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Directors Welcome
Dr. Carol Boggs
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4
5
Contents
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Recent Happenings at
ESRI
Faculty Highlight:
Dr. Seth John
Undergraduate Stars:
Meet David, Chandler
and Drew
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Senator Visits Baruch
Institute
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Research the World Over:
Faculty Conducting International Research
From Columbia to
Brazil: The Journey
of Dr. Jean Ellis
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Q &A with grad student
Michael Philben
School of Earth Ocean Environment
Semi - Annual Newsletter: May 2014
As the new Director of the School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment (SEOE), I invite you to peruse this, our first semiannual newsletter.
Many of you, especially our alumni, may be thinking “What on earth is the School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment?
Does my beloved geology/ marine science/ school of the environment still exist?” The SEOE was created within the College of
Arts and Sciences in 2009, to facilitate interdisciplinary research, teaching and outreach on the environment broad-sense at
South Carolina. The Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences (geology), the Marine Science Program, the Environment and
Sustainability Program (old School of the Environment) are all included under the SEOE umbrella. The Belle Baruch Marine
and Coastal Sciences Institute and the Earth Sciences and Resources Institute (ESRI) also fall within the SEOE. During this,
my first, year at South Carolina, I have been working with faculty, staff and students to define ways to achieve our shared vision for the SEOE and its component parts. Our goal is to establish a broadly interdisciplinary unit, which retains traditional
disciplinary strengths, while generating novel and exciting inter- and multi-disciplinary research, teaching and leadership.
We want the University of South Carolina to be at the forefront nationally and internationally in this arena.
This newsletter, like the SEOE, will be evolving fairly rapidly over the next very few years. The coming late Fall edition will focus on some of our
plans for the SEOE. In the meantime, if you have thoughts on specific types of news that you would like to see featured here, thoughts on our format (should this be a blog? more email friendly?), or other feedback, please send them on to me. I can be reached at cboggs@seoe.sc.edu.
Important
information
If you would like to learn more about
all the happenings across SEOE, please
visit:
http://artsandsciences.sc.edu/seoe/
If you are interested in contributing
to the continued success of the SEOE,
please learn more about giving at:
giving.sc.edu/collegeofartssciences
How to contact us:
Krista Russell, SEOE Administrative Assistant
Office Phone Number: 803-777-3921
Mailing Address: 712 Main Street, EWS Bldg.,
Room 603, Columbia SC 29208
A sincere thank you to all those who contributed
their time, pictures, and life stories to be used for
this publication.
This publication was produced and edited by
Whitney Pierson, Masters of Arts in International
Studies Candidate, University of South Carolina
wpierson@email.sc.edu
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Alumni Updates
Andy Frassetto graduated with Honors in May 2004 with a degree
in Geophysics. He then went on to complete his Ph.D. in Earthquake
Seismology in December 2009, and a two year post doctoral postion in
Copenhagen, Denmark. “USC provided me with an exceedingly wellrounded education.” He misses football and frisbee on the Horseshoe,
instructors with personality, and seeing his best freinds everyday. He
is thankful for the influencial mentors he had, including Tom Owens,
James Knapp, and Camelia Knapp. He currently resides in Washington, DC and its working for a non profit organization named Iris (
Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology ).
Rosemary hall graduated from USC with a Masters in Marine
Science in 2002. She is currently at the United States Enviornmental
Protection Agency, Region 4, in the Wetlands and Marine Regulatory
System. “My degree helped further my understanding of marine ecology
and ecotoxicology. That technical knowledge and experience helped me
pursue a career that has so far included working on a variety of programs
with EPA focused aquatics resources, both marine and freshmater. “
CHANDA COOPER received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and also a Master of Earth and Environmental Resources Management from the University of South Carolina. She is currently the
Education Program Coordinator at the Richland County Conservation
Department in Columbia. “The coursework, research, and extracurricular activities at USC allowed me to explore my passion for science
and outreach. These experiences led me to pursue a career in environmental education and gave me the knowledge and skills I would need to
be sucessful in the field.” She misses “being able to walk to Beezer’s for
lunch, to the Thomas Cooper Library for research, and to the offices of
my beloved professors, mentors, and advisors on campus for a chat.”
