My research group is interested in developing and implementing computational tools for enhancing the collection and analysis phylogenomic data. We develop resources for isolating genomic regions in non-model organisms and novel algorithms for assembly of these genomic regions from next-generation sequencing data. By leveraging genomic resources from model species scattered across the Tree of Life, we identify conserved genomic regions and develop molecular probes representing the natural variation in a group so that the same regions can be isolated and sequenced from any non-model species.

I am the director of bioinformatics at FSU’s Center for Anchored Phylogenomics (www.anchoredphylogeny.com), which has enhanced the research of hundreds of collaborators by providing access to genome-scale data for non-model systems. Undergraduates, graduates, and postdocs in my group benefit from having access to vast amounts of DNA sequence data from across the Tree of Life. These data provide not only a valuable resource for meta-studies but also for raw material for which new computational methods can be developed.

Postdoctoral researchers could leverage the data collected by the Center to lead ambitious studies to evaluate the accuracy and effectiveness of currently-utilized computational approaches, develop novel computational approaches, or study broad-scale patterns of evolution by comparing genome-scale data across the Tree of Life. In addition to having access to the latest equipment for generating next-generation sequence data (e.g. liquid handling robots and the Illumina NovaSeq6000 sequencer) and over 200 Tera bases of genomic data from tens of thousands of species, postdocs would have access to the computation facilities that include six linux workstations each with dual 8-core Intel processors, four TB of solid state storage, and 256GB of RAM.