[DIALOGnews] DIALOG and DISCCRS News 03/18/2005

Weiler, C. Susan weilercs at whitman.edu
Mon Mar 21 12:23:30 CST 2005


DIALOG and Disccrs News
03/18/2005
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
RESOURCES
University Corporation For Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Digital Image  
Library https://www.fin.ucar.edu/ucardil/default.jsp
Grant Opportunity-Oceans and Human Health-National Oceanic and  
Atmospheric Administration  
http://www.cop.noaa.gov/opportunities/ann_ohh.html

SCIENCE NEWS
Geologists Explore Link Between Human Action and Landscape Change  
http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=pr05040
World Fish Stocks Strained, U.N. Says  
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2005/2005-03-07-03.asp
Researchers Question Assumptions of Fisheries Management  
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/02/050223140858.htm
Seas' Chemistry, Currents Changing, Scientists Say  
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/health/bal- 
hs.oceans04mar04,1,1452245.story?coll=bal-health-headlines
Senate Votes for ANWR Oil Drilling  
http://www.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/03/16/arctic.drilling.ap/index.html
Global Warming Has Momentum, 2 Studies Show http://tinyurl.com/6fl7a

FORUM

SUMMER PROGRAMS, COURSES, INTERNSHIPS, MEETINGS
New England Complex Systems Institute Announcements  
http://necsi.net/education/school/summer05.html

JOBS
Postdoctoral Position: Biogeochemistry of Coral Bleaching

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Resources

University Corporation For Atmospheric Research (Ucar) Digital Image  
Library
 From Mark Francek, GeoEd
    UCAR has put together a well-organized collection of images, with  
accompanying descriptions, of the following weather and climate related  
topics: climate change, clouds, computers, education, environment,  
history, modeling, natural disasters, people, phenomena, radar,  
research, pollution, satellite, solar, weather.  Another option  
available is to browse by your own term.  
https://www.fin.ucar.edu/ucardil/default.jsp
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Grant Opportunity-Oceans and Human Health-National Oceanic and  
Atmospheric Administration
    For further information, please go  
to:http://www.cop.noaa.gov/opportunities/ann_ohh.html
    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is  
pleased to announce an upcoming funding opportunity being made  
available through the External Research Grants Program of NOAA's new  
Oceans and Human Health Initiative (OHHI). OHHI was formally authorized  
by the Oceans and Human Health Act (OHHA) that was passed by Congress 8  
December 2004. The External Research Grants Program is the largest of  
several OHHI programs that are designed to enhance understanding of the  
role of the oceans in human health, with the goal of providing useful  
research and predictive information to NOAA, public health officials,  
and natural resource managers. The OHHA defines oceans to include the  
Great Lakes.
    This funding opportunity is intended to engage the non-federal  
research community in conducting research - across the physical,  
chemical, biological, medical, public health, oceanographic, and social  
sciences - on priority issues for OHHI. The Federal Register Notice  
(FRN) that will officially announce the OHHI External Research Grants  
Program funding opportunity is expected to be published by 25 March  
2005 and possibly as early as 18 March. There will be a relatively  
short period of time between the official posting of the FRN and the  
proposal due date. This notice is intended to make you, your  
membership, and interested others aware of the upcoming funding  
opportunity, for planning purposes. If interested in this opportunity,  
please check frequently for the official Federal Register Notice, in  
order to have available the maximum proposal preparation time.
    As soon as that Federal Register Notice is published, the associated  
Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) will be available through the NOAA
websites:
    Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research http://www.cop.noaa.gov/
    NOAA Oceans and Human Health Initiative (OHHI) at the NOAA Office of  
Global Programs http://www.ogp.noaa.gov/mpe/ohi/index.htm
    Additional background information on NOAA's OHHI and OHHI's External  
Research Grants Program is available on the websites above.
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Science News
Check out this section both for news tidbits, and for
examples of how to communicate science to a non-scientist audience

