houck2040/artisci huggingface dataset:
laramie jensen a doctoral student working with dr jessica fitzsimmons won the ‘chapman award for graduate research in recognition of exceptional oceanographic research contributed by a graduate student jensens research is mainly focused on dissolved and colloidal trace metals such as iron and zinc in the artic ocean as a part of the international collaboration program called geotraces recently jensen published her first-author article in ‘global biogeochemical cycles examining the biogeochemical cycling of dissolved zinc an important micronutrient for photosynthesizing phytoplankton in the arctic ocean i would like to acknowledge my advisor dr jessica fitzsimmons for her support in completing each stage of this work and my lab mates and friends who have always encouraged me jensen said i have also received financial support from the department of oceanography college of geosciences and texas a&m university that has made my degree possible this geotraces collaboration is funded by the national science foundation through the ocean sciences division by bumsoo kim
transformational teaching is a teaching that encourages students to question assumptions and challenge beliefs… such that they emerge from the experience a changed perspective influencing interactions and contributions to a modern world said dr debra fowler the director of the center for teaching excellence at texas a&m university on march 21 dr kristen thyng assistant research professor in the department of oceanography at texas a&m university was awarded a 2019 aggies celebrate teaching award during the third annual aggies celebrate teaching! – recognizing transformational learning reception hosted by the texas a&m center for teaching excellence this award recognizes outstanding texas a&m instructors and faculty members who have made significant impacts on their students through their dedication of transformational teaching a total of six texas a&m faculty members were chosen for their excellent transformational teaching including two from the college of geosciences dr brian balta visiting professor in the department of geology and geophsyics also received an aggies celebrate teaching award
dr kristen thyng assistant research professor at texas a&m oceanographyfrom left to right dr debra folwer (director of the center for teaching excellence) joshua farrar (graduate student in nautical archaeology) sherri macwillie (project manager of the center for teaching excellence) and dr kristen thyng (assistant research professor at texas a&m oceanography) at the aggies celebrate teaching! – recognizing transformational learning reception (photo provided by the center for teaching excellence)
thyng received the teaching award for her python for geoscientists class i really enjoy figuring out how to solve problems using python programming that problem solving makes me feel like a wizard! she said in class i get to share that with students from august 2018 to february 2019 the texas a&m center of teaching excellence asked students to nominate a professor they felt exemplified transformational learning through their teaching students wrote essays giving evidence of and reflecting upon their professors impact on their lives including challenging students to think in new ways and inspiring students to learn more deeply thyng was nominated by joshua farrar a graduate student in nautical archaeology i try to put myself in the place of the student to start them learning the material especially for those who are new to computer programming thyng said then i try to pique and then sustain student interest through learning together how to create nice visualizations and analyzing data in interesting ways during the class her transformational teaching was to spend time in class working on homework problems so that class time is spent both on learning new material through lecturing with the students using the interactive materials and on working on in-class exercises and homework problems with classmates and with the ability to ask me questions as they work she said i am very honored to receive the act award i put a lot of effort into preparing material for class and i am happy to know that my students were able to work on their own problem solving through programming because of my class by bumsoo kim
geosciences students study abroad in costa ricadr oliver frauenfeld led a study abroad field trip in march 2019 to the texas a&m soltis center as part of a capstone courseapr 5 2019dr oliver frauenfeld led a study abroad field trip in march 2019 to the texas a&m soltis center as part of a capstone course in the verdant rainforests of central costa rica the texas a&m soltis center for research and education recently served as an incredible setting for geos 405 students to complete the research component of their environmental geosciences capstone course dr oliver frauenfeld associate professor of geography and kourtney lewis geography doctoral student organized a nine-day spring study abroad trip to san isidro costa rica march 2 to march 10 a group of 12 environmental geosciences and environmental studies majors had the opportunity to get hands-on research and fieldwork experience at the soltis center an a&m facility dedicated to research education and outreach in costa ricadr frauenfeld and kourtney lewis with their geos 405 students on a hike to a nearby waterfallhands-on research in costa rica frauenfeld is the director of undergraduate programs for the texas a&m department of geography and has past experience leading study abroad and research trips to costa rica the students spend the first part of the semester familiarizing themselves with environmental challenges in the tropics and are then tasked with applying all of the experience and skills from their undergraduate environmental geosciences careers to address some of these problems he said the students developed capstone projects to