USC Dornsife News

A key innovator in the field of geomicrobiology, the professor of biological sciences and earth sciences led pioneering explorations to understand the subseafloor biosphere.

Kenneth Nealson of earth sciences and Nicos Petasis of chemistry are chosen as fellows of the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the journal Science.

The $6.7 million research project led by USC Dornsife’s Jan Amend explores life below the Earth’s surface. The studies are connected to the search for life on Mars and elsewhere in the solar system.

Howard Wayne Harris proves his 9th grade teacher wrong. Earning his Ph.D. at the USC Dornsife hooding ceremony May 16, he was lead author on several scientific papers including in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Led by Jan Amend of earth sciences and biological sciences, a team of USC Dornsife researchers will study life in Earth’s subsurface biosphere with a $6 million grant from the NASA Astrobiology Institute.