Declan Ramirez

Masters Student  - LinkedIn

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I am a graduate student working towards a MS in Geology (anticipated June 2024) at the University of Minnesota (UMN), conducting research at the Institute for Rock Magnetism under the direction of Joshua Feinberg and Maxwell Brown. I have a BA in Geology (2022) from Carleton College and have been living in Minnesota for 6 years, though I am originally from Houston, Texas. I worked at a variety of positions while in college, the most relevant being at GSI Environmental as a summer intern in 2021, where, among other things, I helped complete a small scale project testing the ability of colloidal gas aphrons (CGAs) to remediate PFAS using dye as a proxy. For my BA thesis I researched the preferred habitats and abundance of freshwater pea and fingernail clams in a local stream, and was awarded thesis distinction for the project. Currently I study archaeomagnetism, and as part of my MS thesis I’m working on a project describing the magnetic qualities of Minnesota ceramic sherds and their suitability for archaeointensity analysis, with the end goal of using Minnesota ceramics to create an archaeomagnetic reference curve (ARC) for the state and surrounding areas. 


In my free time I like to draw, bike, and read, with my current favorite book being Watership Down (did you know rabbits can only count to 4?). I also like walking in the snow, getting lost in the woods, and frequenting used bookstores for my next favorite novel. I greatly enjoy living in the Minneapolis area, and particularly enjoy participating in the annual Pioneer Press Treasure Hunt (certainly we’ll find it next year). In addition to my research responsibilities, as a graduate student I also TA Earth Science courses at the UMN, including upper and intro level courses like Solid Earth Dynamics (ESCI 2201) and Earth and its Environments (ESCI 1001).

Publications & Presentations

Publications

Stine, J.M., Feinberg, J.M., Huttenlocker, A.K., Irmis, R.B., Ramirez, D., Doctor, R., McDaris, J., Henderson, C.H., Read, M.T., Shannon, K.B., Noren, A., O'Grady, R., Sloo, A., Steury, P., Fernandez, D.P., Henrici, A.C., and Tabor, N.J., In revision. Paleozoic Equatorial Records of Melting Ice Ages (PERMIA): Calibrating the Pace of Paleotropical Environmental and Ecological Change During Earth's Previous Icehouse.


Selected Presentations

Ramirez, D., Feinberg, J.M., Brown, M.C., Taft, M., Hayes, K., Fleming, E.P., 2023. Creating an Archaeomagnetic Dating Curve for Minnesota: Assessing the Potential of Minnesota Ceramic Sherds to Accurately Record Field Intensity. American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, San Francisco, California. GP21A-0518, December 11-15, 2023.


Ramirez, D., Feinberg, J.M., Brown, M.C., Taft, M., Hayes, K., Fleming, E.P., 2023. Creating an Archaeomagnetic Dating Reference Curve for Minnesota: Determining the ceramic sherd varieties that record the most robust archaeomagnetic data. Earth Student Research Symposium, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota. March 6, 2023.


Ramirez, D., Feinberg, J.M., Brown, M.C., Taft, M., Hayes, K., Fleming, E.P., 2023. Creating an Archaeomagnetic Dating Reference Curve for Minnesota: Determining the ceramic sherd varieties that record the most robust archaeomagnetic data. Council for Minnesota Archaeology Conference, Fort Snelling, Minnesota. February 24-25, 2023.

Teaching & Mentorship

Teaching Assistant, ESCI 2201 Solid Earth Dynamics

Teaching Assistant, ESCI 1001 Earth and Its Environment

Service & Outreach

Awards & Scholarships