James H. Speer

Jim Speer (born in 1971) received his B.S. and M.S. in Geosciences from the University of Arizona and his PhD from the University of Tennessee in Geography. He is an associate professor in Geography and Geology at Indiana State University. His research areas include biogeography and dendrochronology with specific interest in insect outbreak reconstruction, fire history, disturbance ecology, and climate reconstruction. He is a past president of the Tree-Ring Society which is an international professional scientific society dedicated to education about and research in dendrochronology. His research focuses on new applications in tree-ring research such as the effect of periodical cicadas on tree growth, fire history in eastern deciduous forest tree species, and masting in oak trees. Currently he is working on an NSF funded grant to explore vegetation responses to climate change in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. He teaches classes such as Introduction to Environmental Science, Conservation and Sustainability, Quaternary Paleoecology, Structural Geology, Soil Genesis and Classification, and Biogeography. He currently lives in Terre Haute with his wife of 19 years and two young sons.