Global-Scale Impact & exciting new discovery:
Dr. Seth John
The availability of world-class research equipment
was instrumental in attracting Dr. Seth John to the University
of South Carolina’s Marine Science Program, and the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences five years ago. Using that
equipment, Dr. John’s lab at USC was the first in the nation to
measure iron isotopes in seawater. Currently the Marine Trace
Element Laboratory (MTEL) is analyzing new results on iron
isotopes in seawater, with the intention of discovering where
iron in the ocean comes from. This first global-scale measurement of metal isotopes in seawater will help society to understand the marine sources and sinks of iron, along with the
biogeochemical cycling of metals in the water column.
Nearly five years later, he has built an impressive
research team which has included two graduate students, 12
undergraduates, two postdoctoral scholars, and one technician.
Students impacted by Dr. Seth John’s teaching and research can
be seen making a difference in the science community. Undergrad, graduate, and postdoctoral students have presented
their research at dozens of conferences in Italy, Hawaii, North
Carolina, California, and elsewhere. This semester Dr. John is
teaching Chemical Oceanography. His favorite course is the
lab course Environmental Analysis, as it combines teaching
with research. Students each take their own sediment core at
the Baruch Institute for Marine and Coastal Sciences’ field station and bring the core back to the lab. There, they use a variety
of lab techniques to learn both about the sediment geochemistry, and to understand the history of South Carolina.
As a recent winner of the University’s Breakthrough
Star Award by the Office of Research, Dr. John’s research is
receiving recognition within USC. He also continues to form
new collaborations with students and scientists around the
country. Dr. John is excited to take his research in new directions, and is optimistic about a new project looking at how
trace metals affect phytoplankton growth and viral infection.
If you would like to learn more about Dr. John’s research, please
visit his website at: http://www.geol.sc.edu/mtel/
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Undergraduate Stars
David Mailman came to USC to
pursue a triple major in Geology,
Economics and Political Science
David recently presented a yearlong
project with Professor Yogodzinski on campus for Discovery Day,
where he can be seen pictured with
his presentation poster. As a recipient of the Magellan Scholarship, he
allocated this fund to learn more
about the origin of primitive volcanoes in Alaska. The goal of his
study was to use the minor element
abundances in olivine to constrain
the primitive magma types that
are formed in the subduction zone
below Buldir Volcano. David is
involved in two honor societies
on campus, Alpha Sigma Lambda
and Phi Beta Kappa. He was also
awarded the Stephen Taber Undergraduate Scholarship for the
Department of Earth and Ocean
Sciences. This summer he will
travel with other USC students for
a six-week expedition in Colorado
to continue his studies.
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A capstone trip to Iceland encouraged Chandler Green to create an
amazing documentary about her
experience. Entitled “The Land of
Fire and Ice”, Chandler is able to
use her passion for film to educate
others concerning Iceland’s clean
energy initiatives, and the effects
of global warming. The receipt of
a grant from the Office of Undergraduate Research Magellan Apprentice award allowed Chandler to
purchase the camera needed for the
production of the film. This year
she has also been involved with the
Capstone Ambassador program,
which helps freshman transition to
college, and is also working with
the CISA (Carolina’s Integrated
Sciences and Assessments) research
team. She appreciates the benefits
the University has provided – including wonderful professors such
as Dr. Carbone, and Dr. Lara Kissel.
Chandler is currently majoring in
Environmental Science and minoring in Media Arts – a combination
that is unique to the university
campus. Please vist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX9WrUxHoqM to
view her documentary.
It was the University of South
Carolina’s reputation, size, and
availability of opportunities that
first attracted Drew DeLorenzo.
Now, four years later with graduation approaching, one can see
the footprint that he will be leaving on the University. During his
time here, he has been involved
with many campus initiatives:
Students Engaged in Aquatic Sciences, MarSci, and the Baruch
Institute. He recently won the
2014 USC Outstanding Marine
Science Award, given to the top
student based on GPA, service, and
research. In 2012, receiving the
NOAA Hollings Scholarship allowed him to travel to Panama City
Florida to conduct diet research
on sharks. Drew was instrumental in education outreach to local
elementary schools throughout
the community, children were able
to touch and learn about starfish,
crabs, and other animals through
his initiative. Drew will miss the
community of connections, campus
life, and of course the football as he
embarks on the pursuit of his PhD
from Washington University in St. Louis.