investigate invasive plant species in local pastures and carbon farms soil carbon content across different forest types and water quality in the streams in and around the soltis center property the students are currently analyzing the data they collected while in costa rica and will have the opportunity to present their findings in poster presentations may 1 in addition to their research activities in and around the soltis center the group also visited arenal volcano national park for hiking and zip-lining and had the opportunity to experience the incredible biological diversity that is present in the rain and cloud forests of costa ricathe stream group measuring temperature dissolved oxygen and phthe soil carbon group in the field gathering a soil corethe invasive species group quantifying the physical and chemical soil properties around the native vegetationa sloth with its baby climbing in a tree near the arenal volcano (photo credit: zonghui li)soltis center visits for years to come with plans to return in future years frauenfeld will continue the partnership between the college of geosciences and the soltis center so that future geos 405 students will also get the chance to do their research projects in the rainforests of costa rica we have been coming to the soltis center since its beginning ten years ago said dr frauenfeld because its such an amazing and ideal setting for high-impact learning and research opportunities in the geosciences by rhett douris
dr oliver frauenfeld led a study abroad field trip in march 2019 to the texas a&m soltis center as part of a capstone course in the verdant rainforests of central costa rica the texas a&m soltis center for research and education recently served as an incredible setting for geos 405 students to complete the research component of their environmental geosciences capstone course dr oliver frauenfeld associate professor of geography and kourtney lewis geography doctoral student organized a nine-day spring study abroad trip to san isidro costa rica march 2 to march 10 a group of 12 environmental geosciences and environmental studies majors had the opportunity to get hands-on research and fieldwork experience at the soltis center an a&m facility dedicated to research education and outreach in costa rica
dr frauenfeld and kourtney lewis with their geos 405 students on a hike to a nearby waterfall
hands-on research in costa rica frauenfeld is the director of undergraduate programs for the texas a&m department of geography and has past experience leading study abroad and research trips to costa rica the students spend the first part of the semester familiarizing themselves with environmental challenges in the tropics and are then tasked with applying all of the experience and skills from their undergraduate environmental geosciences careers to address some of these problems he said the students developed capstone projects to investigate invasive plant species in local pastures and carbon farms soil carbon content across different forest types and water quality in the streams in and around the soltis center property the students are currently analyzing the data they collected while in costa rica and will have the opportunity to present their findings in poster presentations may 1 in addition to their research activities in and around the soltis center the group also visited arenal volcano national park for hiking and zip-lining and had the opportunity to experience the incredible biological diversity that is present in the rain and cloud forests of costa rica
the invasive species group quantifying the physical and chemical soil properties around the native vegetation
a sloth with its baby climbing in a tree near the arenal volcano (photo credit: zonghui li)
soltis center visits for years to come with plans to return in future years frauenfeld will continue the partnership between the college of geosciences and the soltis center so that future geos 405 students will also get the chance to do their research projects in the rainforests of costa rica we have been coming to the soltis center since its beginning ten years ago said dr frauenfeld because its such an amazing and ideal setting for high-impact learning and research opportunities in the geosciences by rhett douris
symposium to highlight coastal and ocean sciencethe inaugural texas sea grant research symposium "coastal & ocean science at work for texans" showcases current research all are invited to attendapr 2 2019what: the 2019 texas sea grant research symposium coastal & ocean science at work for texans will showcase research and extension efforts supported by texas sea grant it is open to the public and will feature an awards ceremony at 6:30 pm a cash bar and heavy hors doeuvres are included who: researchers funded by texas sea grant will present posters awards will be presented by dr mark a barteau vice president for research at texas a&m university there will also be an appearance from reveille the first lady of aggieland from 4 to 4:30 pm where: texas a&m hotel and conference center century ballroom iii and iv when: tuesday april 9 from 4 to 7 pm all media interested in covering the event must contact the texas sea grant communications manager sara carney to rsvp photo video and interview opportunities available media contact: sara carney texas sea grant college program 979-458-8442 scarney@tamuedu by sara carney '13
what: the 2019 texas sea grant research symposium coastal & ocean science at work for texans will showcase research and extension efforts supported by texas sea grant it is open to the public and will feature an awards ceremony at 6:30 pm a cash bar and heavy hors doeuvres are included who: researchers funded by texas sea grant will present posters awards will be presented by dr mark a barteau vice president for research at texas a&m university there will also be an appearance from reveille the first lady of aggieland from 4 to 4:30 pm where: texas a&m hotel and conference center century ballroom iii and iv when: tuesday april 9 from 4 to 7 pm all media interested in covering the event must contact the texas sea grant communications manager sara carney to rsvp photo video and interview opportunities available media contact: sara carney texas sea grant college program 979-458-8442 scarney@tamuedu by sara carney '13
