Victor Chen Tsai 
Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences
20 Oxford St.
Cambridge, MA 02138
Office: (617) 495-9604
Cell: (510) 325-1729
vtsai [at] fas.harvard.edu

EDUCATION:
   Ph.D., Geophysics, begun September 2004 at Harvard University.  
   	Anticipated graduation, 2009
   A.M., Earth and Planetary Sciences, 2006, Harvard University
   B.S., Geophysics with Honors, 2004, California Institute of Technology.  
	GPA: 4.0

HONORS and AWARDS: 
2006 GFD (Geophysical Fluid Dynamics) Fellowship
2005 Harvard University Certificate of Distinction in Teaching
2005 Alfred W. Stickney Fellowship at Harvard
2005 AGU Outstanding Student Paper Award
2005-2008 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
2004-2009 James Mills Peirce Fellowship at Harvard
2003-2004 ASCIT (Associated Students of Caltech) Teaching Award
2003 Caltech Carnation Merit Scholarship (Upper Class Merit Scholarship)
2003 Barry M. Goldwater Fellow
2002 and 2004 James Michelin Scholarship
2002 Marcella Bonsall SURF Fellow 

PUBLICATIONS and PRESENTATIONS:
Publications:
Tsai, V. C., J. R. Rice, and M. Fahnestock (2007), Possible mechanisms for glacial earthquakes, submitted to J. Geophys. Res.
Tsai, V. C., C. A. Dalton, and A. M. Dziewonski (2007), Constraints on extracting Green’s functions from ambient noise in a realistic medium, 
   submitted to Geophys. J. Int. 
Joughin, I., I. Howat, R. B. Alley, G. Ekström, M. Fahnestock, T. Moon, M. Nettles, M. Truffer, and V. C. Tsai (2008), 
   Ice-front variation and tidewater behavior on Helheim and Kangerdlugssuaq Glaciers, Greenland, 
   J. Geophys. Res., 113, F01004, doi:10.1029/2007JF000837. 
Tsai, V. C., and J. S. Wettlaufer (2007), The formation of lake stars, Physical Rev. E, 75, doi:10.1103/PhysRevE.75.066105. 
Tsai, V. C., and D. J. Stevenson (2007), Theoretical constraints on true polar wander, 
   J. Geophys. Res., 112, B05415, doi:10.1029/2005JB003923. 
Tsai, V. C., and G. Ekström (2007), Analysis of glacial earthquakes, 
   J. Geophys. Res., 112, F03S22, doi:10.1029/2006JF000596. 
Ekström, G., M. Nettles, and V. C. Tsai (2006), Seasonality and increasing frequency of Greenland glacial earthquakes, 
   Science, 311, 5768, 1756-1758, doi:10.1126/science.1122112.
Tsai, V. C., M. Nettles, G. Ekström, and A. M. Dziewonski (2005), Multiple CMT source analysis of the 2004 Sumatra earthquake, 
   Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L17304, doi:10.1029/2005GL023813.
Tsai, V. C., H. Kanamori, and J. Artru (2004), The morning glory wave of southern California, 
   J. Geophys. Res.-Solid Earth, 109 (B2), B02307, doi:10.1029/2003JB002596.
Tsai, V. C., A. Weinstein, and D. Ugolini (2001), LIGO physics environmental monitoring at the 40-meter prototype, LIGO document T010161-00-R.

Invited Talks:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Earth Resources Laboratory Friday Informal Seminar Hour, Nov 2007.
Brown University, Tectonophysics Lunch Seminar, Oct 2007.
AGU Fall Meeting, Dec 2005.

Conference Abstracts:
Tsai, V. C., C. A. Dalton, and A. M. Dziewonski (2007), A new derivation of noise correlation and implications for seismic tomography, Eos Trans. AGU, 88(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract S53B-1268. (Poster)
Tsai, V. C., and J. R. Rice (2006), Possible mechanisms for glacial eaerthquakes, Eos Trans. AGU, 87(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract C41A-0290. (Poster)
Tsai, V. C., and G. Ekström (2005), An analysis of glacial earthquakes, Eos Trans. AGU, 86(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract C43A-02. (Talk)
Rice, J. R., J. W. Rudnicki, and V. C. Tsai (2005), Shear localization in fluid-saturated fault gouge by instability of spatially uniform, adiabatic, undrained shear, Eos Trans. AGU, 86(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract T13E-05 Invited. (Invited Talk, given by VCT)
Tsai, V. C., and D. J. Stevenson (2005), Theoretical constraints on true polar wander, Eos Trans. AGU, 86(18), Jt. Assem. Suppl., Abstract GP21A-02. (Talk)
Nettles M., G. Ekström, A. M. Dziewonski, N. Maternovskaya, and V. C. Tsai (2005), Source characteristics of the great Sumatra earthquake and its aftershocks, Eos Trans. AGU, 86(18), Jt. Assem. Suppl., Abstract U43A-01. (Talk, given by M Nettles)
Tsai, V. C. and D. J. Stevenson (2004), Theoretical constraints on true polar wander, Eos Trans. AGU, 85(47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract U33A-0025. (Poster)
Tsai, V. C., H. Kanamori, and J. Artru (2002), The non-linear morning-glory wave of southern California, Eos Trans. AGU, 83(47), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract NG21C-0945. (Poster)


RESEARCH INTERESTS:
Broad interests in all types of solid earth geophysics including earthquake source 
processes, seismic wave propagation, ice dynamics, mantle dynamics, and the interactions 
of the above with other earth processes.  Current interests include the understanding of 
glacial processes in the initiation of glacial earthquakes (with JR Rice and G Ekström); 
understanding how seismic noise tomography differs from traditional seismic tomography 
(with AM Dziewonski); understanding the role of water in the earthquake process (with JR 
Rice); and understanding the fundamental nature of large-scale mantle convection (with 
RJ O'Connell).  Previous interests include understanding the formation of instabilities 
in melting processes (with JS Wettlaufer); using seismic tools to better characterize 
earthquakes (with G Ekström); understanding the long-term stability of the earth's rotation 
axis (with DJ Stevenson); creating a simple but accurate representation of the 2004 Great 
Sumatra earthquake (with G Ekström and AM Dziewonski); and understanding a local atmospheric 
phenomenon and its importance to atmosphere-solid earth coupling (with H Kanamori).

EMPLOYMENT/TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
Teaching Fellow for AM 105b – Ordinary and Partial Differential Equations (Harvard, Spring 2008)
Teaching Fellow for AM 105a – Complex and Fourier Analysis (Harvard, Fall 2007)
Teaching Fellow for Science B-57 – Dinosaurs and their Relatives (Harvard, Spring 2007)
Teaching Fellow for EPS 7 – Introduction to Geological Sciences (Harvard, Fall 2005)
Teaching Assistant at the Summer Science Program (Summer 2003 and Summer 2004)
Teaching Assistant for Ge11c/Ge103 – Introduction to Planetary Sciences (Caltech, Spring 2003 and Spring 2004)
2002 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow (Caltech) 
2001 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow (Caltech) 

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS:
Member of the American Geophysical Union, 2003 – present