Faculty Highlight: From Columbia to Brazil
Dr. Jean Ellis
Her journey
brought her
from NASA
to the University of South
Carolina,
where Dr.
Jean Ellis has
made a strong
and lasting
impact on the
lives of her students. The academic
freedom that is associated with being
a faculty member played an instrumental part in her decision to join the
USC faculty. As a jointly appointed
faculty member between the Marine
Science Program and the Department
of Geography, her current research focuses on coastal and aeolian geomorphology and the impact of humans on
the coastal environment. Currently,
her projects are focused on small- and
meso-scale eolian sand transport
and wave transformation around
breakwaters. The former explores the
relationship between turbulence in
wind and response of sand, both in
space and over time, and has lead to
the publication of a series of papers.
As the director of the Beach and
Dune Processes Laboratory on the
USC campus, she turns the interest
of students concerning the coastal
environment into practical application. She mentors students in the lab
as do a variety of projects concerning
wind and sand relationships, as well
as hydrodynamics around coral reefs
and breakwaters. Currently, there are
seven undergraduate students working in her lab. Four are graduating in
the Spring or Summer of 2014; their
spots will be filled with one undergraduate student and three graduate
students in the Fall.
Dr. Ellis will be traveling abroad this
coming August, as she continues her
international research initiatives in
Jericoacoara Brazil. As a Fullbright
Scholar, she will be spending her
time determining how sand ripples
form, change and eventually reach
equilibrium. Jericoacoara is a former
fishing village that has changed over
the recent years due to an influx of
kite surfers from around the world.
The incredibly fast winds and scant
precipitation that attracts the kite
surfers also makes this is a perfect
research site for Dr. Ellis Dr. Ellis has
been working on her ripple project at
this site since 2008, with a side project
of analyzing how dunes are linked to
climate change. She now hopes to
involve local experts to collect in-
formation about how humans have
impacted the environment.
In addition to running the Beach
and Dunes Interactions Laboratory
and conducting research, she teaches
Marine Science and Geography courses. Drawing in her trained area of
expertise, Dr. Ellis’s favorite course is
the one she created, Beach and Dune
Interactions. She also advises and
mentors well over thirty undergraduate students. Providing guidance to
students is not only something she
views as important, but also a huge
part of the success of the students as
they complete their degrees at the
University of South Carolina.
If you would like more information
concerning the work of the lab, visit
http://www.msci.sc.edu/faculty/ellis
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Earth Sciences and Resources Institute
tion about conventional and unconventional resources for over
90 countries, 180 sedimentary basins and more than 2100
petroleum fields around the world. This database is GIS formatted, fully customizable and aimed to serve oil and gas companies
in their exploration endeavors. The group is also re-establishing
its traditional custom designed petroleum geophysics training
program that combines classroom format lectures with hands-on
research on individual projects in order to provide professional
development solutions to the energy companies.
ESRI-SC co-hosted exhibition booths and alumni receptions with
the department of Earth and Ocean Sciences at the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG, September 2013) and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG, April 2014)
annual conferences. This outreach forged contacts with many
alumni in the Energy industry, and re-established old contacts
with the petroleum industry for future collaborations.
Earth Sciences and Resources Institute (ESRI-SC) was
created in 1973 to conduct applied research and service in petroleum and environmental geosciences, engineering and computer
applications. The founding Director, William (Bill) H. Kanes, a
Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Ocean
Sciences (EOS), suddenly passed away on March 4th, 2014. Bill
founded ESRI-SC to pair industrial initiatives with academic
efforts. His work throughout the world expanded geological
knowledge across national boundaries and his entrepreneurial
talent made ESRI-SC a successful research institution at USC.
Dr. Camelia
Knapp became
Director of
ESRI-SC in May
2013. Under her
leadership,
ESRI-SC’s focus
has expanded
into more broadly
defined Energy
initiatives. For
example, the
Institute is
building a Global
Oil Fields
Database that
contains informa-
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Students are involved with ESRI-SC as well. Marybeth Lundquist
(Geophysics BS student) is an intern, processing and interpreting seismic data. She is now in Houston for a summer internship
with ExxonMobil.
