Brand received a Ph.D. in biology from
Cornell University in 1970, having also received a
Master of Arts at Loma Linda University in 1966. He began his scientific career in the study of small mammals. In 1968, Brand and Raymond Ryckman studied the
systematics of
deer mice (specifically the mainland
cactus mouse and two related species isolated to nearby islands, the
San Lorenzo and
Angel Island mice. This was also the topic of Brand's masters. They confirmed the accepted
taxonomy of these species, and showed that these species are still able to
interbreed. Starting in 1970, Brand reported on the tree nests and
vocalisations of
California chipmunks. This was also his PhD topic. Along with many other scientists, his reported methodologies and observations have added to the accumulating scientific knowledge of these mammals. From 1999, the fossil remains of hundreds of whales (including the "
Leviathan") were discovered as part of the
Pisco formation in Peru. Brand and his associates studied the
taphonomy of these well-articulated skeletons, and concluded that the burial of the whales in
diatom sediment had been a very rapid event. In 2000, Brand et al. have conducted field research on fossil turtles in the Bridger Formation of Wyoming. He has also been involved in taphonomy experiments using modern animal carcasses, particularly intended to aid understanding of the features of fossil turtles. In the field of
ichnology, Brand, along with Thu Tang,
Andrew A. Snelling, and Steven Austin has proposed that fossil tracks in the
Grand Canyon's
Coconino Sandstone point to underwater deposition, rather than desert wind deposition of dry sand. Brand and Tang studied western newts walking on sand under 4 cm of flowing water in an aquarium tank. By analogy, they concluded that at least part of the Coconino Sandstone was deposited under water. This hypothesis has been criticized by geologists who interpret evidence supporting sub-aerial formation. Geologist
Martin Lockley describes Brand's Salamander trackway study as "seriously flawed" and notes that Brand links the underwater tracks theory to the idea that the Grand Canyon was formed entirely by a catastrophic, biblical-style flood, a view which Lockley calls geologically naive and disingenuous. He criticizes Brand's book
Faith, Reason and Earth History for "leaving out any discussion of the objections published by geologists to his interpretation." Lockley does, however, commend Brand for admitting that creationists have made mistakes and that science-bashing can be counter-productive, for advocating respectful engagement, and for raising thought-provoking philosophical questions regarding
evolution and
sociobiology. A number of studies have found evidence contradicting Brand and Tang's conclusions and Lockley and Hunt's 1995 book
Dinosaur Tracks and Other Fossil Footprints of the Western United States suggests an alternative explanation with the tracks being made in air by extinct mammal-like reptiles called
caseids. Inconsistencies that contradict the underwater hypothesis include: In his report on laboratory controlled simulations of dinosaur footprints in sand, Simon J. Jackson cites eight scientists, including Brand. He says, Brand has also been involved in research not published in mainstream scientific journals. In 1970 Berney Neufeld, Brand and Art Chadwick studied the controversial
Paluxy tracks and, contrary to many creationists at that time, concluded that those tracks did not provide valid evidence for the coexistence of humans and dinosaurs. ==Creationism==