Cara's senior thesis involved a detailed sedimentological analysis of the Xom Na formation in Vietnam to determine the extent of anoxia in a Devonian carbonate platform during the Frasnian-Famennian mass extinction. Her work consisted of multiple analyses of an ultrapure carbonate and will help develop best practices for detecting anoxia in ultrapure carbonate systems. After she graduated, her work was expanded by DAGGER colleagues to include studies of microfossils and additional bioevents, and was published in 2026 in Gondwana Research:
- Carmichael, S.K., *Cywinski, C., Cohen, P., Königshof P., Waters, J.A., Ta, H.P., and Hageman, S., 2026, Expression of the Kellwasser and Rhinestreet Events (Late Devonian) on the Indochina tectonic block: new data from the Xom Nha Formation in Vietnam, Gondwana Research (DOI: 10.1016/j.gr.2026.08.007)
She also assisted with fieldwork in the 2022 expedition to Shinejinst, Mongolia. Her work in Shinejinst and and her lab work for the Xom Nha project are both featured in the CSI: Devonian video modules. Cara is now an environmental scientist with Airbox America and working towards a MS in Environmental Sciences and Policy at Johns Hopkins University.
(M.S. in progress, Johns Hopkins University; B.S. 2023, Appalachian State University)