Brian J. Enquist

Brian Joseph Enquist is an American biologist and academic. Enquist is a Professor of Biology at the University of Arizona.[1] He is also external professor at the Santa Fe Institute.[2] He is a biologist, plant biologist and an ecologist. He was elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 2012[3] and the Ecological Society of America (ESA) in 2018.[4]

Brian J. Enquist
Born
United States
CitizenshipAmerican
Alma mater
Known forMetabolic Scaling Theory
Macroecology
Scientific career
Fields
InstitutionsUniversity of ArizonaThe Santa Fe Institute
ThesisOn the origin and consequences of allometric scaling in biology. (1998)
Doctoral advisorJames H. Brown

Research

His lab works on developing a more integrative, quantitative, and predictive framework for biology,[5] community ecology,[6] and large-scale ecology.[7] His research is notable for three areas in biology and ecology:

(1) Scaling in Biology – Enquist is notable in biology for his work with Geoffrey West and James H. Brown, in understanding the origin and diversity of organismal form, function, and diversity by developing general models for the origin of allometry and scaling laws in biology. This research,[8] shows how general scaling laws underlie organismal form, function, and diversity and can be used to 'scale up' biological processes from genes to cells to ecosystems.[9][10][11] This work is also the foundation for the Metabolic Theory of Ecology.

(2) Functional Plant Ecology and Trait-based biology – Enquist has worked to develop Trait Driver Theory or TDT with Van M. Savage, Jon Norberg and colleagues.[12] TDT provides a general theory of Functional ecology in that it provides a baseline for (i) recasting the predictions of ecological theories based on species richness (see Coexistence theory) in terms of the shape of trait distributions and (ii) integrating Metabolic Scaling Theory how specific traits, including body size, and functional diversity then ‘scale up’ to influence ecosystem functioning and the dynamics of species assemblages across climate gradients. Further, TDT offers a novel framework to integrate trait, metabolic/allometric, and species-richness-based approaches and theory to better predict functional biogeography and how assemblages of species have and may respond to climate change.

Education and honors

Education

Enquist received a Bachelor of Artsin Biology in 1991 from Colorado College and a Ph.D. in Biology in 1998 from the University of New Mexico.

Honors

References
  1. EEB Faculty Page
  2. SFI Faculty Page
  3. '2012 AAAS Fellows Announcement'
  4. "Ecological Society of America Announces 2018 Fellows". The Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America. 99 (3): 299–303. 2018. doi:10.1002/bes2.1404. S2CID 240444011.
  5. McGill, B. J.; Enquist, B.J.; Weiher, W. (January 2006). "Rebuilding community ecology from functional traits". Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 21 (4): 178–185. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2006.02.002. PMID 16701083.
  6. Enquist, B. J.; Norberg, J.; Bonser, S.P.; Violle, C.; Webb, C.T.; Henderson, A.; Sloat, L.L.; Savage, V.M. (2015). "Scaling from Traits to Ecosystems: Developing a General Trait Driver Theory via Integrating Trait-Based and Metabolic Scaling Theories". Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 52: 249–318. arXiv:1502.06629. doi:10.1016/bs.aecr.2015.02.001. S2CID 477665.
  7. Michaletz, Sean T.; Cheng, Dongliang; Kerkhoff, Andrew J.; Enquist, Brian J. (2014). "Convergence of terrestrial plant production across global climate gradients". Nature. 512 (7512): 39–43. doi:10.1038/nature13470. PMID 25043056. S2CID 4463144.
  8. Johnson, George (12 January 1999). "Of Mice and Elephants: a Matter of Scale". The New York Times.
  9. West, Geoffrey B.; Brown, James H.; Enquist, Brian J. (1999). "The Fourth Dimension of Life: Fractal Geometry and Allometric Scaling of Organisms". Science. 284 (5420): 1677–1679. doi:10.1126/science.284.5420.1677. PMID 10356399.
  10. West, Geoffrey B.; Brown, James H.; Enquist, Brian J. (2001). "A general model for ontogenetic growth". Nature. 413 (6856): 628–631. doi:10.1038/35098076. PMID 11675785. S2CID 4393103.
  11. Enquist, Brian J.; Brown, James H.; West, Geoffrey B. (1998). "Allometric scaling of plant energetics and population density". Nature. 395 (6698): 163–165. doi:10.1038/25977. S2CID 204996904.
  12. Brown, Enquist, B.J., Norberg, J., Bonser, S.P., Violle, C., Webb, C.T., Henderson, A., Sloat, L.L. & Savage, V.M. (2015). "Scaling from traits to ecosystems: developing a general trait driver theory via integrating trait-based and metabolic scaling theories". Advances in Ecological Research. 52: 249–318). arXiv:1502.06629. doi:10.1016/bs.aecr.2015.02.001. S2CID 477665.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. George Mercer Award
  14. "Recipients - Colorado College".
  15. Eminent Ecologist, Kellogg Biological Station
  16. "Visiting Fellow". Archived from the original on 2017-02-11. Retrieved 2017-02-08.
  17. ESA Fellow
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