literature on the same subject from Soviet-era Russia. From this literary search, I began the process of reconstructing the stromatolite classification system using a dichotomous key approach to classify fossil stromatolite forms based on quantitative, morphological characteristics ranging from most general (macroscopic measurements), down to most subtle (i.e. microstructure) features.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA USA September 2012 – May 2014 Department of Astronomy Teaching Assistant Supervisor: Dr. Stephen Slivan ([email protected]) ASTR 102 – Introductory Astronomy Laboratory I served as an assistant laboratory instructor for introductory astronomy courses at Wellesley College. My training included knowledge of optics for both refracting and reflecting telescopes, which were used in my instruction for this course. I am also a licensed operator of two Victorian- era refraction telescopes (12” and 6” diameter lenses) and their respective domes for course- required student observing. Identification of major constellations of northern hemisphere.
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PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS International Symposium of Microbial Ecology | Montréal, Canada 2016 Oral Presentation: “Elucidation of active players in biogeochemical cycling via fluorescent in situ hybridization of transcript-annealing molecular beacons (FISH-TAMB)” Biosignature Preservation Conference | Lake Tahoe, NV 2016 Poster: “Biomarker preservation potential of subsurface ecosystems” International Continental Drilling Program DSeis Workshop| Potchefstroom, South Africa 2015 Oral Presentation: “Technical considerations for deep-life drilling” Ruhlman Conference | Wellesley College 2014 Poster: “Hydrodynamic conditions in marine benthic environments affect nutrient uptake and biomineralization in cyanobacterial mats” Poster: “The Secret Ingredient in Cheese: Characterizing the Microbiome of Everyone’s Favorite Spoiled Dairy Product” American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting | San Francisco, CA 2013 Poster: “Lipid Biomarker Production and Preservation in Acidic Ecosystems: Relevance to Early Earth and Mars” “Big Picture Science” | Mountain View, CA 2012 Guest Speaker: “A Martian Curiosity”, 13 August 2012 Tanner Conference | Wellesley College 2012 Oral Presentation: “Following Curiosity: A Summer of Astrobiology Research for Mars Science Laboratory” Tanner Conference | Wellesley College 2011 Oral Presentation: “Catalysts of the Explosion: Stromatolites and their Role in the Ignition of Complex Life on Earth” Keck Northeast Astronomy Consortium Student Research Symposium | Wellesley College 2011 Oral Presentation: “Catalysts of the Explosion: Stromatolites and their Role in the Ignition of Complex Life on Earth”
HONORS AND AWARDS National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow 2015-present Three Generations Prize for Writing in the Sciences – Wellesley College 2014 Edward M. Armfield Scholar -- Northwestern North Carolina 2010 – 2014 Frances Meaker Colville Scholar – Wellesley College 2013 – 2014 Office of the Provost Student Research Grant – Wellesley College 2013 Dr. Gerald A. Soffen Memorial Travel Grant 2013
SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP International Symposium of Microbial Ecology 2016 - present Sigma Xi 2014 - present