The Coastal Ocean Institute (COI) and Rinehart Coastal Research
Center promote scientific inquiry into phenomena that shape
our coastal waters and ecosystems, encouraging innovative,
interdisciplinary research and high-risk technology development.
We also strive to translate the results of this basic research
for citizens and policymakers, while providing a solid information
base for resource managers.
In addition to six research projects initiated in 2005 (see
map), we undertook a wide range of activities to promote
and communicate coastal research. We undertook a major expansion
of the “current
topics” section of our webpage to provide better
access to science information. This site now includes in-depth
information on such topics as: natural hazards (tsunamis,
hurricanes, and other storms); the moving shoreline; harmful
algal blooms; coastal pollution; waves, tides, and currents
and many others. Within each of these topics, we have provided
feature stories and news releases, information on WHOI researchers
who are working on the topic, related links, publications,
etc. Our goal is to make the COI website a comprehensive resource
for relevant information on all major coastal ocean issues,
providing information to the public, students, researchers,
and journalists.
We provided support for two postdocs this year. Rubao Ji is
studying processes that control phytoplankton blooms on Georges
Bank. Brian White is studying the role of internal waves in
the horizontal transport of plankton. We initiated support
for a COI Committee Fellow, Carin Ashjian, a biologist who
is investigating the effects of climate change on Arctic coastal
ecosystems. This fellowship has been funded entirely through
the generous donations of COI committee members, allowing
us one more fellow than we typically support.
Other COI fellows that we continue to support include John
Trowbridge, who is taking a leadership role in the Ocean Research
Interactive Observatory Networks (ORION) initiative; Heidi
Sosik (jointly funded with the Ocean Life Institute), who
works on phytoplankton ecology and biooptics and currently
oversees the Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Observatory;
Jeff Donnelly, a geologist (jointly funded with the Ocean
and Climate Change Institute) who is studying climate change
recorded in sediments; and Chris Reddy, an organic chemist
who studies the source, transport, and fate of organic compounds
in seawater. We supported Jon Woodruff, a graduate student
in Jeff Donnelly’s laboratory (Geology and Geophysics
Department), who is working on the geologic signature of major
storms and tsunamis.
—Don Anderson, Institute Director |
