Ocean Life Institute Fellows
Institute Fellows are selected based on their scientific leadership, their interest and ability to participate in interdisciplinary research, and their ability and willingness to communicate the importance of the Institute's research to the public and policy makers in government.
Lauren Mullineaux
2011-2014 Fellow
Lauren Mullineaux studies the ecology of marine benthic habitats. She is particularly interested in how the dispersal of invertebrates in their larval stage influences population dynamics and community structure. As a fellow, she will synthesize information on larval exchange and community resilience in the deep sea in order to understand the effects of natural and man-made disturbance and help guide international decision-making about deep-sea resources.
» Mullineaux Lab
Previous Ocean Life Institute Fellows
Mak Saito
2008-2011 Fellow
Support from the Ocean Life Institute Fellowship has been key to the development of novel marine proteomic methods (the measurement of proteins in life) in the Laboratory of Mak Saito. Adapting these cutting edge biomedical and cancer research tools for use in marine sciences, Saito’s research group has been able to identify an important process for key marine cyanobacterium to conserve iron in the oceans.
» Oceanus story about our OLI sponsored proteomic work
» Saito Lab
Marco Coolen
2008-2011 Fellow
Marco Coolen (Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry) has been a pioneer in the emerging field of “sedimentary paleogenomics”. Sedimentary paleogenomics is used to describe the development and application of advanced genomic tools to analyze preserved genetic signatures in marine and lacustrine sediment records. With such data, it is possible to reconstruct the diversity, and biogeochemical role of past marine and lacustrine planktonic communities, which in turn, provides detailed information about past ecological and environmental changes from climate variability or other perturbations.
Michael Moore
2006-2009 Heyman Fellow
Michael Moore (Biology) focuses on the mechanistic basis of marine industrial impacts on marine mammals and fish; in terms of welfare of the individual, given his veterinary background, and survival of the species, given his doctorate in Biological Oceanography. As a fellow he integrated diverse databases to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of marine mammal beachings in the Cape Cod region.
» Personal Website
Hal Caswell
2006-2009 Fellow
Hal Caswell (Biology) studies mathematical ecology, with a focus on population and community ecology. Part of his work is on fundamental theory in the areas of demography, matrix population models, stochastic processes, spatial dynamics, and community development and biodiversity. Another part of his work applies the theory to specific situations, including studies of whales, seabirds, marine invertebrates, terrestrial plants and nematodes.
» Personal Website
Anne Cohen
2005-2008 Fellow
Anne's research focuses on understanding the processes by which corals build their skeletons, and how climatic, environmental and biological forces interact to shape their growth and composition. As a fellow, she used CAT scanning technology to quantify the impacts of changing ocean temperature and chemistry on rates of carbonate production by corals, using colonies grown prior to 1850 A.D. as a reference point for growth in a pre-industrial world.
» Cohen Lab
Sonya Dyhrman
2005-2008 Fellow
Sonya Dhyrman (Biology) is interested in how phytoplankton sense and respond to their geochemical environment. Her research uses molecular tools to study the physiological ecology of different phytoplankton groups. She is currently using this approach to examine how phytoplankton respond to changes in carbon dioxide, phosphorus, and nitrogen supply.
» Dyhrman Phytoplankton and Marine Biogeochemistry Laboratory
Jesús Pineda
2005-2008 Fellow
Jesús Pineda (Biology) is working on the regional variability of populations of sedentary coastal invertebrates such as barnacles and mussels. As a fellow, he investigated how ocean currents disperse and transport their larvae, the processes that determine which larvae survive to reproduce after having reached the adult habitat, and the variation of the local populations in terms of their number of eggs, timing of reproduction, and other vital traits.
» Benthic Ecology and Nearshore Oceanography Lab
Michael G. Neubert
2004-2006 Fellow
Michael Neubert (Biology) uses mathematics to understand how ecosystems operate. As a fellow, he constructed and analyzed spatial bioeconomic models with the goal of improving the management of fisheries and the design of marine reserves.
Heidi M. Sosik
2003-2005 Fellow
Heidi M. Sosik (shared fellow with Coastal Ocean Institute, Biology) is working to understand the physical and biological processes affecting phytoplankton biomass over the inner shelf. She investigated what forces variability in coastal phytoplankton by combining satellite observations, high temporal resolution in situ measurements, and computer modeling.
Cabell S. Davis II
2003-2005 Fellow
Cabell Davis's (Biology) work involves combining high-resolution digital holography, in situ DNA analysis, and AUV technology for autonomous plankton species identification and mapping.
Ken Buesseler
2001-2003 Fellow
Ken Buesseler (Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry) uses natural and man made radionuclides in the oceans to study the rates at which material is transferred via sinking particles from the surface ocean to deep waters and how different marine ecosystem lead to changes in the efficiency of this "biological pump."
» The Cafe Thorium
Ken Halanych
2001-2003 Fellow
Ken Halanych (Biology) employs molecular genetics to explore biodiversity and evolution of major marine organism lineages. His work is helping to redefine the evolutionary history of important groups like segmented worms, which are extremely diverse in the oceans.
Darlene Ketten
2001-2003 Fellow
Darlene Ketten (Biology) used her fellowship to expand the application of CT scanning and visualization in the study of marine mammal hearing and behavior. This technology also has many potential applications in other areas of marine biology and geology.
» Computerized Scanning and Imaging Facility
Simon Thorrold
2001-2003 Fellow
Simon Thorrold (Biology) pursues ways to use geochemical analysis of fish otoliths (ear bones) and other carbonate structures such as shells or corals to provide information on the habitat history and population dynamics of marine fishes and invertebrates. This is a powerful tool to help manage fishery resources.