Thomas has published nearly 200 peer reviewed articles on the ecology and evolution of host-pathogen interactions and effects of climate, especially temperature variability, which have been collectively cited over 13,000 times. Thomas developed the novel malaria control tool the "eave tube", with a $10.2 million dollar Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant. Eave tubes are being installed in homes in 40 villages in the Ivory Coast (Boake in Cote d'Ivoire) for the purpose of testing whether they are effective in preventing malaria by killing mosquitoes when mosquito try to enter homes and come into contact with treated netting in the eave tubes.