IN THE DEEP SEA WILL BE DISCUSSED AT NEXT EVENT IN OCEAN SCIENCE LECTURE SERIES |
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SPEAKER: Dr. Edith Widder, head of the HBOI Bioluminescence Dept.
TOPIC: Bioluminescent Oddities and Wonders DATE: January 22, 2003 TIMES: 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., a reception with speakers will follow each talk. There will also be an optional dinner at 5:30. For reservations call 772-465-2400 x506 LOCATION: Main auditorium of the Johnson Education Center at HARBOR BRANCH Oceanographic Institution, 5600 U.S. 1 North, Fort Pierce, Florida COST: Free In the twilight depths of the mid-ocean lives an almost unimaginable array of animals, more than 90 percent of which have the remarkable ability to produce their own light, or bioluminescence. Dr. Edith Widder, the head of HARBOR BRANCH's Bioluminescence Department, has visited this realm hundreds of times using the institution's Johnson-Sea-Links, and other submersibles. On Wednesday, as part of the ongoing Ocean Science Lecture Series, she will be sharing stunning photos and video of some of the most peculiar and amazing examples of bioluminescence she has encountered during her explorations. With many animals, such as those that use bioluminescent organs as flashlights or fishing lures, the usefulness of self-made light is obvious enough. But with other animals, the purpose of their glow has proven more challenging to discern. What use could the umbrella-mouth gulper eel have for a bioluminescent racing stripe, and how does lighting up like a Christmas tree help bamboo coral? Come to the lecture and hear potential answers, or contribute your own ideas. Besides studying bioluminescent animals, Dr. Widder's research has involved the development of various patented instrument systems for measuring bioluminescence, including one used by the U.S. Navy. Her research has been featured in PBS, Discovery Channel, National Geographic and BBC television productions, including the two-part Discovery Channel series "Forbidden Depths", which chronicled submersible research in Cuban waters. She is an author on over 60 scientific publications, and has produced a children's book on bioluminescence, "The Bioluminescence Coloring Book", and an educational video, "The Secret Lights in the Sea", which won the Silver Reel Award in Media Excellence for 2001. FULL SCHEDULE FOR 2003 OCEAN SCIENCE LECTURE SERIES: January 8 - Shirley Pomponi & Don Liberatore - Submersible Science at Harbor Branch: Looking from the Inside Out January 15 - John Tucker - Marine Foodfish Culture and Stocking January 22 - Edie Widder - Bioluminescent Oddities and Wonders January 29 - Ned Smith - What Goes Around Comes Around: The Gulf Stream and the Circulation of the North Atlantic Ocean February 5 - Greg Bossart - Emerging Diseases in Marine Mammals: Should "Flipper" Be Worried? February 12 - Tammy Frank - Lifestyles of the Very Hot, the Very Cold and the Very Deep: How Do They Survive There? February 19 -Clay Cook - "Hunger Makes Strange Bedfellows": Symbiosis of Algae with Corals, Sea Anemones and other Marine Organisms February 26 - Joe Lopez - The World as a Classroom: Molecular Studies of Marine Biodiversity in the Field March 5 - Lee Frey - Robot Explorers: A Look at Unmanned Underwater Vehicles March 12 - Amy Wright - DBMR: The Deep Sea-Link to Drug Discovery March 19 - Megan Davis & Ken Riley - A Fish Eye's View of Aquaculture March 26 - Dennis Hanisak - "The Gleaming Indian River with Its Waves of Blue": Poetic License or Remembrances of Things Past? (Kermit Returns) HARBOR BRANCH Oceanographic Institution, Inc., is one of the world's leading nonprofit oceanographic research organizations dedicated to exploration of the earth's oceans, estuaries and coastal regions for the benefit of humankind. CONTACTS: Mark Schrope - Science Writer 772-465-2400 x433) • schrope@hboi.edu Jan Petri - Government and Public Relations 772-465-2400 x241 • petri@hboi.edu |