Biography
2019-present: Lecturer in the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge. Research focus on biomineral formation and geochemistry, with an emphasis on geochemical measurements and quantitative modelling techniques.
2016-2019: Research Fellow at the Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University. Worked with Steve Eggins and Michael Ellwood on reef-scale calcification dynamics, developing theory and software for high-precision pH and Alkalinity measurements in the field. Developed processing methods and software for LA-ICPMS data analysis (Branson et al., 2019). Derived mechanistic models to explain patterns in the boron geochemistry of calcite (Branson, 2018; Farmer et al., 2019).
2014-2016: Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of California, Davis. Worked with Howie Spero and Alex Gagnon (U. Washington) to explore the role of intra-mineral organics on the structure and geochemistry of biominerals using Atom Probe Tomography, LA-ICPMS and SIMS techniques (Branson et al., 2016).
2010-2014: PhD Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. Worked with Simon Redfern and Harry Elderfield on The Biomineralogy of Marine Calcifiers and Palaeoproxies, applying high-resolution chemical and structural characterisation techniques to improve our understanding of biomineral geochemistry (Branson et al. 2013, 2015a & b, 2018).
2009–2010: MSc in Oceanography, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton. Worked with Debora Iglesias-Rodriguez on changes in coccolithophore calcification and physiology in response to multiple stressors (Rouco et al., 2013).
2006–2009: BSc in Biology at the University of Bristol. Worked with Daniella Schmidt on changes in foraminiferal community structure across the K/Pg boundary mass extinction.
Publications
Farmer, Jesse R and Branson, Oscar and Uchikawa, Joji and Penman, Donald E. and Hönisch, Bärbel and Zeebe, Richard E. (2019) Boric acid and borate incorporation in inorganic calcite inferred from B/Ca, boron isotopes and surface kinetic modeling. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 244. pp. 229-247. ISSN 0016-7037 DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2018.10.008
Branson, Oscar and Fehrenbacher, Jennifer S and Vetter, Lael and Sadekov, Aleksey Y and Eggins, Stephen M and Spero, Howard J (2019) LAtools: A data analysis package for the reproducible reduction of LA-ICPMS data. Chemical Geology, 504. pp. 83-95. ISSN 0009-2541 DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2018.10.029
Branson, Oscar (2018) Boron Incorporation into Marine CaCO3. In: Boron Isotopes. Advances in Isotope Geochemistry . Springer, Cham, pp. 71-105. ISBN 978-3-319-64664-0
Branson, O. and Redfern, S. A. T. and Elmore, A. C. and Read, E. and Valencia, S. and Elderfield, H. (2018) The distribution and coordination of trace elements in Krithe ostracods and their implications for paleothermometry. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 236. pp. 230-239. ISSN 0016-7037 DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2017.12.005
Holland, K. and Eggins, S.M. and Hönisch, B. and Haynes, L.L. and Branson, O. (2017) Calcification rate and shell chemistry response of the planktic foraminifer Orbulina universa to changes in microenvironment seawater carbonate chemistry. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 464. pp. 124-134. ISSN 0012-821X DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2017.02.018
Jacob, D.E. and Wirth, R. and Agbaje, O.B.A. and Branson, O. and Eggins, S.M. (2017) Planktic foraminifera form their shells via metastable carbonate phases. Nature Communications, 8 (1). ISSN 2041-1723 DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-017-00955-0
Redfern, S. A. T. and Branson, O. and Read, E. (2017) Synchrotron X-ray microscopy of marine calcifiers: how plankton record past climate change. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 849. 012011. ISSN 1742-6588 DOI https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/849/1/012011
Branson, Oscar and Bonnin, Elisa A and Perea, Daniel E and Spero, Howard J and Zhu, Zihua and Winters, Maria and Hönisch, Bärbel and Russell, Ann D and Fehrenbacher, Jennifer S and Gagnon, Alexander C (2016) Nanometer-Scale Chemistry of a Calcite Biomineralization Template: Implications for Skeletal Composition and Nucleation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 113 (46). pp. 12934-12939. ISSN 0027-8424 Online ISSN 1091-6490 DOI https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1522864113
Branson, Oscar and Read, Elizabeth and Redfern, Simon A. T. and Rau, Christoph and Elderfield, Henry (2015) Revisiting diagenesis on the Ontong Java Plateau: Evidence for authigenic crust precipitation in Globorotalia tumida. Paleoceanography. ISSN 0883-8305 DOI https://doi.org/10.1002/2014PA002759
Branson, Oscar and Kaczmarek, Karina and Redfern, Simon A. T. and Misra, Sambuddha and Langer, Gerald and Tyliszczak, Tolek and Bijma, Jelle and Elderfield, Henry (2015) The coordination and distribution of B in foraminiferal calcite. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 416. pp. 67-72. ISSN 0012-821X DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.02.006
Branson, Oscar (2014) The Biomineralogy of Marine Calcifying Organisms and Palaeoproxies. PhD thesis, University of Cambridge.
Branson, Oscar and Redfern, Simon A. T. and Tyliszczak, Tolek and Sadekov, Aleksey and Langer, Gerald and Kimoto, Katsunori and Elderfield, Henry (2013) The coordination of Mg in foraminiferal calcite. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 383. pp. 134-141. ISSN 0012-821X DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2013.09.037
Rouco, Monica and Branson, Oscar and Lebrato, Mario and Iglesias-Rodriguez, M Debora (2013) The effect of nitrate and phosphate availability on Emiliania huxleyi (NZEH) physiology under different CO2 scenarios. Frontiers in Microbiology, 4 (JUN). p. 155. ISSN 1664-302X DOI https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2013.00155
