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The Dec. 2013 issue of the RSMAS Alumni Association newsletter
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RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
Happy Holidays from Virginia Key! The RSMAS Alumni Association had a very successful semester, and we thank those who contributed to and participated in our recent events. In this issue, you can read about our Hurricane football game watch party, our Homecoming happy hour reunion, and our first annual alumni shark tagging research trip. Additionally, it gives the RSMAS alumni board great pride and pleasure to announce our 2013 Alumni Fellowship recipients. You can read synopses of the research our recipients will use their fellowship money to complete. Lastly, we wish our recent December graduates well-deserved congratulations on completing their RSMAS degrees. We welcome you into the RSMAS Alumni Association and invite you to stay connected to your alma mater.
I want to thank all of you who continually support the RSMAS Alumni Association by coming to our events. On behalf of the board, I wish you and your families a safe and fun-filled holiday season, and a healthy and happy new year. 2014 promises to be an exciting year for the RSMAS community as we await the official opening of our state-of-the-art Life Science and Technology Seawater building!
Warm Regards,
Erica K. Towle, B.S.M.A.S ‘10President, RSMAS Alumni Board
More Homecoming info...
Don’t forget to stay
connected with RSMAS
and fellow classmates
by registering for UM
Connection at https://
www.miamialumni.net/
Default.aspx
Did you join us for
Alumni Weekend?
Let us know your
thoughts at:
President’s Message
RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
2013 RSMAS Alumni Fellowship recipients:
Help Please consider
supporting our efforts
to preserve and improve
our iconic Wetlab with a
donation to the RSMAS
Alumni Association
today!
Learn more...
“I plan to use the funds towards my tuition for the MPS (Master of Professional Science) program so that I can focus on my classes and internship with the National Weather Service. This will also allow me to concentrate on enhancing my skills for the professional world and prepare for a career in applied weather forecasting.”
“My project focuses on the effects of increased temperature and ocean acidification on the early life history stages of important Caribbean coral species. With the generous award from the RSMAS Alumni Association, I will be able to update my experimental system allowing me to test the potential for coral reef recovery and resilience in the face of climate change. Thank you for your support.”
“This Alumni Award supports my research characterizing the biogeochemical processes in the deep Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean, which includes supporting my participation in a weeklong research cruise in the western Gulf of Mexico where I will investigate how these processes are influenced by natural hydrocarbon seeps.”
“With the money generously donated by the RSMAS Alumni Fellowship I will be looking at the molecular basis of learning and memory deficits occurring with age in Aplysia californica. Older animals lose some of their ability to learn behaviors, but how or why this occurs is unknown. Adding the novel, cutting edge technology provided by RNASeq to my dissertation will greatly aid not only my research, but also our understanding of how molecular changes are impacting learning and memory deficits with age.”
Ana Ortiz
Jay Fisch
Andrew Margolin
Justin Greer
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RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
2013 RSMAS Alumni Fellowship recipients:
Help Please consider
supporting our efforts
to preserve and improve
our iconic Wetlab with a
donation to the RSMAS
Alumni Association
today!
Learn more...
“The RSMAS Alumni Award I received will be used for sequencing costs to examine fine-scale population structure in the threatened coral, Acropora cervicornis. A. cervicornis has seen large population declines in recent years, so local and regional management and conservation have focused on this species. A better understanding of the population structure and connectivity is needed to effectively move forward with management and restoration. To accomplish this, Genotyping by Sequencing will be used to provide extremely high resolution data on the variability within the A. cervicornis genome between and within reefs on the Florida Reef Tract, data that will be used to inform future practices and policies in coral conservation.”
“I will be using the RSMAS Alumni Award to study variation in coral reef fish demographics across the Florida Shelf. Specifically, the award will contribute to a study that compares reproductive output of the bicolor damselfish found on shallow (<10 m), deep (>20m), and mesophotic (>30 m) reefs. This work will provide insight into the potential refugia function of deep and mesophotic reefs that may be sources of larval supply for degraded shallow coral reef ecosystems.”
