Tai Kubo

Tai Kubo is an Assistant Professor at the Center for Data Science, Waseda University (2024–present) and previously a Staff Scientist at the Marine Macroevolution Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (2022–2024). Holding a Doctor of Science from the University of Tokyo, his research spans vertebrate paleontology, dental microwear analysis, and evolutionary biomechanics, with a focus on archosaurs and mammals. He has published 35 papers (h-index: 14 on Scopus, 16 on Google Scholar) and received awards such as the PSJ Academic Award (2024) and Research Encouragement Award (2021).

Research Interests include:

• Evolution of locomotor postures (sprawling to erect) in archosaurs and dinosaurs
• Dental microwear texture analysis for diet reconstruction in extinct taxa
• Biogeographical network analysis of Cretaceous tetrapods
• Body size evolution constraints via foot posture
• Comparative limb and vertebral morphology in crocodylians

His article trends emphasize quantifying microwear textures to infer diets (theropods, sauropods, ornithopods), analyzing limb proportions in alligatoroids vs. crocodyloids, and exploring postural shifts during the Permian-Triassic. Collaborative works with Mugino Kubo and others highlight experimental approaches (e.g., juvenile alligator feeding studies) and theoretical frameworks (e.g., phylogeny-based biogeography).

Scientific Awards:

• PSJ Academic Award (2024)
• Research Encouragement Award, Evolutionary Society of Japan (2021)

Grants: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) for projects on:

• Paleodietary reconstruction in crocodylians (2022–2024)
• Microwear evolution of mammalian chewing (2019–2022)
• Dinosaur diet and early radiation (2014–2016)

Teaching includes courses on Statistics Literacy, Introduction to Data Science, and Statistical Analysis with R at Waseda University and Tokyo City University. His miscellaneous contributions involve museum exhibitions and public science communication.