- December 29, 2004: DR. ROBERT WEISBERG was quoted in an article in the Tampa Tribune on the recent tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. Click here to read the article.
- December 13, 2004: CMS GRADUATE CITED AS ONE OF 10 PROMINENT NAMES IN FLORIDA BUSINESS BY THE ST. PETERSBURG TIMES. Mike Morris, who received his MS degree from the College of Marine Science, was included as one of the top 10 prominent names in Florida business for 2004 by the St. Petersburg Times. Click here to read the article.
- December 3, 2004: CMS final '04 seminar invites expert on turbulence modeling
Helmut Baumert, an expert in turbulence and numerical modeling of circulation in estuaries and lakes, presented the final 2004 Friday CMS seminar Dec. 3 by offering data collected from the Elbe Estuary near Hamburg, Germany.
According to CMS professor Boris Galperin, Baumert has been "developing a new model of stably stratified turbulence based on the idea that shear generated turbulence may be treated as a gas of elementary vortex couples."
Baumert presented computer animations that demonstrated both patterns of turbulence based on a variety of conditions and a need to better understand turbulent transport and mixing processes. He spoke on the different kinds of turbulence and encouraged thinking of turbulence as a "reaction diffusion system," invoking particle mechanics to explain outcomes of collisions where molecules collide and are defrayed. Variables include available kinetic energy, velocity, viscosity, shear and stratification. This approach allows one to calculate some basic parameters and constants of turbulence theory with relative ease. In addition, this method leads to improved description of turbulent mixing in models of oceanic and atmospheric circulation, and such models are currently being tested by Baumert and his colleagues at the University of Miami.
Turbulence has been called the "key" to understanding how everything in the ocean mixes. Yet, motion is not necessarily turbulence.
"Turbulence is mixing," said Baumert. "A chaotic motion that doesn't mix is not turbulence."
Baumert's approach to turbulence may be revolutionary.
"Professor Baumert's ideas on approach to turbulence modeling are very, very different," commented Gary Mitchum. "They will likely generate new ideas on turbulence, a problem that has for a long time plagued research fluid dynamics."
Baumert, an organizer leader of the European Union-sponsored concerted action directed towards comparative analysis and rationalization of second-moments turbulence models in use in physical oceanography (CARTUM) told attendees that CARTUM, involving more than 50 scientists from 25 institutions from around the world, will soon present a compendium on marine turbulence, published by Cambridge University Press. Baumert is co-editor and Galperin is a guest editor in charge of the part dealing with the large-scale terrestrial and planetary circulations and has three papers in the compendium.
-Photo and report courtesy of Randolph Fillmore
Photo courtesy of The St. Petersburg Times: Willie Allen Jr.
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November 26, 2004 : CMS STUDENTS FEATURED IN ST. PETERSBURG TIMES ARTICLE. The article, "Scientist's success to aid others", is about CMS graduate Mike Morris providing funds to the St. Petersburg Downtown Business Partnership as start-up money for new CMS graduate students to turn their "scientific creations into business ventures". Mike founded Ocean Optics after receiving his MS degree from CMS. Ocean Optics specialized in using spectrometers for many commercial applications. Mike recently sold his company for $50,000,000.
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November 1-6, 2004 : CLIVAR Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment/Ocean Surface Topography Mission Science Team Meetings. Dr. Gary Mitchum will be hosting two major international meetings in St. Petersburg bringing 250-300 scientist from around the world. The first meeting is CLIVAR Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment . GODAE is a global system of observations, communications, modeling and assimilation, that will deliver regular, comprehensive information on the state of the oceans, in a way that will promote and engender wide utility and availability of this resource for maximum benefit to the community.
The second meeting is the Ocean Surface Topography Mission Science Team . This is the continuation of the Topex/Poseidon/Jason programs in satellite altimetry that have been done jointly by NASA and the French CNES over the past 15-20 years. -
October 29, 2004: Faculty, researchers, staff and students at USF's College of Marine Science thanked Congressman Bill Young for his support over the past years by unveiling the C.W. Bill Young Marine Science Complex.
