He received degrees from the University of Illinois-Chicago, the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and the University of Chicago. Using the latest 3D mathematical tools, his work tries to describe subtle developmental and morphological variation of vertebrate skeletal and selected soft tissue phenotypes. A background in geology, zoology, evolutionary biology, digital modeling, vertebrate anatomy and developmental biology provides the broad skillset and collaborative network needed to answer deep questions about patterns and mechanisms of biological variation.