Edinburgh Research Explorer

Prof Rachel Wood

Personal Chair in Carbonate GeoSciences

Profile photo

Willingness to take PhD students: Yes

Education/Academic qualification

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Open University
Bachelor of Science, University of Bristol

Current Research Interests

Carbonate sedimentology and diagenesis; Carbonate hydrocarbon reservoirs; Modelling of Carbonate Systems; Reef evolution and palaeoecology; Biomineralisation and evolution of sea water chemistry.

My research in a nutshell

In this video Rachel describes how the first skeletons appeared and rapidly diversified 550 – 500 Million years ago – but we have no idea what triggered this. Based on fieldwork in Namibia, Rachel and her group are exploring why.

Research outputs

  1. The origin and rise of complex life: progress requires interdisciplinary integration and hypothesis testing

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  2. Multiple branching and attachment structures in cloudinomorphs, Nama Group, Namibia

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  3. Dynamic and synchronous changes in metazoan body size during the Cambrian Explosion

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

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Research projects

  1. Resolving the enigmatic Precambrian-Cambrian boundary event (BACE)

    Project: Research

  2. Perturbation of the Earth System at the Proterozoic-Phanerozoic transition and the resilience of the biosphere

    Project: Research

  3. International Centre for Carbonate 2 - RockTYPE II: Evolution of pore geometry and flow properties in microbialites

    Project: Research

View all (10) »

Research press coverage

  1. Fossils fuel new theory on when evolution of animal species began

    Press/Media: Research

  2. Prof Rachel Wood (Geosciences) comments on discovery of prehistoric skeletal animals in Siberia

    Press/Media: Research

  3. Skeletons developed as chemistry of oceans changed, study shows

    Press/Media: Research

View all (13) »

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