DAVID J. BOTTJER is Professor of Earth Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Environmental Studies at the University of Southern California. He is a Fellow of The Paleontological Society, the Geological Society of America, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and is an Editor-in-Chief for the journal, Palaeogeogaphy, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. In 2014 he was awarded the Raymond C. Moore Medal for excellence in paleontology by the SEPM Society for Sedimentary Geology.