"Since 1987, Congressman Young's continuing contributions to our growth have been exceptional," said Peter Betzer, dean of the USF College of Marine Science. "Bill's support has led to the development and enhancement of the college and its centers, helped forge its strong links and partnerships and has contributed significantly to the advancement of marine science. This is our way of saying thanks."
USF President Judy Genshaft also thanked Young for his generous and continuing support for USF over the years and cited numerous examples. State Senator Jim Sebesta, remarking he and Young "went back 35 years," talked about Young's honesty and integrity. St. Petersburg mayor Rick Baker thanked Young for the economic boosts he has given the City of St. Petersburg.
Betzer told the gathering Young helped establish a branch of the U.S. Geological Service at USF, allowing CMS researchers and faculty to work more closely with USGS scientists. Young was also a moving force behind the development of the USF Center for Ocean Technology Young-Rainy Star Center in Largo for microelectromechanical (MEMS) research and production.
Lisa Robbins, of the USGS, also thanked Young and presented him with a plaque made of coral carved into the shape of the state of Florida.
After the ceremony, CMS faculty, researchers and students demonstrated some of the revolutionary technology and world-class research Young's contributions to the college have nurtured.
-Report courtesy of Randolph Fillmore and Mike McNew
- October 22, 2004: THE CENTER FOR OCEAN TECHNOLOGY WILL BE HOSTING THEIR ANNUAL OKTOBERFEST. "Come take a tour of the USF Center for Ocean Technology and see for yourself the exciting technology being developed. Then have a drink and a bite to eat with us." 11:30-am till 1:30pm. Contact
Antoinette Flournoy at (727)553-1009 for more information.
- October 14, 2004: COLLEGE OF MARINE SCIENCE RESEARCHER RECIEVES GRANT FOR COASTAL TIDE OBSERVATION STATIONS.
Clifford Merz has received a $200,000 grant from the State of Florida's Emergency Management Preparedness and Assistance Trust Fund to install four additional coastal tide observation stations as part of the Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System (COMPS).
COMPS consists of an array of instruments spread along the Gulf coast and offshore which measure wind, water, temperature and salinity. The data is passed to state and federal agencies for operations and research to predict storm surge, coastal erosion and red tide research.
The grant will strengthen the existing program by supporting the installation of new coastal meteorological and tide observing stations in Pasco, Pinellas and Lee counties.
Click Here to read the complete article.
-report courtesy of Randolph Fillmore
- October 5, 2004: DR. ASHANTI PYRTLE was notified that the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation will support 3 minority PhD candidates in the College. Each Sloan Scholar Assistantship is valued at $31,320/yr.
- October 1, 2004: DRS. FRANK MULLER-KARGER AND ROBERT WEISBERG ARE MENTIONED IN AN ARTICLE IN SCIENCE MAGAZINE. The article, "Science Weathers the Storm", concerns the disruption caused by this fall's active hurricane season and the pitfalls concerning measuring environmental parameters during this time period. Click here to read the article.
- September 30, 2004: THE CMS FALL ASSEMBLY IS AT 11:30 a.m. IN THE KAREN A. STEIDINGER AUDITORIUM. Click here to read the announcement.
- September 27, 2004: DR. ASHANTI PYRTLE IS FEATURED IN USF's Research.Online. The article describes her new multi-year initiative with USF's College of Engineering - Bridge to the Doctorate. This important program was one of only fourteen awards made to universities and colleges in the United States by the National Science Foundation. Click here to read the article.
- September 15, 2004: TAMPA BAY PARROT HEAD CLUB HONORED THE 2004 PARROT HEAD FELLOWSHIP AWARD RECEIPIANT, BRANDON CASPER. All CMS students, staff, faculty, friends and family were invited to attend this fun-filled ceremony then danced the night away. Contact Hope Botterbusch for more information on the celebration!
