Torsa Sengupta
Research Technician
Torsa is presently based on University of Exeter, Penryn campus and her background is in palaeoenvironmnetal reconstructions from different proxies ranging from mollusc shells to sediments.
She specialised in the impact of the mid- and late-Holocene climate shifts on ancient civilizations during her Ph.D. One of her objectives was to build an exhaustive chronology of the settlements at the UNESCO World Heritage site Dholavira, an Indus Valley/Harappan city. She particularly utilized stable isotopic sclerochronology of the unearthed mollusc and fish otoliths to decipher palaeoseasonality changes and its effect on the local human settlements. Apart from the conventional stable isotopic measurements, she also employed a new rapid and high-resolution method of stable isotopic measurements, using laser ablation. She also has gained experience in working with age-depth modelling and carbon isotopic analyses of Holocene sediments to understand a broader picture of the paleoenvironmental changes.
Torsa is currently working as a technical support and is engaged in the sedimentary geochemical analyses for the SEACHANGE group.
