Xiaowen Quan
Postdoctoral Fellowship in paleoclimatic data analysis
EPOC, University of Bordeaux
GPR Human Past – WP 2-Action 1
xiaowen.quan%40u-bordeaux.fr
Research Interests
My research focuses on past climate and environmental variability during the Middle Pleistocene Transition (MPT), with a particular interest in climate–hominin interactions and human distributions in Eurasia. I use high resolution pollen records and paleoclimatic data to reconstruct past vegetation and environmental changes, and combine paleoclimate and archaeological databases with ecological niche modelling to investigate hominin habitat suitability and ecological niche dynamics through the MPT.
Curriculum Vitae
Current Position
September 2026 - Postdoctoral researcher
EPOC (UMR 5805), University of Bordeaux – GPR Human Past
Maria F. Sanchez Goni, Clement Zanolli
Education
2022-2026 PhD in Sedimentary Geology, Paleoceanography, Climatology
University of Bordeaux
2019-2022 Master’s degree in Quaternary Geology
Sun Yat-sen University
Professional Work Experience
Field Laboratory
August 2019 – November 2020 Master's Student Researcher
Sun Yat-sen University
Technical Skills
Pollen analysis and counting; paleoclimate reconstruction; paleoclimate and archaeological database compilation; statistical and time-series analysis; wavelet and spectral analysis; ecological niche modelling; GIS/QGIS; R; MATLAB.
Publications
1) Xiaowen Quan, María F. Sánchez Goñi, Qiuzhen Yin, et al., Eccentricity and ice-volume control of millennial variability in North Atlantic westerlies during the Middle Pleistocene Transition. Communication Earth & Environment (under review).
2) Xiaowen Quan, María F. Sánchez Goñi, Qiuzhen Yin, et al., Insolation-driven northern Atlantic westerly wind patterns shaped the mid-Pleistocene transition in three phases. Nature Communication, 17, 8155 (2026).