My diatom experience and research involves freshwater and coastal marine diatoms, the latter from the Plio-Pleistocene of Antarctica. The ecological (and paleoecological) response of diatom species and assemblages to changing environments and climate has been the main focus of my work. The detailed story the diatom species can tell us about the world (or body of water) in which they lived, be it 10 or 1 million years ago, is astounding. I think taxonomic work is both fascinating and essential to understanding the species and genera. It is thrilling to see species evolve and change through time slices preserved in a sediment core.