I was born in Mexico city, one of the largest cities in the world at the time. It was also a dangerous city. We had the privilege to grow up in a house with a garden. This encouraged the development of a true love for nature and observation from our own garden, and also taking us to hikes at Ajusco National Park.

I went to a french high school, were I learned to express myself fluently in the french language, but also, were I truly developed critical thinking and learned mathematical tools that I used during my PhD. I am a proud National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Faculty of Sciences alumn. After college, I went on to pursue graduate studies at UNAM’s Postgraduate Program in Biological Sciences. Advised by Susana Magallón at the Biology Institute, UNAM, I studied methods to understand the species diversification process, and learned to develop and test models of speciation and extinction with Hélène Morlon at the Center for Applied Mathematics of the Polytechnique School in Paris, France. I received my Ph.D. in 2016. I then continued to a postdoc position with Brian O’Meara at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, were I learned programming skills that would make me truly independent as a researcher. I am now a postdoc with Emily Jane McTavish at the newest campus of the University of California, in Merced, CA.

My research focuses on method testing and development, with a particular interest in models of species diversification. For the past 3 years, I have invested my time on development software for open science platforms, funded by the National Science Foundation.

You can follow my current work in software development to make available scientific information on time of origin of species on GitHub. In my free time, I enjoy dancing, putting color on things, drawing designs, and spending time with family and friends – virtually!