“The Alumni Award will be used to fund field work in support of my masters thesis. I will travel to the indigenous Guna community of Niadup in Kuna Yala, Panama to do an ethnographic study of the social-dynamics of the community to attempt to understand the social, environmental and cultural contexts underlying heavy battery pollution in coastal waters. In collaboration with a local non-profit organization and health workers, I will assess the potential and motivation for a low-cost non-intrusive battery management system.”
Crawford Drury
Esther Goldstein
Marc Fruitema
RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
On Sunday, November 10th, the RJ Dunlap Marine Conservation Program went shark tagging with the RSMAS Alumni Association as part of Homecoming weekend events.
A group of UM alumni, including both RSMAS and business school alums, became shark researchers for the day. The team had an extremely successful day catching 6 sharks including a bull shark, a lemon shark, and 4 nurse sharks. RJD lead scientist and UM alumnus, Dr. Neil Hammerschlag, and his students taught the alumni group how to properly bait the drum lines, measure sharks, take muscle samples for stable isotope analysis, fin clips, blood samples, and how to perform a nictitating eye membrane test. Two of the sharks caught were recaptured sharks, giving the team very important long-term information about those individual sharks. It was a beautiful weather day for shark tagging, and we all had a great day out on the water! RSMAS Dean, Roni Avissar, even watched the team on the water from his research helicopter. It was an unforgettable experience and we hope other alums will join us next year!
Homecoming weekend shark tagging trip:
Shark tagging was one of
the best experiences of my
life and I plan to go again
next time I visit Miami. I
couldn’t think of a better
way to spend a Sunday!
– Chris Slivka, BSMAS ‘10, shark tagging participant
RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
Audra Noele Burchfield MAFCandice Starr Canady MAFCylia Vassiliki Civelek MBFIsabella Clegg MBF Nancy Cooper MBF
Sam Hariharan MBFAshley Hill MAFAsta Mail MAFAbbigail Rigdon MAF
Ross Cunning MBF Dwight Ebanks MBF Lewis J. (Lew) Gramer MPO William Harford MBF Daniel Holstein MBF
Paul Richard Jones MBF Hosmay Lopez MPO Xaymara M. Serrano MBF Kristine Stump MBF
Andrew Jo MGGPutri Akmal MGG
Congratulations to all of our Masters and Ph.D. grads!
Please join us in welcoming our newest graduates into the RSMAS Alumni Association!
Masters of Professional Science:
PH.D.
Master of Science
Help Please consider
supporting our efforts
to preserve and improve
our iconic Wetlab with a
donation to the RSMAS
Alumni Association
today!
Learn more...
RSMAS/NEWSROSENSTIEL SCHOOL of MARINE & ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
Winter editionDecember 2013
“Follow” us on Twitter at UMiamiRSMAS
“Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/RosenstielAlumni
RSMAS alumni happy hour reunion:
RSMAS Hurricane football game watch party:
Help Please consider
supporting our efforts
to preserve and improve
our iconic Wetlab with a
donation to the RSMAS
Alumni Association
today!
Learn more...
Happy hour at the Rosenstiel School’s “Wetlab” has always been popular because it allows faculty, staff, and students time to wind down, enjoy the beautiful views, and grab a nice adult libation. With that in mind, for the 2nd year in row, a homecoming happy hour was held at the “one of Miami’s best kept secrets” (according to Miami New Times). This year’s event was held on November 8th and hosted by the RSMAS Alumni Board, who provided free food and drinks for the first couple hours of the evening. A number of the events held by the Alumni Board have been based at the “Wetlab” recently because we are looking to raise money to renovate and expand a place that is very special to many in the RSMAS community. The expansion will allow us to invite more of the “U” family back to relax and reminisce, and will allow many more professional and personal relationships to blossom. If you are interested in contributing to the renovations or getting involved with the RSMAS Alumni Association, please contact Caroline Hammerschlag, our Senior Outreach Manager, at [email protected].
The Hurricanes game watch party on October 17th was a great success. Alumni, students, and faculty came together to watch the Hurricanes beat the University of North Carolina Tar Heels in a thrilling last-minute ACC win. The evening was full of fun, games, and lively conservation. Dean Avissar was there to explain future updates to the Wetlab and allowed everyone to view renderings of what the renovations will entail. Thank you to everyone who came out, and most importantly, to those who donated money to update this important student gathering spot. Go Canes!
