Other Seminars

Dr. Anton Post will give a special aquatic microbial ecology seminar titled, "Aquatic Microbial Ecology Special Seminar: Where Genotype meets Phenotype: Nitrogen acquisition strategies of marine cyanobacteria" Monday, March 14rd, 12:30-1:30pm at the Marguerite Kent Repass Ocean Conservation Center at the Duke Marine Laboratory. Dr. Post is a senior scientist at the Josephine Bay Paul Center, Marine Biology Laboratory, Woods Hole. He is an expert on nitrogen cycling, cyanobacteria and genomics, among other areas.

Dr. David Kirchman will give a special aquatic microbial ecology seminar titled, "Photoheterotrophs and the Oceanic Carbon Cycle" Thurs, March 3rd, 12:30-1:30pm at the Marguerite Kent Repass Ocean Conservation Center at the Duke Marine Laboratory. Dr. Kirchman is the Maxwell P. and Mildred H. Harrington Professor of Marine Biosciences at the University of Delaware and edited the book Microbial Ecology of the Oceans, which is currently in its second edition. More information on his research can be found here: http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/people/profile.aspx?kirchman

Are open ocean corals getting seasick? Forereef coral growth correlates negatively with ocean temperature in the western Caribbean Sea.

Rising ocean temperatures have negatively impacted the health of coral reefs and have led to higher rates of coral mortality. Despite this somber outlook, coral thermal stress response is highly variable, and this has fueled significant interest in discovering where the most thermally resilient corals reside to determine the factors that influence their susceptibility.

Floods, droughts and the scaling of food chain length with drainage area in rivers

Floods, droughts and other extreme hydrologic events play key roles in coupling human and natural systems. Floods can cause tremendous damage and mortality and cripple local economies. By contrast, floods are critical to freshwater fisheries, some of which supply the majority of the protein to people in developing nations.

Parasites in Paradise: Why do Primates Have so Many Parasites, and What Factors Influence Parasite Success?

An incredible diversity of parasites and pathogens infect primates, including sexually transmitted viruses and bacteria, insect-borne protozoa that cause malaria, and helminths that infect the gastrointestinal tract. Some of these pathogens - such as those with sexual transmission - spread through contact networks. Sociality may influence the dynamics of other parasites.