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June 30, 2004

Highlights

• David Bushek has been asked to serve as a member of the Peer Review Group for an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to Evaluate Oyster Restoration Alternatives. The EIS is being produced by the Army Corps to address the proposal by Maryland and Virginia to introduce diploid reproductive Asian oysters (Crassostrea ariakensis) into Chesapeake Bay.
• Kay Bidle has been promoted to Assistant Research Professor as of 1 July 2004. He joined IMCS in September 2001 as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, after finishing his Ph.D. at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Kay's research interests include microbial ecology, phytoplankton mortality, molecular evolution and ecology, ecosystem processes, biogeochemistry, and the structure and function of microbial food webs. His research focuses on using molecular techniques to elucidate cellular and biochemical strategies whereby phytoplankton and marine bacteria respond to their environment and, subsequently, influence ecosystem dynamics and biogeochemistry in the upper ocean.
• The following paper was the recipient of one of five NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research Outstanding Scientific Research Paper Awards for 2003: Soden, Brian J., Richard T. Wetherald, Georgiy L. Stenchikov, and Alan Robock, 2002: Global cooling following the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo: A test of climate feedback by water vapor. Science, 296, 727-730.
• Judith Weis spent the first week of June in Texas reviewing the Sea Grant program.
• At the invitation of the United Nations Division of Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea, Peter Rona showed the film, Volcanoes of the Deep Sea, to some 300 delegates of the UN Consultative Process on Law of the Sea held June 7th at UN Headquarters. Together with Kim Juniper of the University of Montreal, he presented science behind the film with reference to adding provisions for protection of marine biodiversity to the UN Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
• The NY/NJ Clean Ocean and Shore Trust (COAST) currently offers the NYCDEP Harbor Survey Database online at
  http://www.nynjcoast.org/NYCDEPHarbor_survey/Data_query/data_form.asp. Users can query data by single location or region as well as by multiple water quality parameters including chlorophyll a, water clarity, pathogens, dissolved oxygen and others. Historical water quality data for New York Harbor from the 1920's up through 2003 is available. J. Frederick Grassle is the NJ Chairman of NY/NJ COAST.
• Sybil Seitzinger gave a presentation to the Young Investigators Forum in Coastal Biogeochemisty at the NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research), in Boulder, Colorado, June 23-26. The title of her presentation was: Biogeochemistry within the Land-River-Estuary-Continental Shelf Continuum.
• Christopher Uchrin presented, “Modeling Stormwater Quality in the Parkers Creek Watershed” to the Monmouth County Planning Board, April, 2004.
  

Meetings Attended

• Peter Rona was keynote speaker at the New York State Marine Educators Annual Conference at Southampton College on June 6th. Peter was also keynote speaker at a teacher training program in which some 180 educators viewed the IMAX film, Volcanoes of the Deep Sea, at the American Museum of Natural History on June 30th.
• Alan Robock presented the following talk: Detection of the effects of volcanic eruptions on climate (with Georgiy Stenchikov; 9th International Meeting on Statistical Climatology, Cape Town, South Africa, May 24-28, 2004).
• Liz Sikes attended the 2004 Joint meeting of the American Geophysical Union and Canadian Geophysical Union in Montreal May 17-21, and presented the following talk: Assessing the Distribution and Sources of Organic Matter in a Coastal Marine Environment Using Compound Specific Carbon Isotopic Analysis of Sedimentary Lipids: Evidence from the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand. Sikes, E. L., M. E. Uhle, S. D. Nodder, M. M. Hage, and M. E. Howard. EOS, Transactions AGU, 85, Jt. Assem. Suppl. Abstract B43B-01, 2004.
• Sybil Seitzinger Co-Chaired a Workshop on Dentrification in Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecosystems, May 3-5 2004, Woods Hole, MA.
• Sybil Seitzinger attended the Steering Committee Meeting for the International Nitrogen Initiative (INI) in Woods Hole, MA, May 7-9. The INI is a joint project of SCOPE and IGBP.
• Sybil Seitzinger attended the Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System Workshop, May 8-10 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
• Sybil Seitzinger organized and chaired the Global Nutrient Export from Watersheds (Global NEWS) workgroup meeting at UNESCO-Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission in Paris, France, May 23-31.
• Ximing Guo was a guest speaker at the Aquaculture Biotechnology Workshop, May 11-13, 2004, St. Andrews, Canada. His talk was on " Shellfish Breeding and the Use of Biotechnology." The workshop was organized and sponsored by Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Aquaculture Association of Canada.
  Christopher Uchrin served as Chair, for the Student Poster Session, at the 2004 Annual Meeting, NJ Water Environment Association, Atlantic City, May 2004.