- September 10, 2004: A COPY OF COT's QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER "SIGNALS" IS NOW AVAILABLE. Click here to view.
- September 8, 2004: DR. FRANK E. MULLER-KARGER AUTHORS AN OP-ED ARTICLE IN THE ST. PETERSBURG TIMES. The editorial opinion entitled "Our Oceans are in deep trouble, but it's not too late", can be viewed by Clicking here.
- September 8, 2004: COMPS AWARDED GRANT. Clifford Merz, Program Director for the College of Marine Sciences' Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System (COMPS), was awarded a grant in the amount of $199,875 from the State of Florida's Emergency Management Preparedness and Assistance Trust Fund (EMPATF) Competitive Grant Program. This grant includes the installation of 4 new COMPS coastal tide stations; two (2) for Lee County – Big Carlos Pass and Redfish Pass, one (1) for Pasco County at the Anclote Gulf Park in Holiday, and one (1) for the city of Tarpon Springs within the Fred Howard County Park in Pinellas County. Monies were also awarded for salaries along with a DOMSAT satellite receive station with battery back up for COMPS system operation in times of power outages. Seven letters of support from surrounding regional EM agencies were obtained in support of this effort. This grant is similar to an EMPATF grant awarded to Cliff the previous year in the amount of $265,032, which included an offshore buoy and a few less coastal tide stations.
Wind and water level data from this years' Big Carlos Pass site was very useful in Hurricane Charley post storm analysis efforts with the station measuring wind gusts of 95.5 mph! Similarly, wind and water level data from the Fred Howard Park and Anclote Gulf Park sites was very useful in Hurricane Frances post storm analysis efforts with the stations measuring wind gusts of near 71 mph! Data from these as well as other real-time West Florida Shelf monitoring locations can be accessed from the COMPS web site at: http://comps.marine.usf.edu/.
CMS professor Boris Galperin (left) and guest lecturer Dr. Helmut Baumert
- August 27, 2004: THE 2004 ENDOWED FELLOWSHIP AWARDS CEREMONY.
At this year's College of Marine Science Fellowship Award Ceremony, 20 graduate students received $188,500 in fellowships, a record high for the college. In the last 21 years, the college has awarded more than $1.8 million in fellowships.
"When I received a fellowship years ago I was so impressed that people had such faith in me," said Mike Morris, president of Ocean Optics of Dunedin. "This is really an investment in your ability and hopefully you'll come back in 20 or 30 years and show us what wonderful things you have done."
Other notables that attended the presentation included: Bill Causey, superintendent of the Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Bruce Barber, the College's first PhD recipient and Karen A. White, USF St. Petersburg regional chancellor. Some of the fellowship donors in attendance were: Paul Tash, St. Petersburg Times president, Captain Harry Fink, president of the Tampa Bay Parrot Heads in Paradise Club and Don Shea, executive director for the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership.
In addition to the presentation of fellowship award winners, Peter Betzer, dean of College of Marine Science, spoke about the recent accomplishments for the college.
The College of Marine Science has been awarded the Bridge to the Doctorate from the National Science Foundation, a program that provides more than $900,000 to fund minority students' education. In addition, they are working on funding from the prestigious Sloan Foundation. The foundation said they said they were very impressed by the dedication of this community and the donors, said Betzer.
Betzer said they are also excited about their ongoing program, Oceanography Camp for Girls, which has more than 500 graduates since its inception 14 years ago. The program offers 8th girls the opportunity to go to the College and meet with graduate students. The goal is to encourage and inspire young females to want to learn more about marine science.
Click here to read the press release.
- August 22, 2004: TWO CMS RESEARCHERS QUOTED IN MIAMI HERALD ARTICLE. Dr. Frank E. Muller-Karger and Chuanmin Hu were featured in the article, "New depths for coral study- Scientists conducting marine research now rely on satellite images to give them a big-picture sense of what's going on." Click here to read the article.
