V. J. P. Syverson
2658 E. Alluvial Ave, Fresno, CA 93727 | (559) 288-2872 | E-mail: vsyverson@gmail.com
Ph.D. geoscientist with expertise in analyzing interactions of organisms and environments. Developer of R text-mining applications for scientific literature, R statistical analysis code, and API-based graphical front-end for public global geospatial database of fossil collections. Interested in large datasets and data-driven decision-making. Currently on the academic track, but considering a move toward industry. Available to relocate within California in 2020.
Strong background in statistics and geoscience; peer-reviewed publication record, public speaking in conferences and classrooms; proficient R programmer; technical editing and illustration. Strong quantitative, visual, and communication skills. Comfortable with team projects and remote work.
Technical: R (many libraries), some Python (numpy, scipy), HTML5/CSS/JS (jQuery, d3) with JSON APIs, SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL); version control in Github, image processing and document layout in Adobe CS, Unix
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, Michigan 2009-2014
Ph.D., Geology. Relevant coursework: Inverse Modeling, Statistics in R
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 2003-2008
B.S., Geology. Relevant coursework: Introduction to ArcGIS, Field Mapping, Linear Algebra
Programming and statistics
Postdoctoral researcher, University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2016-2018
Developed text-mining software in R + PostgreSQL to extract mentions of numbered museum specimens from a large corpus of scientific literature. I’m currently developing it further into a collections management tool. geodeepdive.org, github.org/UW-Deepdive-Infrastructure
Maintained and improved UI/UX functionality for Paleobiology Database. I have rewritten existing JS code for API-based graphical exploration interface, redesigned pages and tables in the MySQL backend, and designed and implemented new analysis tools, resulting in better usability and increased traffic. I am still active on this project. paleobiodb.org, github.org/paleobiodb
Worked on team designing an API for interoperability between Paleobiology Database and other biology and biogeography databases (ePANDDA/ELC). epandda.org
Doctoral student and independent researcher, University of Michigan, 2008-2016 (All analysis in this section conducted in R)
Correlated ecological factors with defensive adaptations to reconstruct relationships between predators, prey, and parasites in the Paleozoic, revealing preferences of predators and parasites.
Analyzed prey animal regrowth to estimate predation through history of Earth's oceans, demonstrating that predation in ancient oceans was lower than in any modern environment except the deep sea.
Used size data measured from submarine videos to identify age cohorts and estimate recruitment, growth, and injury rates in a population of modern deep-sea crinoids.
Developed and used a method for characterizing arbitrary branching forms to characterize the changes in crinoid arms over their evolutionary history, showing that crinoids responded to increasing predation by adopting less vulnerable branching forms.
Used nonparametric statistics and time-series analysis to identify two species of condors and show that climate change did not result in body size changes in birds or mammals at La Brea.
Assisted with museum collections management and digitization: produced 3D and 2D models of specimens, turned paper catalog into digital with Specify, physically maintained museum collections
Professional publications
10 papers published/accepted in peer reviewed journals (Paleobiology, Bulletin of Marine Science, Eos, Quaternary Science Reviews, PLoS One, PalArch JVP, Paleo. Electronica); 10 conference abstracts as first author, 16 as collaborator; 2 invited seminar talks; doctoral thesis. Full academic CV available upon request.
Technical communication, teaching, collections management
Geology and biology professor, Clovis Community College (June 2018 – present). Teaching and developing curriculum for introductory geology and biology courses, especially lab exercises. Produced a new lab manual for intro biology course.
Senior paleontologist, PaleoWest Archeology (June 2018 – present). Surveying paleontological sensitivity of construction locations, doing monitoring & mitigation, issuing technical reports.
Technical editor, Paleo Solutions/Rocky Mountain Paleo Solutions (October 2015 – June 2017). Edited technical reports (planning, permitting, surveys, compliance, and mitigation) on paleontological, archeological, and environmental resources.
Consulting editor, American Journal Experts (February 2015-June 2017). In-field English-language and technical editing services on scientific publications.
Graduate teaching assistant, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (2010-2016)
Museum collections management and digitization assistant, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (2010-2016)
Technical writer, eSolar (June 2008-July 2009). Consulted with engineers to write documentation and make diagrams for solar-thermal field manuals.
Gardening & beekeeping (I manage a 28+ household community garden with beehives & orchard), museum design, language evolution, early & baroque music. Enjoys hiking, canoeing, traveling, exploring ecosystems. Pretty good cook, reasonably handy, and usually a quick study.
Github: https://github.com/vjpsyverson
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/V_Syverson/
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=xZZM1EMAAAAJ&hl=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-syverson-4a46093/