Staff Profile

Laura C. Motta

Preferred Name: Laura Motta

Assistant Scientist

Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry

Email: laura.motta@whoi.edu

Phone: 508 289 3137

Office: Fye Laboratory 

Address:
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,   Mail Stop 04
266 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543

Some Info I joined WHOI as an Assistant Scientist in 2023. Before that, I was a postdoc at the University at Buffalo, working on the theoretical chemistry of heavy elements. I also spent time in South Korea as a postdoc at POSTECH, working on marine plankton. I received a Dual Ph.D. at the University of Michigan— in Environmental Sciences with Joel Blum, on marine mercury stable isotope biogeochemistry, and in Theoretical Chemistry with Paul Zimmerman, on relativistic quantum chemistry to understand heavy element chemistry.

Education

  • Dual Ph.D., Environmental Sciences and Chemistry, University of Michigan (Dual Degree 2019)
  • B.A., Chemistry, Rutgers University (2013)

Research Statement

Our research group is interested in questions that span the theoretical chemistry–biological oceanography continuum. We aim to uncover the physical chemistry underlying the interactions of complex organisms with light in marine waters. The interplay between light and chemical reactions in living systems in our oceans adds a fascinating new dimension to our understanding of chemistry. The central theme of our research is the development and application of non-traditional isotope effects, particularly mercury and sulfur, to understand these phenomena.