Geologists Explore Link Between Human Action and Landscape Change
from NSF Geosciences News Releases
    Ever since we began clearing valleys and slopes for agriculture more  
than 9,000 years ago, people have been altering landscapes. In the  
cover article of the April-May issue of GSA Today, geologists  
affiliated with the University of Vermont (UVM) explored the link  
between human actions and landscape and found some good news and some  
bad news.
    UVM geologist Paul Bierman and his colleagues—including three  
undergraduates—searched a web-based community archive of more than  
10,000 images of Vermont landscapes from before 1810 to the present.  
Part of  UVM’s Landscape Change Program, the archive is filled with  
rare images of rural areas and can be accessed online.
    The Landscape Change Program has been supported by the National  
Science Foundation (NSF) and the Lintilac Foundation.
    “Our findings have significant environmental implications for  
Vermont and New England in general,” said Bierman. “We found that  
erosion is linked to clearing trees from hill slopes, which implies  
that if New England were cleared of trees, sediment would again pour  
off slopes and into streams and rivers.” But there's also good news:  
corridors running along rivers and streams have improved markedly over  
the past 30 years. “This is a positive environmental finding and one  
that’s very good for stream health and the health of ecosystems in  
streams,” he said.
    http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=pr05040
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World Fish Stocks Strained, U.N. Says
via SeaSpan
    Seven of the top 10 marine fish species, accounting for about 30  
percent of all capture fisheries production, are fully exploited or  
overexploited, says the newest edition of a United Nations biennial  
report--The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture. Rebuilding  
depleted wild fish stocks is a "challenging necessity," said the  
report, issued by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). At  
the same time, the report found, demand for fish will continue to rise.  
The number of people earning an income from direct employment in  
fisheries and aquaculture increased to about 38 million in 2002,  
according to the report. When economic activity resulting indirectly  
from fisheries production is accounted for, FAO estimates that the  
sector supports around 200 million people worldwide. To restore fish  
populations, the report recommends decreasing or temporarily stopping
fishing in overexploited fisheries, reducing degradation of underwater  
environments, and actively rehabilitating damaged habitats. To read the
report, go to:  
http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/007/y5600e/ 
y5600e00.htm
    SOURCE: ENS, March 8, 2005.  
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2005/2005-03-07-03.asp
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Researchers Question Assumptions of Fisheries Management
via SeaSpan
    In a scientific double whammy, researchers report that fishing  
pressure is causing fish to evolve to smaller sizes, just as new  
studies show that larger fish are critical to sustaining populations.  
In species such as Pacific rockfish, the big, old females not only  
produce exponentially more eggs than younger, smaller females, but  
their hearty larvae have a far greater chance of survival. Keeping  
these big fish increases the chances of strong population numbers in  
the next generation--which is paramount to the recovery of overfished  
stocks. Representing three fisheries science sessions from the American  
the AAAS meeting in February, Steve Berkeley of UC Santa Cruz, Larry  
Crowder of Duke University, Andy Rosenberg of the University of New  
Hampshire and a member of the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, and  
Jeremy Jackson of Scripps Institution of Oceanography highlight the  
latest advances in genetics, biology, and evolutionary science that  
point to new strategies for maintaining fisheries. Berkeley and his  
collaborators have published recent papers on their research and its  
implications for fisheries management.
    SOURCES:
    Science Daily, March 3, 2005;  
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/02/050223140858.htm
    SeaWeb, February 19, 2005; http://www.seaweb.org
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Seas' Chemistry, Currents Changing, Scientists Say
via SeaSpan
    Greenhouse gases are warming up our oceans, changing their chemistry  
and threatening rainfall patterns that provide the planet with its  
fresh water, scientists say. The gases that cause global warming are  
sometimes given as factors in problems ranging from the strength of  
hurricanes to altered wildlife habitats. But in what may be the most  
comprehensive look yet at the oceans, a group of researchers recently  
told a scientific conference that the marine impact is just as severe.  
"In terms of global warming, the oceans are where the action is," said  
Tim Barnett, an oceanographer at the Scripps Oceanographic Institution.  
"The oceans are sort of a canary in the coal mine." The 1990s turned  
out to be the warmest decade in the past 1,000 years, experts say. For  
the in-depth story, go to:  
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/health/bal- 
hs.oceans04mar04,1,1452245.story?coll=bal-health-headlines
    SOURCE: Dennis O'Brien: More than a drop in the ocean. The Baltimore  
Sun, March 4, 2005
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Senate Votes for ANWR Oil Drilling
CNN Wednesday, March 16, 2005 Posted: 4:51 PM EST (2151 GMT)
    WASHINGTON (AP) -- Amid the backdrop of soaring oil and gasoline  
prices, a sharply divided Senate on Wednesday voted to open the  
ecologically rich Alaska wildlife refuge to oil drilling, delivering a  
major energy policy win for President Bush.
    The Senate, by a 51-49 vote, rejected an attempt by Democrats and  
GOP moderates to remove a refuge drilling provision from next year's  
budget, preventing opponents from using a filibuster -- a tactic that  
has blocked repeated past attempts to open the Alaska refuge to oil  
companies.
    The action, assuming Congress agrees on a budget, clears the way for  
approving drilling in the refuge later this year, drilling supporters  
said.
    The oil industry has sought for more than two decades to get access  
to what is believed to be billions of barrels of oil beneath the 1.5  
million-acre coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in  
the northern eastern corner of Alaska.
    Environmentalists have fought such development and argued that  
despite improve environmental controls a web of pipelines and drilling  
platforms would harm calving caribou, polar bears and millions of  
migratory birds that use the coastal plain.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/03/16/arctic.drilling.ap/index.html
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Global Warming Has Momentum, 2 Studies Show
from The Denver Post
    Oceans will keep rising and the planet will keep warming for more  
than a century, even if people were able to freeze greenhouse-gas  
emissions at
today's levels, according to two new studies.
    But keeping emissions steady is nearly impossible, given a growing  
global population eager for fast cars and electricity, the authors  
said.
    North America could see more frequent spells of dangerously hot  
weather and plagues of crop-eating insects, said one author of the new  
reports,
published in Thursday's issue of the journal Science.  
http://tinyurl.com/6fl7a

