Oceans Alive 2008

Plain Talk on Current Topics in Marine Science Presented for the General Public
April 15, 22 and 29

Sponsored by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant Program.

Presentations are held in Redfield Auditorium, Water Street, Woods Hole (free parking for evening lectures is available in lot opposite auditorium; look for on-street meter parking for afternoon presentation). Admission is free. For more information, contact Woods Hole Sea Grant at 508-289-2398 or seagrant@whoi.edu.

Right Whale Auto Detection Buoy Network in Cape Cod Bay

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 • 7 p.m.
Ship strikes are a major cause of mortality for the endangered right whale. Join John Kemp,senior engineering assistant with WHOI’s Mooring Operations Group, as he explains the development of a passive acoustic mooring-based detection system to monitor marine mammal activity. The system relays the detection of sounds of right whales and other species to the NOAA Right Whale Sighting Advisory System web site, where they are posted along with aerial survey sightings. Ship captains carrying liquefied natural gas for the Northeast Gateway Energy Bridge are required to slow their speed when notified that a right whale is present in the area.

Achilles? Jaw? The Biomechanics of Fatal Jaw Fractures in Right Whales

Tuesday, April 22, 2008 • 7 p.m.
Injuries to right whales from vessel collisions include extensive bruising, broken bones, deep cuts, dismemberment, and more. Join Regina Campbell-Malone, postdoctoral investigator in WHOI’s Biology Dept. and at Brown University, as she explores the impact these vessel strike events have on right whales from a biomechanical perspective. She’ll explain how right whale bone is used to determine how much force is needed to produce one of the common injuries associated with blunt collisions — jawbone fracture. Does the fact that the jawbone is broken in one-third of all blunt collision cases mean that it is the “weakest link” or the Achilles’ jaw of this species? Is there any way to reduce the chances of this bone being fractured in a vessel-whale collision? Could reducing vessel speed be the key?

Young Scientists Present: Winning Science Fair Projects