- August 15, 2004:
INSTITUTE FOR MARINE REMOTE SENSING WINS 3 RD PLACE GULF GUARDIAN AWARD STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The Gulf of Mexico Program recently announced that the Institute for Marine Remote Sensing at the University of South Florida and the National Coastal Data Development Center at Stennis Space Center, Miss., will receive a third place Gulf Guardian Award for 2004 in the Government Category for the Harmful Algal Blooms Observing System (HABSOS). The award will be presented at the Southern States Environmental Conference and Exhibition scheduled Sept. 21, in Biloxi, beginning at 9 a.m.
- August 10, 2004: The Center for Ocean Technology was featured prominently in the New York Times article, "A New Weapon in the Battle To Make a Convention Secure".
- August 9, 2004: Dr. Ruoying He, a former PhD student of Dr. Robert Weisberg, has won the College of Marine Science's Sackett Prize for meritorious research. The Sackett Prize is awarded to a recent graduate (within past 5 years) of the College of Marine Science who has demonstrated excellence in research through his/her published record. This endowment is named after Dr. William M. Sackett, who was Chairman of the Department of Marine Science at the University of South Florida from 1979-1983 and who remained on our faculty until his retirement in 1998. Dr. He is an Assistant Scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
- August 2, 2004: Boris Warwik will receive the University of South Florida's Outstanding Dissertation Award along with only three other recipients at a ceremony in October. Dr. John Paul was Dr. Wawrik's major advisor.
- August 2, 2004: Jennifer Patch Cannizzaro will receive the University of South Florida's Outstanding Thesis Award along with only four other recipients at a ceremony in October. Dr. Kendall Carder was Jennifer's major advisor.
- July 20, 2004: Dr. Ashanti Pyrtle, a chemical oceanographer in the College of Marine Science and its newest faculty member, was awarded a $987,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to develop the Bridge to the Doctorate program. The University of South Florida (USF) Colleges of Engineering and Marine Sciences FGLSAMP Bridge to the Doctorate Project will provide academic, research and professional development experiences to facilitate the advancement of underrepresented minorities (African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans) committed to achieving outstanding careers in Engineering, Marine, Environmental, Biological and Biomedical Sciences-related careers. See Education and Outreach--Bridge to the Doctorate for more details.
- June 30, 2004: Fellowship winners for 2004/5 are announced. Click here for the full text of the announcement.
- June 21, 2004: Mr. Michael Morris, founder and President of Ocean Optics in Dunedin, FL, sold his firm to the Halma Group of the U.K. for $50 million. Mike received his MS degree from the Department of Marine Science, University of South Florida in 1982 under the guidance of Dr. Thomas Hopkins. Mike will remain President of this firm, which designs and manufactures sensors to measure environmental parameters.
- June 21, 2004: Dr. Boris Galperin, a professor at the University Of South Florida College Of Marine Science, presented the results of a study this weekend to a conference at Columbia University that links the movement and appearance of ocean currents on Earth and the bands that characterize the surface of Jupiter and other large planets in our solar system. Click here for the full text of the article.
- May 10-12, 2004: The College of Marine Science hosted a site visit of the Office of Naval Research for all funded researchers in the SE portion of the US. Seven faculty members of the College were invited to present existing or proposed research.
- March 14-16, 2004: Workshop on "Radar Technologies for Surface Current Mapping" was hosted by the University of South Florida College of Marine Science in St. Petersburg, Florida. The workshop was sponsored by the Alliance for Coastal Technologies (ACT; see http://act-us.info) and the OceanUS Surface Current Mapping Initiative (see http://www.ocean.us). The purpose of the workshop was to summarize existing radar technologies for surface current mapping, identify the impediments to their use in operational coastal ocean observing systems, and to recommend specific, achievable actions to overcome those obstacles and move the technology forward. There were 40 participants drawn from the private sector, research, and resource management communities. For more information, visit http://act.marine.usf.edu.