New Grants

• Fred Grassle has received a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for $1,500,000, for the period 7/1/04 - 6/30/06. The title of his project is "Development and Management of the Ocean Biogeographical Information System of the Marine Census into a self-sustaining Global Network."
• Kay Bidle and Paul Falkowski have received the following grants:
  • "Examination of the autocatalytic cell death machinery in marine, planktonic photoautotrophs." PIs: Kay D. Bidle and Paul G. Falkowski. National Science Foundation, Ecological and Evolutionary Physiology Program. $428,475. 1 July 2004 – 30 June 2007.
  • “Metabolic and genetic characterization of microorganisms encased in ancient, buried Antarctic ice.” PIs: Paul G. Falkowski, Kay D. Bidle and Sang Hoon Lee. The Moore Foundation. $375,500; 1 September 2004 – 31 August 2006.
• Ximing Guo and Eric Powell received a grant from the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology: A Cytogenetics Program for Shellfish Breeding Biotechnology, $100,000, 6/1/04 - 5/31/04.

Publications

• Tozzi, S, O. Schofield, P.G. Falkowski. 2004. Historical climate change and ocean turbulence as selective agents for two key phytoplankton functional groups. Marine Ecology Progress Series 274:123-132.
• Coale, K.H., K.S. Johnson, F.P. Chavez, K.O. Buesseler, R.T. Barber, M. A. Brzezinski, W.P. Cochlan, F.J. Millero, P.G. Falkowski, J.E. Bauer, R.H. Wanninkhof, R.M. Kudela, M.A. Altabet, B.E. Hales, T. Takahashi, M. R. Landry, R.R. Bidigare, X. Wang, Z. Chase, P.G. Strutton, G.E. Friederich, M.Y. Gorbunov, V.P. Lance, A.K. Hilting, M. R. Hiscock, M. Demarest, W.T. Hiscock, K.F. Sullivan, S.J. Tanner, R.M. Gordon, C.N. Hunter, V.A. Elrod, S.E. Fitzwater, J.L. Jones, S. Tozzi, M. Koblizek, A.E. Roberts, J. Herndon, J. Brewster, N. Ladizinsky, G. Smith, D. Cooper, D. Timothy, S.L. Brown, K.E. Selph, C.C. Sheridan, B.S. Twining, and Z.I. Johnson. Southern Ocean Iron Enrichment Experiment: Carbon Cycling in High- and Low-Si Waters. Science 16 April 2004; 304: 408-414.
• Bergmann, T., G. Fahnensteil, S. Lohrenz, D.F. Millie, O. Schofield. 2004. The effect of a spring turbidity event on spectral light fields and phytoplankton community dynamics. Journal of Geophysical Research Vol. 109, No. C10, C10S15 10.1029/2002JC001575.
• Schofield, O., M. Tivey. 2004. Building a window to the sea: Ocean Research Interactive Observing Networks (ORION). Oceanography 17: 105-111.
• Glenn, S., O. Schofield, T.D. Dickey, R. Chant, J.T. Kohut, H. Barrier, J. Bosch, L. Bowers, E. Creed, C. Haldeman, E. Hunter, J. Kerfoot, C. Mudgal, M. Oliver, H. Roarty, E. Romana, M. Crowley, D. Barrick, and C. Jones. The expanding role of ocean color and optics in the changing field of operational oceanography. Oceanography 107: 86-95.
• Schofield, O., R. Arnone, W.P. Bissett, T. Dickey, C. Davis, Z. Finkel, M. Oliver, M.A. Moline. 2004. Watercolors in the coastal zone: What can we see? Oceanography 107: 28-37.
• Oliver, M. J., J.T. Kohut, A.J. Irwin, S.M. Glenn, O. Schofield, M.A. Moline, W.P. Bissett. 2004. Bioinformatic approaches for objective detection of water masses. Journal of Geophysical Research Vol. 109 C07S04 doi: 10.1029/2003JC002072.
