Catherine Beck

Catherine Beck serves as Associate Professor of Geosciences and Co-Director of Geoarchaeology at Hamilton College, where she leads research reconstructing Cenozoic paleoenvironments through sedimentary and stratigraphic records. Her work focuses on the East African Rift Valley, particularly the Turkana Basin in Kenya, integrating field research, continental scientific drilling, and laboratory analyses to understand paleoclimate dynamics and their relationship to early hominin evolution.

Beck earned her Ph.D. and M.S. from Rutgers University and B.S. from Tufts University. Her educational foundation supports expertise in sedimentology, stratigraphy, and isotope geochemistry, with fieldwork spanning Kenya's Rift Valley and New York's Adirondack region. She directs the Hamilton Isotope Lab (HIL), collaborating with instrument technician Bruce Wegter to advance paleoenvironmental research.

Her research centers on coupling lake sediment studies with paleoecology and stable isotope analyses to constrain conditions during hominin evolution. Key methodologies include grain-size analysis, XRF scanning, ostracod sclerochronology, and enamel proteomics. Recent work examines orbital-scale climate controls, hydrologic changes since the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum, and alkaline soil development in rift valleys. She emphasizes multi-proxy approaches to resolve complex paleoenvironmental questions across the Miocene to Pleistocene.

Analysis of Beck's 15 most recent publications reveals dominant themes in Turkana Basin paleoenvironmental reconstruction, with strong emphasis on hominin evolution contexts. Her work bridges paleoclimatology, archaeology, and geology through techniques like dental microwear analysis, proteomics, and biomarker studies. Recurring methodologies include high-resolution grain-size analysis, stable isotope geochemistry, and integration of drilling core data with outcrop studies.

Beck received the Class of 1963 Excellence in Teaching Award in Spring 2017. Her research is supported through the Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) and institutional resources like the Hamilton Isotope Lab. She actively mentors students through Senior Thesis courses and field studies, with publications highlighting educational innovations like "Early and Often" field course integration.

As Co-Director of Geoarchaeology and HIL director, Beck leads collaborative teams involving students, technicians, and international researchers. Her work with the ICDP workshop on Deep Drilling in the Turkana Basin exemplifies her commitment to large-scale interdisciplinary projects exploring climate-hominin linkages. Current efforts focus on 29-million-year enamel proteome datasets and orbital-scale hydroclimate variability.