Katherine H. Freeman is the Evan Pugh University Professor of Geosciences at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

and a co-editor of the

peer-reviewed Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

scientific journal, ''

Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences ''Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences'' is an annual peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Annual Reviews, which broadly covers Earth and planetary sciences, including geology, atmospheric sciences, climate, geophysics, env ...

''. Her research interests are organic geochemistry, isotopic biogeochemistry,

paleoclimate Paleoclimatology (British spelling, palaeoclimatology) is the study of climates for which direct measurements were not taken. As instrumental records only span a tiny part of Earth's history, the reconstruction of ancient climate is important to ...

and

astrobiology Astrobiology, and the related field of exobiology, is an interdisciplinary scientific field that studies the origins, early evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. Astrobiology is the multidisciplinary field that investig ...

Academic background

In 1984

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

awarded Freeman her B.A. in geology and classical civilization. At Indiana University, Bloomington she obtained her M.S. (1989) and Ph.D. (1991) in geology under the direction of John M. Hayes. Freeman then did a

postdoc A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to p ...

at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography (Savannah, Georgia) in 1990-91, and subsequently joined

in 1991. Freeman was appointed a Distinguished Professor in 2015 and later an Evan Pugh University Professor in 2016 by Penn State. An Evan Pugh University professorship is the highest honor that Pennsylvania State University can bestowed on a member of its faculty.

Awards

Freeman is a fellow of the American Geophysical Union (2013), The Geochemical Society and

European Association of Geochemistry The European Association of Geochemistry (EAG) is a pan-European organization founded to promotes geochemical research. The EAG organizes conferences, meetings and educational courses for geochemists in Europe, including the Goldschmidt Conference w ...

(2011), American Academy of Microbiology (2011),

John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Olga and Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died on April 26, 1922. The organization awards Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been ...

(2010), Geological Society of America (2007), and Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (2001). She was awarded the

Heinz A. Lowenstam Heinz Adolf Lowenstam (October 9, 1912 – June 7, 1993) was a German-born, Jewish-American paleoecologist celebrated for his discoveries in biomineralization: that living organisms manufacture substances such as the iron-containing mineral magnet ...

Science Innovation Award The Science Innovation Award is an award bestowed annually by the European Association of Geochemistry on a scientist who has made "a particularly important and innovative breakthrough in geochemistry", and consists of a medal and certificate. The ...

in 2012 from the

. Her paper titled "Water, plants, and early human habitats in eastern Africa" earned the 2012 Cozzarelli Prize for Physical and Mathematical Sciences. She was elected to membership in the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

in 2013. She received the 2017 Alfred Treibs Award from the Geochemical Society for her contributions to organic geochemistry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Katherine H. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American earth scientists Pennsylvania State University faculty Fellows of the Geological Society of America Wellesley College alumni Indiana University Bloomington alumni Planetary scientists Women planetary scientists Astrobiologists American women biologists Academic journal editors American women editors Women earth scientists Biogeochemists American women academics Annual Reviews (publisher) editors 21st-century American women