Dan grew up in Ebensburg, a small town in west-central Pennsylvania located along the Allegheny Mountains. He received dual B.S. degrees in Geology and Computer Science at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). At IUP, Dan became interested in neotectonic and computer modelling research, which involved a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) internship at the Virginia Insititute of Marine Science (VIMS), and an international internship at Academia Sinica (Taiwan). As a first-generation student, Dan was also a McNair Scholar at IUP, and has continued to mentor for the program.
Upon attending the University of Oregon for his PhD, Dan shifted his research focus into the field of volcanic geomorphology, studying the impact volcanic processes can have on long-term landscape evolution and analyzing the signature of intrusive magmatism on surface topography. Dan is excited about all things surface- and modelling-related, and has produced fruitful research results that led to an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF), multiple publications, and an internship with the USGS. Dan is also pationate about undergraduate teaching, and has participated in multiple workshops geared towards effective teaching strategies.
2019:
- O’Hara, D., Karlstrom, L., and Ramsey, D. W. (submitted). Time-evolving surface and subsurface signatures of Quaternary volcanism in the Cascades. Geology.
- Lerner, A., O’Hara, D., Karlstrom, L., Ebmeier, S.K., Hurwitz, S., Anderson, K.R. (in progress). Links between magma flux, reservoir position, and topography at arc. Nature Geoscience.
- O’Hara, D., Karlstrom, L., and Roering, J. J. (2019). Distributed landscape response and the fragility of steady states. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 506, 243-254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2018.11.006
2018:
- Karlstrom, L., Richardson, P. W., O'Hara, D., and Ebmeier, S. K. (2018). Magmatic landscape construction. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface. 123 (8), 1710-1730. https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JF004369
2017:
- Hooft, E. E., Nomikou, P., Toomey, D. R., Lampridou, D., Getz, C., Christopoulou, M. E., O’Hara, D., Arnoux, G. M., Bodmer, M., Gray, M., Heath, B. A., and VanderBeek, B. (2017). Backarc tectonism, volcanism, and mass wasting shape seafloor morphology in the Santorini-Christiana-Amorgos region of the Hellenic Volcanic Arc. Tectonophysics, 712, 396-414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2017.06.005
2015:
- Lewis, J. C., O'Hara, D. J., and Rau, R.-J. (2015). Seismogenic strain across the transition from fore‐arc slivering to collision in southern Taiwan. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 120(6), 4539-4555. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JB011906
2019:
- UO Department of Earth Science Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award
- Geological Society of America Cordilleran Section Best Student Paper Award Honorable Mention
2018:
- UO Department of Earth Science Research Excellence Award
- UO Graduate Research Forum First Place Poster Award
2015:
- UO Baldwin Scholarship, Travel Award
2013:
- Barry M. Goldwater Scholar
- IUP Outstanding Research Award in Geoscience
2012:
- IUP Scholarships – Creating Opportunities in Applied Mathematics (S-COAM) Scholar
2011:
- IUP Dean’s Scholarship for Early Career in Geoscience
- McNair Scholar
- Spring 2019: Earth Science Department, Volcanoes and Earthquakes
- Winter 2019: Earth Science Department, Exploring Earth’s Environment
- Fall 2018: Geography Department, Geomorphology
- Spring 2017: Earth Science Department, Structural Geology
- Winter 2017: Earth Science Department, Environmental Geology and Landform Development
- Fall 2016: Earth Science Department, Introduction to Hydrogeology