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Jacob Zwart

Dr. Jacob Zwart (he/him) is a data scientist for the USGS Water Resources Mission Area.

Jacob Zwart works within the Data Science Branch of the Water Resources Mission Area to develop aquatic ecosystem modeling techniques that provide timely information to stakeholders about important water resources across the nation. He uses his expertise in computational modeling, data assimilation, and limnology to help produce short-term forecasts of water quality at regional scales to aid in water resources decision making. Jacob’s research themes are: 1) improve understanding of aquatic biogeochemical processes and predicting how these processes may respond to future global change, 2) develop techniques to inject scientific knowledge into machine learning models to make accurate predictions of environmental variables (also known as “knowledge-guided machine learning”), and 3) advance methods for assimilating real-time observations into knowledge-guided machine learning models to improve near-term forecasts of water quality. Jacob also serves as a Peer Support Worker at USGS promoting awareness and education on topics and USGS policies for antiharassment, discrimination, biases, and scientific integrity, as well as providing peer-to-peer support for USGS employees.

Professional Experience

  • 2021 – present: Data Scientist, Integrated Information Dissemination Division

  • 2019 – 2021: Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow, Integrated Information Dissemination Division

  • 2017 – 2019: National Science Foundation Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellow, Integrated Information Dissemination Division

  • 2014 – 2017: National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, University of Notre Dame

  • 2012 – 2014: Research and Teaching Assistant, University of Notre Dame

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D., Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, 2017

  • B.S., Biology, Calvin College, 2012

Honors and Awards

  • U.S. Geological Survey Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2019 – 2021

  • National Science Foundation Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2017 – 2019

  • National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, 2014 – 2017

  • University of Notre Dame Linked Experimental Ecosystem Facility Research Grant, 2017

  • Exceptional Promise in Graduate Research Award, Ecological Society of America Aquatic Ecology Section, 2015

  • University of Notre Dame Center for Aquatic Conservation Graduate Fellow, 2014

  • University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center Graduate Research Fellowship, 2013 – 2015

  • University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center Graduate Mentoring Fellowship, 2012

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