“My experience as an intern at ESRI-SC has provided me with the
opportunity to become involved in the various applications of geophysics in industry related fields. I came into this position without
any prior knowledge of what really went into geophysical research,
but the guidance and teaching I received from the staff here helped
me overcome the shortcomings I originally had. I have been able to
travel with this institute and network with some of the top companies in the industry. I strongly believe this internship with ESRI-SC
has made me a more competitive candidate for graduate schools
and undergraduate awards in addition to broadening my knowledge of geophysics”.
US Senator visits the Belle Baruch Marine
& Coastal Sciences Institute
What are the effects of rising sea level on the
coastal landscape of South Carolina? US Senator
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) visited the Baruch
Institute on Earth Day, April 22, as part of a
fact-finding trip along the southeastern coast.
Sen. Whitehouse is a member of the Senate
Environmentand Public Works Committee and
involved in a bipartisan caucus focused on ocean
and coastal health. The Senator’s visit included
a boat tour of North Inlet and a discussion of
the processes by which marshes normally move
vertically up and down in response to sea level
changes. These processes include gradual deposition of organic matter and mud. However, the
rise in sea level is occurring so rapidly now that
this natural response is in danger of not operating fast enough to build up the elevation of the
marshes. The area around North Inlet, along
with other parts of the southeastern shore line, is nearing a tipping point, where the marsh responds negatively
to sea-level rise.
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Research Around the World
Try to keep up with some of the various faculty of the SEOE as they engage in research projects the world over.
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Dr. David Barbeau
Chile
Dr. Venkat Lakshmi
Vietnam
Dr. Jennifer R. Pournelle
Iraq
Dr. Tim Mousseau
Chernoble & Fukushima
Dr. Jill Anderson
Brazil (Amazon Region)
Dr. James Knapp
Russia & Caspian Sea
Michael Philben
QA
&
Michael recently won first place in the oral presentation at
USC’s Graduate Student Day, and also the Marine Science
Publication Award.
Q: What degree at you currently pursuing at USC?
Q: Are you currently teaching?
Michael recently won first place overall in oral presenations
A: I am a instructional assistant for the Marine Science 102:
A: A PhD in Marine
was awarded
Presidental
Felat USC’sScience.
Graduate IStudent
Day, anda also
the Marine
Science
The Living Ocean, which means I teach the lab for a three hour
lowship for incoming
graduate
students.
This
was
an
opporPublication
block once a week. It involves giving a short lecture and then
tunity for me to connect with a community of scholars across
facilitating the lab exercise.
discplines and share work and research initiatives.
Q: Can you tell me a bit more about the project that recently
won an award on April 11th at USC Graduate Student Day?
Q: What are your plans for this summer and for your upcoming graduation ?
A: Peatlands currently contain about 2/3 as much CO2 as the
atmosphere. Carbon is sequestered not because plant growth
is especially fast, but because decomposition is incredibly slow.
The focus of my research is to determine why this decomposition is so slow. We proposed “oxygen exposure time” as an
alternative hypothesis. We hypothesized that peat buried below
the water table more rapidly (short oxygen exposure time) will
be less decomposed than peat that is buried more slowly (long
oxygen exposure time). To test this hypothesis, we collected a
set of cores along a latitudinal transect in West Siberian Lowland, Russia. We found that the northern cores were more extensively decomposed than the southern cores despite forming
under cooler conditions. This indicates oxygen exposure time
is an important control on peat decompositon, while temperature appears to be of secondary importance. Rapid release of
carbon dioxide from peatlands due to warming temperatures in
the artic is therefore not likely.
A: I will continue to be a research assistant this summer. May
2015 is my tentative graduation, and I hope to obtain a post
doctoral position. A career in research is the ultimate goal.
Q: What do you enjoy about being a graduate student?
A: There is a built - in community of people who you see on a
regular basis, and peers who are going through the same thing
as you. That sense of community is something I will miss.
Q: What is one important thing graduate life at USC has taught
you?
A: Learning how to think. Being able to get really deep into a
project and approach it from every angle. That is a level of critical thinking that I didn’t have before coming to USC.
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facebook.com/MarineScienceSC
facebook.com/TheEnvironmentAndSustainabilityProgram
facebook.com/USCEOS
giving.sc.edu/collegeofartssciences