The Planet Ocean Seminar Series is free and open to the public. Seminars are currently run as both in-person and virtual events, so registration is required. Once you register to attend virtually, you will receive the link to join the webinar. For further information, please call the UNCW Center for Marine Science at 910.962.2408.
2023-24 Series
Apr. 9, 2024, 6:30 p.m.
Emerging Challenges for Coastal Birds:
Sea Level Rise, Heat, and Disturbance
with Dr. Ray Danner
Coastal birds face a variety of challenges. Now is the time to understand those challenges and find conservation solutions! Join Dr. Ray Danner to learn about these topics and a group of hard-working students who are studying them. We'll learn about beautiful and interesting coastal bird species. Dr. Danner welcomes discussion, and maybe you'll help contribute to a conservation solution!
Dr. Ray Danner is an associate professor in the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) Department of Biology and Marine Biology. He earned bachelor's degrees in biological sciences and geography from the University of Missouri, earned his Ph.D. from Virginia Tech, and conducted postdoctoral research at Tulane and George Mason Universities. Additionally, he served as a postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center before joining UNCW. Danner and his students work synergistically to pose and answer important questions about bird biology. Their research focuses on coastal bird populations, movements, habitats, behaviors, and physiology. Dr. Danner has studied birds across the Western Hemisphere.
Feb. 13, 2024, 6:30 p.m.
Robotic Oceanography:
Expanding the Impact from Science to Decision-Making
with Dr. Catherine Edwards
Over the past two decades, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) have become essential components of modern ocean observing, providing valuable measurements of subsurface temperature, salinity, oxygen, and other ocean properties over missions that last weeks to months, leading to new perspectives on ocean systems that would not have been possible with traditional shipboard sampling. This talk will focus on innovations that have expanded the impact of these real-time autonomous observations beyond scientific understanding of interdisciplinary problems and into the realm of decision-making in hurricane forecasting, fisheries management, and right whale conservation.
Dr. Catherine Edwards is a physical oceanographer and Associate Professor at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography and in the Department of Marine Sciences at University of Georgia. She earned a B.S. in physics with highest honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and worked as an ocean modeler at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory before earning her Ph.D. in physical oceanography at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With programs funded by the National Science Foundation, the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Office of Naval Research, and private philanthropic funding, Edwards's research focuses on answering fundamental questions in coastal oceanography and fisheries sciences with autonomous underwater vehicles, developing novel ways to optimize their use with engineering principles and real-time data streams from models and observations.
Nov. 14, 2023, 6:30 p.m.
Sensory Systems to Self-Driving Cars:
Science at the Intersection of Mechanism, Theory, and Opportunity
with Dr. Lorian Schweikert
“Bioinspiration” can be defined as the development of novel materials, devices, and strategies inspired by examples found in biological systems. In this presentation, Dr. Schweikert will discuss the little-known sensory capabilities of marine animals, how different senses permit survival in the marine world, and what we might stand to gain from their study. Primarily focusing on the visual capabilities of marine vertebrates (from whales to fish), Dr. Schweikert will discuss her findings and how they relate to new opportunities in conservation, medicine, and beyond.
Dr. Lorian Schweikert is a sensory neuroethologist, who uses integrative approaches to study visual system specialization in the marine world. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Biology and Marine Biology at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She completed a BSc in Psychology at the University of Tampa, a PhD in Biology at the Florida Institute of Technology, and postdoctoral training at institutions including Duke University, Florida International University, and the Max Planck Institute of Chemical Ecology. Dr. Schweikert’s work has been featured internationally, most recently by outlets that include Scientific American, National Geographic, and the New York Times.
Sep. 12, 2023
An Overview of Marine Mammal Research at UNCW
with Dr. Michael Tift
During this presentation, Dr. Michael Tift will discuss several different ongoing research projects at UNCW involving marine mammal species found off the coast of North Carolina, all the way down to Antarctica. Specifically, Dr. Tift will cover his ongoing research project to understand the impacts of climate change on the most populous wild mammal on the planet, the crabeater seal, in Antarctica. He will also describe the usefulness of understanding marine mammal biology, as a mechanism to advance the fields of human and veterinary health. Finally, he will provide an overview of the UNCW Marine Mammal Stranding Program, which plays a critical role in responding to sick, injured, and deceased marine mammals along the North Carolina coast.
Dr. Michael Tift is an assistant professor in the Department of Biology and Marine Biology and director of the UNCW Marine Mammal Stranding Program. One of the main research objectives in the Tift Lab is to understand how marine mammals can tolerate and survive extreme events, such as breath-holding for over two hours or reaching depths over a mile beneath the surface. Other areas of research members from the Tift Lab focus on is understanding why certain marine mammals are susceptible to threats, such as climate change, disease, ship strikes, or entanglements. Dr. Tift earned his Ph.D. in Marine Biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
Watch recorded seminar
2022-2023 Series
April 18, 2023
Conservation in a Changing Climate: Impacts on Seagrass Resiliency and Restoration
with Drs. Jessie Jarvis and Stephanie Kamel
Watch recorded seminar
Feb. 7, 2023
The Climate Crisis: Where We Are, What We Can Do
with Dr. Maureen Raymo
Nov. 15, 2022
Ten Things I Learned from Studying the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill for a Decade
with Dr. Steven A. Murawski
WATCH RECORDED SEMINAR
Sept. 13, 2022
A Tale of Two Brothers: Art Meets Science in the Open Sea
with Dr. Sönke Johnsen
WATCH RECORDED SEMINAR
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