Brooke Johnson (DPhil Earth Sciences, 2015)
Brooke’s DPhil examines the links between environmental change and the development of complex life on Earth. His research into an important episode of environmental change during the Early Jurassic has implication for modern climate change.
There are many bright students who will not get the chance to fulfill their potential because the cost of education is beyond their means. I know those feelings of frustration and despondency all too well. I had been told from a young age that I would never be a geologist and lacked the ability to study at a higher level. I was told “people like you don’t go to Oxbridge”, I have a first class degree and an ongoing DPhil at Hertford that proves otherwise.
My research concentrates on reconstructing environmental conditions at the boundary between the Cambrian and Ordovician periods, 500-480 million years ago. I aim to test the hypothesis that unstable redox conditions – that is the rapid switching between oxygenated and euxinic (oxygen depleted with high sulphide concentration) marine waters – created a barrier to the development of complex life during the Cambro-Ordovician. These studies are relevant to modern concerns such as climate change and energy security. Unstable redox is a consequence of rapid global warming and these conditions in turn promote the deposition of oil rich source rocks. Understanding how life responds to unstable redox will be vital to understanding how modern marine ecologies will respond to the spread of oceanic ‘Dead Zones’ such as those in the Gulf of Mexico, an area where fishing is a major industry and food source.
As a mature student who worked full time to fund my undergrad degree, I understand all too well the help that even small amounts of funding can make. A basic call-centre salary does not leave a lot of room for error and working 13 hours, 6 days a week does not leave a lot of time for study or rest. Without the generosity and support of donors, I would never have been able to complete my thesis research or my degree, which ultimately changed my life. Graduate funding at Hertford would make it possible for more people to fulfil that potential.