Research Interests
I work at the interfaces of biological, geological and climatological sciences. The overall objective of my research is to understand long-term ecosystem dynamics under changing climatic conditions. To achieve this objective, I use "the natural experiments of the past" that are archived in geological deposits (e.g., lake sediments). These deposits offer a long-term holistic perspective into past environmental conditions, some of which do not exist today but may be analogs of different climatic conditions in the future. In pursuing my research interests, I integrate traditional paleoecological analyses and state-of-the-art analytical tools (e.g., genomic, geochemical, and numerical-modeling techniques). My students and I have conducted field research from the tropics to the Arctic to address a wide array of global change questions. We have authored more than 110 scholarly articles in top-tier disciplinary and interdisciplinary journals.
I am currently serving as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Despite my administrative duties, I continue to enjoy working closely with students on their research projects. Prospective graduate students are encouraged to contact me directly to explore research of mutual interest.
Education
- Ph.D., University of Washington
Additional Campus Affiliations
Professor Emeritus, Plant Biology
Professor Emeritus, Earth Science and Environmental Change
External Links
Recent Publications
Campos, M., Li, B., de Lafontaine, G., Napier, J., & Hu, F. S. (2024). Integrating Different Data Sources Using a Bayesian Hierarchical Model to Unveil Glacial Refugia. Journal of Agricultural, Biological, and Environmental Statistics, 29(3), 576-600. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13253-023-00582-x
Berg, E. E., Kaufman, D. S., Anderson, R. S., Wiles, G. C., Lowell, T. V., Mitchell, E. A. D., Hu, F. S., & Werner, A. (2022). Late-Glacial and Holocene Lake-Level Fluctuations on the Kenai Lowland, Reconstructed from Satellite-Fen Peat Deposits and Ice-Shoved Ramparts, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. Quaternary, 5(2), Article 23. https://doi.org/10.3390/quat5020023
Chen, Y., Kelly, R., Genet, H., Lara, M. J., Chipman, M. L., McGuire, A. D., & Hu, F. S. (2022). Resilience and sensitivity of ecosystem carbon stocks to fire-regime change in Alaskan tundra. Science of the Total Environment, 806, Article 151482. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151482
Devotta, D. A., Kent, A. D., Nelson, D. M., Walsh, P. B., Fraterrigo, J. M., & Hu, F. S. (2022). Effects of alder- and salmon-derived nutrients on aquatic bacterial community structure and microbial community metabolism in subarctic lakes. Oecologia, 199(3), 711-724. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-022-05207-7
Chen, Y., Hu, F. S., & Lara, M. J. (2021). Divergent shrub-cover responses driven by climate, wildfire, and permafrost interactions in Arctic tundra ecosystems. Global change biology, 27(3), 652-663. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15451