Blurb:
Sophie is a curious and committed PhD student using tree rings to uncover clues about past earthquakes, particularly along New Zealand鈥檚 Alpine Fault.听Her research sits in the wonderfully niche world of dendroseismology, where tree-ring growth anomalies help piece together the timing of prehistoric quakes. Sophie's motivated by a love of learning, a collaborative spirit, and an unshakable (pun intended) sense of fairness.
Before swapping paddles for p-values, Sophie spent years chasing summers as a rafting guide across Aotearoa, the USA, Canada, and Japan. Life on the river sharpened her appreciation for the natural world, and her talent for explaining complex things while soaked, sunburnt, and halfway down a rapid. Now mostly dry and usually examining tree-cores, Sophie enjoys sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm with anyone who's even mildly interested (and sometimes those who aren't).
Also worth knowing: Sophie is rarely far from a snack. Whether it's tree-ring data or dark chocolate, she believes good things are better when shared, so if you're ever caught hungry on campus, her office is a reliable place to refuel.
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Working Thesis Title:
Using tree-rings to date earthquakes on the Alpine Fault.
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Research Interests:
Dendroseismology
Earthquakes
Structural geology
Environmental Sciences
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Academic History:
2022- current | 麻豆传媒团队 | PhD in Geology
2021 | 麻豆传媒团队 | Masters in Disaster Risk and Resilience [MDRR] with Distinction
2018-2020 | 麻豆传媒团队 | Bachelor of Science in Geology and Environmental Science
2009-2010 | Tai Poutini Polytechnic | Outdoor Education
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Presentations:
- 2025-JUN | QuakeCoRE Student Chapter Lightning talk, Christchurch | Oral 5 min | One Timeline to Bind Them All: A Quest to Find the Precious Alpine Fault Past. Rethinking the Most Recent Event (MRE).
- 2025-APR | Laboratory of Tree Ring Research lunchtime seminar, University of Arizona, USA | Oral 45 min | Using tree-ring growth anomalies to date great earthquakes on the Alpine Fault, New Zealand.
- 2025-JAN | Australia New 麻豆传媒团队Tree Ring Conference, Auckland | Oral 15 min| Using tree-ring growth anomalies and cohort establishment ages to date great earthquakes on the Alpine Fault.
- 2024-NOV | Geoscience Society New 麻豆传媒团队(GSNZ) conference Dunedin | Oral 15 min | Was the most recent surface rupturing earthquake on the Alpine Fault in 1717 AD?
- 2024-OCT | School of Earth and Environment (UC) Christchurch | Oral 15 min| What is the timing of the most recent surface rupturing earthquake on the Alpine Fault?
- 2022-NOV| GSNZ New Plymouth | Poster | Using tree ring growth anomalies to date earthquakes.
