Faculty/Staff

Dr. Linda Finke

Biology Associate Professor

Location: 108 Albers Hall
Mail Location: 4331
Ph: 513-745-3460
Fx: 513-745-1079
 

Other Information:

Degrees: Ph.D., M.S., Cornell University

Expertise: Botany, Microbiology

Dr. Finke came to Xavier in 1976, after completing M.S. and Ph.D. degrees at Cornell University in the field of Microbiology. Her thesis work was an investigation of nitrogen-fixing activity associated with aquatic plants, and involved several nights of rowing out into the middle of a lake in the dark once an hour to collect samples! Currently, her area of interest within Microbiology continues to be nitrogen fixation by free-living bacteria. Nitrogen fixation makes possible the incorporation of gaseous nitrogen from the atmosphere into organic nitrogen compounds, through its conversion to ammonia. In the biological world, only procaryotic organisms can perform this process, which is essential for all life since the nitrogen in these nitrogenous compounds is ultimately converted back into N2 and lost from the food web. Of particular interest is the ecology of nitrogen fixation as it is carried out by photosynthetic bacteria such as the metabolically versatile nonsulfur purple bacteria and the cyanobacteria. Her students have carried out research studies involving these organisms, and also have branched off into studies of symbiotic nitrogen-fixing systems and of non-photosynthetic bacteria which fix nitrogen. Together, they investigate environmental factors which may inhibit or enhance nitrogen fixation, such as temperature, oxygen, and light, and also look into the effects on nitrogen-fixing activity of human disturbances of the environment, such as through application of pesticides or creation of saline conditions.

Within the Department of Biology at Xavier, she enjoys the opportunity to teach General Botany (Fall), Bacteriology (Spring), and Methods of Biological Research (Senior Research) as well as, the non-majors course "Life: The World of Plants."