Paul Higgs

Professor, Physics & Astronomy

I work in theoretical biophysics. Currently my work focuses on the Origin of Life and Astrobiology, particularly the RNA World theory. I have worked on many aspects of RNA evolution and structure, including RNA replication, RNA folding algorithms, phylogenetic methods using RNA sequences, and the evolution of RNA viruses. My background is in statistical physics of polymers. I have also made significant contributions to research on Codon Usage, Mitochondrial Genomes, and Food Web structure in ecological communities.