(left) the researchers sampling stations (yellow) relative to the itc facility in deer park and texas a&m galveston (magenta) (right) this map shows how water flows down buffalo bayou past itc through the houston shipping channel and out to galveston bay and the gulf of mexico station 20 was the scientists closest possible water sampling location to itc given the us coast guard closure of the houston shipping channel at that time (yellow dotted line) stations 20-22 h1 and 13 showed qualitative evidence of influence from runoff likely from itc including slippery or soapy water texture by touch a shiny surface sheen and/or the presence of foam in surface waters (map courtesy of dr jessica fitzsimmons)
texas a&m university department of oceanography researchers observed abnormal water quality conditions in multiple locations in the houston ship channel and northern galveston bay during a regularly-scheduled research cruise march 23 however they will not know whether toxic compounds were in the water until sample analyses are completed in about two weeks this research team has been collecting water and air quality samples quarterly in galveston bay since june 2017 the pre-scheduled march 23 2019 sampling cruise happened to occur after an incident on march 17 at the intercontinental terminals company (itc) deer park facility in which a storage tank caught fire resulting in a large smoke plume the situation developed into further fires with organic compounds breaching containment barriers and flowing as runoff into waters near itc that flow into the houston shipping channel at our station 13 [just south of atkinson island in galveston bay] when our sampling crew retrieved water samples the water left a waxy residue on their hands which indicates the presence of some kind of organic compounds in the water likely derived from the itc runoff said department of oceanography assistant professor dr jessica fitzsimmons who led the cruise as chief scientist since this is our eighth time sampling here in two years we know that the water in galveston bay doesnt usually leave a waxy residue organic compounds are chemicals containing carbon; some organics are toxic while many like soap are non-toxic soap gasoline and petrochemical products are examples of organic compounds the itc storage facility houses organic compounds in large storage tanks particularly petrochemical products she said we dont know exactly what compounds were in the water but we know from the waters texture that organics were present and from their location that these organics had traveled down the houston shipping channel likely from itc all the way to galveston bay beyond the area closed by the us coast guard fitzsimmons said we did not observe any water colored black from oil but we did observe clear compounds appearing as shiny slicks on the surface waters of the bay those are the organic compounds according to an itc press release since march 19 more than 1 100 federal state and local first responders agencies and environmental cleanup contractors have been on the scene and actively assessing booming and continuing to remove product from affected areas initial media reports focused on the air quality concerns from the itc fires but when we saw video of the itc runoff into buffalo bayou while preparing for this sampling trip we knew that water quality concerns needed to be considered as well fitzsimmons said
the faculty staff and students from texas a&m who attended the march 23 2019 cruise to galveston bay to sample the water sediment and air quality (photo courtesy of jake cox)bucket sampling of foam and a (shiny) surface slick of water in the houston shipping channel near alexander island (photo courtesy of dr jessica fitzsimmons)
the texas a&m researchers led by fitzsimmons and including oceanography department head dr shari yvon-lewis and professor dr gerardo gold bouchot collected air and water quality samples aboard the r/v trident a texas a&m galveston-owned ship this ongoing research project is funded by a t3-triad grant from texas a&m as well as a grant from the texas a&m university system chancellors research initiative which funded the ship time thirteen graduate students and seven undergraduate students were on board collecting samples some of whom were at sea for the first time this is invaluable research experience for these students and everyone did an incredible job on saturday constantly staying aware of our surroundings following safety protocols on the frontlines of potential environmental hazards and keeping a watchful eye out for anything unusual in the bay fitzsimmons said the research team processing the air and water quality includes students and staff from the laboratories of drs fitzsimmons yvon-lewis gold-bouchot kathryn shamberger daniel thornton yina liu and terry wade from texas a&m oceanography; dr kung-hui (bella) chu from the zachry department of civil engineering; and drs antonietta quigg jamie steichen and david hala from texas a&m galveston marine biology the research team intends to measure in the coming weeks: n-alkanes pahs pcbs pfas methane ethane halogenated carbon compounds heavy metals including lead isotopes antibiotic resistant genes cytotoxicity phytoplankton response dissolved organic matter ph and carbonate saturation; and a suite of water quality parameters including nutrients oxygen salinity temperature and water clarity by leslie lee '09
submersible hov alvin during its 2014 science verification cruise in the gulf of mexico (photo courtesy of chris linders)dr jason b sylvan assistant professor in the texas a&m department of oceanography