• Oliver, M. W., O. Schofield, T. Bergmann, S.M. Glenn, M.A. Moline, C. Orrico. 2004. In-situ optically derived phytoplankton absorption properties in coastal waters and its utility for estimating primary productivity rates. Journal of Geophysical Research 109, C07S11, doi: 10.1029/2002JC001627.
• Finkel, Z.V., A.J. Irwin, O. Schofield. 2004. Size and photosynthesis in phytoplankton: how light limitation alters the ¾ size scaling of metabolic rates. Marine Ecology Progress Series 273: 269-279.
• Falkowski, P. G., O. Schofield, M.E. Katz, B.V.D. Schootenbrugge, A.H. Knoll. Why is the land green and the ocean red? In Coccolithophores from Molecular Processes to Global Impact. H. Therstein and J. R. Young (Eds.). Elseveir, Amsterdam p. 429-453.
• Jiang L. and A. Kulczyski. 2004. Competition, predation and species responses to environmental change. Oikos 106: 217-224.
• Bidle, K. D. and P. G. Falkowski. 2004. Cell death in planktonic, photosynthetic microorganisms. Nature Reviews Microbiology (in press for the August issue).
  de Garidel-Thoron, T., L. Beaufort, F. Bassinot, and P. Henry. 2004. Evidence for large methane releases to the atmosphere from deep-sea gas-hydrate dissociation during the last glacial episode. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 101, no 25, 9187-9192.
• Berman-Frank, I., K. Bidle, L. Haramaty, and P. Falkowski. 2004. The demise of the marine cyanobacterium, Trichodesmium spp., via an autocatalyzed cell death pathway. Limnol. Oceanogr. 49: 997-1005.
• Vyas, V.M, , S.N. Tong, C. Uchrin, P.G. Georgopoulos, and G.P. Carter 2004. “Geostatistical Estimation of Horizontal Hydraulic Conductivity for the Kirkwood- Cohansey Aquifer. J. Amer. Wat. Resources Assoc., 40:187-195.
• Mun, Y., and C.G. Uchrin, 2004. “Development and Application of a MODFLOW Preprocessor Using Percolation Theory for Fractured Media. J. Amer. Wat. Resources Assoc., 40:229-239.

Student News

• Under the guidance of Christopher Uchrin, three PhD students completed requirements for May 2004 graduation:
  • Ahn, H.C., "Stormwater Runoff Effects in a Low to Medium Density Residential Area of the Whippany River Watershed in NJ," (C.G. Uchrin-major advisor, P.F. Strom, J.V. Hunter, G. van Orden-outside member).
  • Mun, Y.R., "Development of the PMF Package, a MODEFLOW Preprocessor to Simulate Ground Water Flow and Contaminant Transport in Fractured Media Using Percolation Theory," (C.G. Uchrin-major advisor, P.F. Strom, M. Cheney, Y.F. Reinfelder-outside member).
  • Szulczewski, A., "Non-Point Source Contributions to the Increasing Nitrogen and Phosphorus Concentrations in the Middle Musconetcong River Between Saxton Falls and BEattystown, (C.G. Uchrin-major advisor, P.F. Strom, J.V. Hunter, G. Guo-outside member).
• Lily Young served as an outside member for PhD committee for Anna Ulrich, Dept. Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, Canada, June 1, 2004.

Congratulations!

• Christopher Uchrin was elected 6/8/04 to the Hunterdon County Democratic Committee.
• Congratulations to Eli and Roberta Hunter! They are the proud parents of Charlotte Lin Hunter, born June 23, 2004 at 4:33AM. Charlotte is 5 lbs 14 oz and 19 inches long. All are doing very well.