debor042

Polar bear! In the EVERGLADES?!?! So how many of you know the poem "Algy"? " Algy met a bear. The bear met Algy. The bear was bulgy. The bulge was Algy ." I think my dad sang "Algy" to me when I was a little tyke, though in my 3-year-old wisdom I must have taken "Algy" as "Algae" and from then on aspired to become a phycologist. Now, some attribute this verse to Ogden Nash, while others chalk it up to Anonymous (that great and varied writer!). And while this verse may be humorous, it's not truly nonsense (though this sentence is). I've seen analysis of Algy and the bear as an allegory for existentialist being (what does it mean "to be"?), while others just say (spoiler alert) that the bear ate Algy. BUT, I think they're all wrong as a result of a translational error where "Algy" should be "Algae" as my 3-year-old self clearly realized. THEREFORE: Looks a little green 'round the edges. ...

This post was written by Nick Schulte, a Master's student in Evelyn Gaiser's lab at Florida International University.  So where would you go to study how Everglades algae respond to increased nutrients from sea level rise? The Florida Everglades, right? That’s what I thought. But I went to Iowa. Iowa Lakeside Laboratory , more specifically, on the shores of Lake Oko boji (yes, I still confuse it with that big lake in the northern ‘Glades). A bit clearer but still unhelpful? This summer I attended two courses at Lakeside: Ecology and Systematics of Diatoms and Ecology and Systematics of Freshwater Algae. In that order – specific to general, that’s how it’s normally done, right? Start looking at the fineries of a specific group of algae (“the algae that live in glass houses”, or diatoms) and then see how they fit into the bigger picture of general phycology (“phykos” for “seaweed”). It actually makes a lot sense, especially when my research pays particular attention to the cha...

PhD students at FIU are required to teach a lab for two semesters.  So, for the past two semesters I have been a teaching assistant (TA) for   Ecology lab  and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience.  A typical ecology lab consists of a large majority of pre-professional students (pre -med, -dental, -vet, etc.) who need an upper-level elective.  Translation:  many students are enrolled in Ecology because they have to.  I don't expect my students to change their career paths and become ecologists; I simply want them to understand why ecology is important.   Memorizing terminology and examples, while they have their place, are not as useful in the long-term – it’s the experiences and hands-on activities we remember.    I am an ecologist and all I remember from my undergraduate ecology class is going out to my university’s nature preserve looking at species abundances and distributions.   If a student who is preparing for a career in e...

Gastric bypass- a wonderful alternative to graduate school 'Tis the season of grad school acceptances and major life choices. Two years ago (!) I was an overly confident undergrad preparing to become a graduate researcher. Late night Googling of "how to prepare for grad school" further assured me I was ready. Have experience in a research lab? Check. Know I may have weird hours? Check. Secured some kind of TA/RA funding? Check. Today, reflecting upon this time of year, I wish someone would have told me about a few aspects of grad school that seem to never be highlighted on those "What to Know about Grad School" websites: 1. Yes, being successful in grad school is about working hard, but it’s even more about being creative . Probably in your undergrad studies, the more time spent on homework or a project was directly proportional to your grades or success. I assumed that since I was a hard worker and previously worked in a research lab, I would be a gre...

As I sit here struggling to write my very last blog post, I wonder "What can I leave people that they'll find useful in any way?"  I could provide meaningful insight on what it was like being a graduate student in my lab, but my thesis sucked all the meaning out of my brain and suddenly I can't even manage to put two sentences together that make sense.  So instead, the most useful thing(s) I can leave you all, is (are) my bookmarks!  Those that know me know how incredibly organized (read: obsessive compulsive) I am, so over the last 2.5 years I've collected quite a bit of useful internet knowledge and organized it into various categories on my computer.   So, as my parting gift to you, I leave you these helpful links on everything from job sites, to SAS codes, to data portals, and most importantly, sites for procrastination.  I can't promise these links will stay active forever, but last I checked they worked.  So enjoy! GIS DATA From here . FIU GIS Center ...

During my first year as a graduate student, a week didn't go by where someone didn't ask me "So what's your research question?"  I hated that question more than anything.  I had combed the literature, searching for research ideas, only to discover everything I was interested in had already been done a hundred times over.  All of the mysteries of the environment had been answered and there wasn't anything left to be studied.  "Why am I even here and why are any of us doing science," I frequently asked myself.   "Ecology is stupid.  Ecology is hard.  I hate Ecology!" were also common chants I shouted in my office (and by office, I mean the spare lab next door that was used for storage and sleeping quarters for homeless grad students).  Then, one day, it suddenly all made sense.  I realized I was being punished by my adviser, because he was punished by his adviser, and his adviser's adviser punished him, etc. etc.... Then I stopped blamin...

Guest post today from a new member of the FCE community! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Howdy ya’ll! I’m one of the newest members of the  Trexler lab , here all the way from Houston, Texas. I finished my Masters in May, which focused on reproductive life histories of small stream fishes. In addition to working in some amazing clear water East Texas streams, I have a love/hate relationship with springs in the beautiful West Texas Chihuahuan desert. But, life hasn’t all been unicorns and butterflies; I’ve worked in my share of dumpy freshwater sites. However, nothing prepared me for what I was to endure in the Everglades.  Don’t get me wrong, I am in no way suggesting that the Everglades are “dumpy,” but rather mysterious and frankly, comedic. This past summer I was lucky enough to (literally) get my feet wet in the Everglades. I was excited, yet terrified. In Texas, alligators eat peopl...

For Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) research in the Seagrass Ecosystems Lab, we venture out into Florida Bay every two months to do a survey of the submerged aquatic vegetation (seagrasses and macroalgae).   As I mentioned in my last post ( Florida Bay:  Beneath the Surface ) Florida Bay is a honeycomb of basins, which creates different habitat types.   These different habitats, specifically the type and density of vegetation on the floor and sediment type (and many other factors that are beyond the scope of this post), attribute to the color of the water.   In a single LTER trip, we see water ranging from deep blue to teal, green, and even brown!    After 2 years of running the LTER project for our lab, I am still amazed by the dynamic nature of Florida Bay on the surface and below. Darker blue waters as we travel to Sprigger Bank. At Sprigger Bank:  notice the greenish patch to the left.  There is sparse shoal grass (Halodule wrightii...