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Summer Programs, Courses, Internships, Meetings

New England Complex Systems Institute Announcements
New Scheduled Programs (see details below)
    Summer School 2005: June 6-10 & 12-16, 2005
    Independent Study Program: June 20-24, 2005
    Mastering Complexity in Healthcare: June 27, 2005
NECSI SUMMER SCHOOL 2005
    Complex Physical, Biological and Social Systems
    Modeling, Networks and Evolution of Complex Systems
    Each program is the equivalent of a one semester course in a one  
week format. They may be taken independently or consecutively. If  
desired, arrangements for credit at a home institution should be made  
in advance.
    WEEK ONE: Complex Physical, Biological and Social Systems
    Dates:  June 6-10, 2005
    Location:  MIT, Cambridge, MA
    This course offers an introduction to the essential concepts of  
complex systems and related mathematical methods and simulation  
strategies with application to physical, biological and social systems.  
The course will particularly focus on the use of multiscale  
representations as a unifying approach to complex systems concepts,  
methods and applications.
    Concepts to be discussed include: emergence, complexity, networks,  
self-organization, pattern formation, evolution, adaptation, fractals,  
chaos, cooperation, competition, attractors, interdependence, scaling,  
dynamic response, information, and function.
    Methods to be discussed include: statistical methods, cellular  
automata, agent-based modeling, pattern recognition, system  
representation and informatics.
    WEEK TWO:
    Modeling, Networks and Evolution of Complex Systems
    Dates:  June 12-16, 2005
    Location:  MIT, Cambridge, MA
    This course offers a systematic study of three key complex systems  
areas.
    Modeling:  "how to" build models of complex systems (physical,  
biological, social and engineering).
    Networks:  network models of complex systems: nodes and links,  
connectivity; topologies: small worlds, scale free, modular;  dynamics  
of networks.
    Evolution:  evolution in biology, social and engineered systems,  
altruism and selfishness, speciation, diversity, and spatial models.
    TARGET AUDIENCE:
    These courses are intended for faculty, graduate students,  
post-doctoral fellows and others who would like to gain an  
understanding of the fundamentals of complex systems, and develop  
methodological tools for conducting research in their respective  
fields.
    For more information and registration:  
http://necsi.net/education/school/summer05.html
INDEPENDENT STUDY PROGRAM
    Dates: June 20-24, 2005
    Location:  NECSI, Cambridge, MA
    This program is designed as a follow-on to the summer school. It is  
intended for those who would like to continue work on research  
projects, including quantitative or qualitative development and  
application of complex systems concepts to specific problems in the  
physical, biological, social and engineered systems. It will run as a  
faculty supervised directed study.
    If you are interested in this study program send an e-mail to  
programs at necsi.org.

