Relatively young historian with ties to both the US Northeast and the Midwest, specifically Indiana and the University of Chicago. An academic focus on the Volga River as an important factor in European development in a manner not unlike the Tigris Euphrates system, with agricultural advancement together with transportation, trade and conquest driving the historical narrative.
Looking, always, for fresh perspectives on the prevailing narrative. The story of history is the story of retelling our origins and the nature of path to the present day. The simplistic 'history is written by the victors' underlies some deeper and important demands for historians to find the faults in the narratives.
That will always be a thankless task.