Graduate Students and Visiting Scientists/Postdocs (E. Grossman)


Current Graduate Students and Research Projects


Josiah Strauss (Ph.D.) TBA

Kai Tao (Ph.D.) Rough title: Neogene climate change in the U.S. Gulf Coast (taokai@gmail.com)

Jordan Noret (Undergraduate Research Scholar) Global Climatic and Environmental Effects of the Early Permian Deglaciation

Undergraduate Research Assistants:


Postdocs, Visitors, and Graduate Students (1982-2007)

*Winners of Distinguished Graduate Student Masters Research Award (University-wide research award)

D. Keith Gentry (M.S., 2006) Inferring paleoenvironments using seasonal isotope and trace-metal profiles of serially sampled mollusks (Marathon Oil Company) (dgentry@geo.tamu.edu )

Cory Beck* (M.S., 2004; with John Morse) Experimental studies of oxygen isotope fractionation in the carbonic acid system at 15°, 25°, and 40°C (Dominion Exploration and Production, Oklahoma City) wcbeck@cox.net

Micha Horacek (Visiting Ph.D. student, 2003, Erlangen University, Germany)

Yasheng Wu (
Visiting Scientist, 2002-2003; Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing) 

Takuro Kobashi
* (M.S., 2001) Paleogene cooling (55-30 Ma) as inferred from oxygen isotope variation within mollusc shells (Ph.D., Scripps Institution of Oceanography) tkobashi@ucsd.edu

Joyanto Routh (Ph.D., 1998) Characterization of organic matter in the Yegua formation (Brazos County, Texas): Relation to microbial processes and depositional environment  (Assistant Professor, Stockholm University) joyanto.routh@geo.su.se

Huayu Wang (M.S., 1998; with Thomas Yancey) Oxygen isotope records of Carboniferous seasonality on the Russian Platform (University of Texas at Dallas [Computer Science])

Peter Bruckschen (Visiting Scientist, 1997; Ph.D., Ruhr University, Germany). Strontium, oxygen, and carbon isotope stratigraphy of the Late Paleozoic--paleoclimate and global change; stable isotopes in modern brachiopods

David J. Katz (M.S., 1997) Origin of gaseous hydrocarbons from Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary strata in the Piceance Basin, western Colorado (Phillips Petroleum, Houston)

Horng-Sheng "Orson" Mii (Ph.D., 1996) Carbon and oxygen isotope records of brachiopod shells from the Late Paleozoic--Paleoceanography, paleoclimate, and global change (Associate Professor, National Taiwan Normal University) secfv003@scc.ntnu.edu.tw

Jeannette L. Schlichenmeyer (M.S., 1996) Geochemistry of the Yegua aquifer system and its relation to microbial processes (Roux Associates, Inc., Environmental Consulting and Management, Houston)

Chuanlun Zhang (Ph.D., 1994) Microbial geochemistry of groundwater in deep aquifers, central and east-central Texas (Associate Professor, University of Georgia) Zhang@srel.edu

Horng-Sheng "Orson" Mii (M.S., 1992) Isotopic composition of brachiopod shells as indicators of Pennsylvanian marine paleoenvironment of North America (Associate Professor, National Taiwan Normal University) secfv003@scc.ntnu.edu.tw

Christopher S. Romanek (Ph.D., 1991; with John Morse) Carbon isotopic fractionation and precipitation kinetics of synthetic aragonite and calcite grown in dilute solutions (Associate Professor, University of Georgia  romanek@srel.edu

D. Jeffrey Over (Visiting Scientist, 1991-92)(SUNY College at Geneseo) over@uno.cc.geneseo.edu

Chuanlun Zhang (M.S., 1989; with Thomas Yancey) Stable isotopes in Late Pennsylvanian brachiopods: Stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental implications Zhang@srel.edu

B. Keith Coffman (M.S., 1988; with Steven Fritz) Origin of gaseous hydrocarbons in east-central Texas groundwaters (Conoco, Environmental Division)

Judy Canova (M.S., 1988; with Robin Lighty) Late Holocene isotopic and sedimentologic records contained in carbonate lagoonal cores, northern Little Bahama Bank jlcanova@aol.com

Hideki Wada (Visiting Scientist, 1986-87) Hydrogen isotopes in groundwater methane

David Adlis (M.S., 1986; with Thomas Yancey) Stable isotope variations in Late Pennsylvanian brachiopods from cyclic sedimentary depostis: Paleoenvironmental and diagenetic implications David.S.Adlis@aero.or g

Keith Bowers (M.S., 1986; with Robin Lighty) Mixed water phreatic dolomitization of Jurassic oolites in the Upper Smackover Member, East Texas Basin: Petrologic and isotope evidence


Former undergraduate assistants: Kenneth Elsbury, Lisa Fahlquist, Jane Killingsworth, Nancy Matsumoto, Shane McGary, Crystal Skipworth, Brandon Stanislaus