Rate My Professor Sophie Briggs

Briggs' research specializes in petrology of igneous and metamorphic rocks, geochemistry, geochronology, and tectonics. She applies petrochronology methods, utilizing isotopic and trace element analysis of minerals like zircon, monazite, xenotime, and garnet via ICP-MS, to investigate the tectonic and geochemical evolution of Earth's crust, particularly New Zealand's Alpine Schist as a record of Zealandia-Gondwana separation. Key peer-reviewed publications include 'Record of plate boundary metamorphism during Gondwana breakup from Lu-Hf garnet geochronology of the Alpine Schist, New Zealand' (Journal of Metamorphic Geology, 2018, with J.M. Cottle and M.A. Smit) and 'Investigation of optically stimulated luminescence behavior of quartz from crystalline rock surfaces: A look forward' (Quaternary Geochronology, 2016, with L.M. Simkins et al.). She has contributed numerous conference abstracts on these topics and geoscience education. Briggs teaches courses such as EAOS 111 Earth and Ocean Science, GEOL 112 Dynamic Earth: A New Zealand Perspective, GEOL 252 Field Studies and New Zealand Geology, and GEOL 344 Advanced Field Studies. Her educational outreach extends to early childhood, primary, secondary, and continuing education, with active learning methods, field trip design, and participatory science projects. Awards include the Fulbright New Zealand Graduate Student Award (2012), Outstanding Student Paper Award at AGU Fall Meeting (2016), R.V. Fisher Scholarship in Volcanology (2015), and several University of Otago and UCSB scholarships and prizes.