Dr. Erica Barlow, Geosciences

Advised by Dr. Chris House

I’m originally from Sydney, Australia, and moved to State College to start my two-year Postdoc at Penn State in the Fall of 2021. Although moving here was a shift, coming from a big city to a small, central PA town, I feel well and truly settled in and am loving my time here!

I’m a Postdoc in the Geosciences Department, working with Prof. Chris House and the Laboratory for Agnostic Biosignatures. I look at the characteristics of ancient (~2.4-billion-year-old) fossils to refine our understanding of the evolution and distribution of early life on Earth. My research starts with doing field work – mapping rock units, collecting samples, and documenting the relationship between different rock layers. I then look at very thin slices of the rock samples under a microscope to describe the minerals and textures contained within. Combining the field context and microscopic observations reveals the original environment that the rocks formed in – in this case – a shallow marine environment, somewhat like a coral reef in the modern day. I then use spatially-resolved, in situ techniques like scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to delve further into these rocks by studying the major, trace, and rare Earth element abundances and distributions. Characterizing the morphology, chemistry, and environmental setting of these fossils helps inform the search for life elsewhere, in terms of knowing the type of environment in which to look for life and the type of rock that best preserves biological information across large timescales.

Outside of research, my favorite thing to do is spend time in the outdoors. Doesn’t matter the activity, as long as it’s out in nature! Last summer I was fortunate to be able to tag along on Prof. Jenn Macalady’s caving trip in Italy, where researchers are investigating various questions related to sulfur-cycling bacteria living within the caves. It was an amazing experience!

Caption: Abseiling (rappelling) vertically down a muddy hole in Grotta Bella cave, Frasassi

Maybe it’s a bit cliche, but I also love food and lately have had a lot of fun making interesting meals from the Ottolenghi SIMPLE cookbook. If you enjoy cooking, I’d highly recommend checking it out – the meals are diverse, super easy to make, and taste delicious!