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Jobs for PhDs
http://www.higheredjobs.com/about/

Postdoctoral position: biogeochemistry of coral bleaching
    Two-year postdoc position to work on biogeochemistry of coral  
bleaching using pulse-chase isotope labeling experiments.  Analyses  
include a combination of bulk stable isotope and compound-specific  
lipid isotope measurements.  Research includes up to three continuous  
months of fieldwork
in Hawaii, several two-week trips back to the field, and intensive  
laboratory analyses.  Candidates must hold a PhD, have experience with  
stable isotope analyses, and relevant fieldwork.  Experience working  
with corals and lipid extractions desirable.  This position is part of  
a collaborative project between Drs. Andrea Grottoli (University of  
Pennsylvania, grottoli at sas.upenn.edu; www.sas.upenn.edu/~grottoli/) and  
Tamara Pease (The University of Texas at Austin, Marine Science  
Institute, tamara at utmsi.utexas.edu;  
www.utmsi.utexas.edu/people/staff/pease.htm).
    Position begins July 1, 2005, contingent upon funding.  Please send  
CV, statement of research interests, names and contact information of  
three
references, and copies of two publications either by regular mail or  
electronically to:
    Andrea Grottoli, Assistant Professor, Department of Earth and  
Environmental Science, University of Pennsylvania 240 South 33rd Street  
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6316 grottoli at sas.upenn.edu.
    Applications will be accepted until April 25, 2005.  Both the  
University of Pennsylvania and The University of Texas at Austin are  
Affirmative
Action/Equal Opportunity Employers.
**************************************************
    This newsletter has been developed by C. Susan Weiler to distribute  
information of potential interest to recent PhDs engaged in  
interdisciplinary aquatic science or climate-change research, and to  
build an international sense of community among recent grads. It  
provides an international forum for the exchange of information and  
opinions regarding research, professional and social issues. The views  
and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the funding  
agencies or sponsoring societies. Dr. Weiler reserves the right to edit  
or reject material submitted to the list.
        Please submit announcements of interest to recent PhDs to  
phd at whitman.edu.  Send a short message in the body of an e-mail  
message, and link to any appropriate websites. Do not send attachments.
        Moving? Send address changes to dialog at whitman.edu or  
disccrs at whitman.edu

**********
C. Susan Weiler, Ph.D.          
Office for Earth System Studies    Tel:   509-527-5948          
Whitman College                          Fax:  509-527-5961
Walla Walla, WA 99362
    weiler at whitman.edu    
    Programs for Recent PhDs                 http://aslo.org/phd.html
    DIALOG poster        http://www.aslo.org/phd/dialogposter.pdf
    DISCCRS poster       http://www.aslo.org/phd/disccrsposter.pdf 
Workshop Report, Meeting the Needs of Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Graduates  
in a Changing Global Environment
http://marcus.whitman.edu/~weilercs/biocomplexity/              
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