talk slated to discuss oyster aquaculture in texas on march 30mar 22 2019south padre island texas oyster aquaculture produces 96 percent of oysters consumed by humans worldwide however texas remains the only us coastal state that has no regulatory policy for commercial oyster aquaculture using oyster aquaculture could mean increased oyster production and environmental benefits but issues such as interference with boating traffic have caused public concern potential solutions to oyster aquaculture concerns will be addressed in an upcoming talk featuring dr john scarpa associate professor at texas a&m university corpus christi and texas sea grantfunded researcher the talk sponsored by the port isabel / south padre island shell club will be held on march 30 at 10 am at the university of texas rio grande valley coastal studies laboratory and will be followed by a public discussion the event will also be broadcast live online at https://utrgvzoomus/j/160677994 scarpa has been involved in aquaculture research teaching and training for over three decades he assisted the $15-million hard clam culture industry in florida during his 20 years at harbor branch oceanographic institute he is currently president-elect of the national shellfisheries association and is leading efforts to establish oyster aquaculture in texas the university of texas rio grande valley coastal studies laboratory is located at 100 marine lab drive in isla blanca park on south padre island for more information contact tony reisinger texas sea grants cameron county coastal and marine resources agent at tonyreisinger@agtamuedu or 956-361-8236
south padre island texas oyster aquaculture produces 96 percent of oysters consumed by humans worldwide however texas remains the only us coastal state that has no regulatory policy for commercial oyster aquaculture using oyster aquaculture could mean increased oyster production and environmental benefits but issues such as interference with boating traffic have caused public concern potential solutions to oyster aquaculture concerns will be addressed in an upcoming talk featuring dr john scarpa associate professor at texas a&m university corpus christi and texas sea grantfunded researcher the talk sponsored by the port isabel / south padre island shell club will be held on march 30 at 10 am at the university of texas rio grande valley coastal studies laboratory and will be followed by a public discussion the event will also be broadcast live online at https://utrgvzoomus/j/160677994 scarpa has been involved in aquaculture research teaching and training for over three decades he assisted the $15-million hard clam culture industry in florida during his 20 years at harbor branch oceanographic institute he is currently president-elect of the national shellfisheries association and is leading efforts to establish oyster aquaculture in texas the university of texas rio grande valley coastal studies laboratory is located at 100 marine lab drive in isla blanca park on south padre island for more information contact tony reisinger texas sea grants cameron county coastal and marine resources agent at tonyreisinger@agtamuedu or 956-361-8236
xu awarded sprint grantthe atmospheric sciences faculty was awarded a texas a&m sprint grant to conduct a pilot international research projectmar 12 2019dr yangyang xu assistant professor in the department of atmospheric sciencesdr yangyang xu assistant professor in the texas a&m university department of atmospheric sciences received a são paulo researchers in international collaboration (sprint) grant from the division of research at texas a&m and the são paulo research foundation (fapesp) fapesp and texas a&m established the sprint grant program in 2017 to provide funding for collaborative projects in scientific research and technological development under this program texas a&m faculty can receive $10 000 to conduct scientific research in coordination with a researcher in university of são paulo for 2019 xu was one of five texas a&m faculty members to receive funding xu received funding to investigate the natural and human contributions to urban air pollution using state-of-art computational models he said we will conduct a pilot project for sao paulo he said the transportation and wildfire related emissions are also major problems for other major cities such as houston and mexico city therefore the analytical framework we will build is also broadly applicable globally student exchange activities and visits will be planned for the next year read about the other texas a&m sprint grant recipients by kevin smalley
dr yangyang xu assistant professor in the department of atmospheric sciences
dr yangyang xu assistant professor in the texas a&m university department of atmospheric sciences received a são paulo researchers in international collaboration (sprint) grant from the division of research at texas a&m and the são paulo research foundation (fapesp) fapesp and texas a&m established the sprint grant program in 2017 to provide funding for collaborative projects in scientific research and technological development under this program texas a&m faculty can receive $10 000 to conduct scientific research in coordination with a researcher in university of são paulo for 2019 xu was one of five texas a&m faculty members to receive funding xu received funding to investigate the natural and human contributions to urban air pollution using state-of-art computational models he said we will conduct a pilot project for sao paulo he said the transportation and wildfire related emissions are also major problems for other major cities such as houston and mexico city therefore the analytical framework we will build is also broadly applicable globally student exchange activities and visits will be planned for the next year read about the other texas a&m sprint grant recipients by kevin smalley