Robert N. Ulrich
Ph.D Student
Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences
Geology 2640
Pronouns: they/he
Robert N. Ulrich (they/he) is a biogeochemistry Ph.D. student working with Aradhna Tripati whose research examines biomineralization, which is how living things make functional, mineralized structures. They are also a co-founder of Queer & Trans in STEM (formerly Queers in STEM), a writing consultant, a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, and a Center for Diverse Leadership in Science Early Career Fellow & Leadership Facilitator. They are also a part of the CDLS early career leadership team, an organizer for International LGBTQ+ STEM Day Collective, and a Co-Director for Reclaiming STEM, the first science communication and science policy workshop organized by and for people from minoritized communities. In 2019, Rob received the UCLA Curtis Shepard LGBT Leadership award for their leadership and outreach to the LGBTQ+ community at UCLA and abroad, and under their leadership, Queer & Trans in STEM won the UCLA Organization of the Year award. They have been invited to speak about their experience navigating STEM and advocacy on the popular podcasts, including Her STEM Story, Talk Nerdy, ExoLore, and at meetings for the American Geophysical Union, National Organization of Gay & Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals, the Dr. Lucy Jones Center for Science and Society, the Geologic Society of America, and the California Academy of Sciences.
My general research interests revolve around understanding how crystals grow and, more specifically, how living things grow crystals (think: our bones, a lobster’s shell, a plant’s phytolith). This process is called ‘biomineralization’. At UCLA, I am studying biomineralization using different geochemical tracers, including trace and minor elements as well as carbon, oxygen, and “clumped” isotopes, and integrating them using data science techniques.
