Beth Shapiro
2010 PopTech Science Fellow
Assistant Professor, Biology, Pennsylvania State University
Evolutionary biologist Beth Shapiro explores the influences of climate and humans in determining species extinction. By analyzing the genes of ancient plants and animals, she traces the complex relationship between environment and the extinction and evolution of species.
She is a National Geographic Emerging Explorer, MacArthur Fellow, and the associate editor of Molecular Biology and Evolution, and is supported by organizations such as the National Science Foundation, Searle Scholars Program, NASA and NIH. In a second line of research, Beth studies fast-evolving RNA viruses to develop new approaches to understanding the dynamics of species populations. Her ambitious research is advancing our understanding of evolution, extinction, climate change and disease.