Jennifer Ayers, Staff Research Associate
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego
Jennifer studies Systems Ecology, seeking to gain understanding of Earth systems as a whole. She asks scientific questions about biological, chemical, and physical interactions in the terrestrial biosphere, oceans, atmosphere, and space. Jennifer favors the Earth's oceans, in all their beauty, complexity and diversity. She enjoys using tools such as computers and other current technologies to do this. She spends her evenings
teaching oceanography at a Southern California college. When not working or enjoying wine and chocolate with friends, Jennifer is most often found outdoors SCUBA diving, hiking, running, or traveling.

Farooq Azam, Distinguished Professor
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego

Kathy Barbeau, Assistant Professor
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego
Kathy is an assistant professor of marine chemistry and Principal Investigator of The Barbeau Lab at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego. She studies the cycling of trace elements in the ocean, especially elements like iron which are necessary to the plants and animals. She is particularly interested in how marine microorganisms (bacteria and phytoplankton) can affect the chemical form of trace elements in seawater. She is also interested in how the chemical form of a trace element in seawater can in turn affect its biological availability (kind of a chicken and egg problem). Kathy has worked in Antarctica, Hawaii, off the California and Baja coast, in the Sargasso Sea, and in the Mediterranean Sea. When not working, Kathy enjoys chasing after her 14-month-old daughter who is just learning to walk – and will soon be running!

Dondra Biller, Student
University of California, San Diego
Dondra is an undergraduate at the University of California San Diego. She is working toward a Bachelor's of Science degree in Earth Sciences with an emphasis in Geochemistry. Dondra is interested in chemical oceanography because she wants to study isotopes for evidence of changes in climate and ocean circulation. In her free time, Dondra enjoys running,going to the beach, reading, hiking, and spending time with friends and family.

Mattias Cape, REU fellow
University of California, San Diego
Mattias Cape is a recent graduate from the University of California, San Diego where he studied applied math and biology. Mattias is interested in the broad field of ecology.  He hopes to pursue graduate studies that integrate mathematics, biology, and policy.  He wants to investigate issues in conservation biology and climate change. When not working, Mattias enjoys outdoor actvities such as hiking, bodysurfing, swimming, skiing, and scuba diving. He also enjoys reading and music, especially classical, jazz, and classic rock.

Alison Cleary, Undergraduate Student
University of California, San Diego
Alison is a third year student and will graduate in December after studying abroad in France for the fall semester, 2006. She is majoring in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, and plans some day to be a professor of Biological Oceanography. She is interested in everything, but especially zooplankton and meiofauna, the small creatures usually less than 2 mm long. Alison is curious about the life habits of these animals. She wants to know what factors, such as currents, nutrients, and predation,determine wherethey live. Her favorite meiofauna are isopods, which looklike tiny pill bugs, and tanaiids, which have paddle-like hands and several tails with hooks on the ends. When not studying or working, Alison likes swimming, playing badminton, singing classical music, and doing photography.

Lindsey Ekern, Research Associate
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego
Lindsey received her undergraduate degree in Marine Science from the University of San Diego and is trying to figure out what she would like to focus on in graduate school.   For the second time, she will be analyzing water samples from the Southern Ocean for dissolved nutrient content.  This is a contributing component of a larger scale research project in the Antarctic region.   While not working, Lindsey enjoys traveling, sailing, music and knitting.  She also likes spending time with friends and family.

Sarah Gille, Associate Professor
University of California San Diego
Sarah is a physical oceanographer who studies the Southern Ocean, the large ocean region that encircles Antarctica. Her work focuses on the physics that describe the Southern Ocean and the role of the ocean in climate. Because the Southern Ocean is enormous and remote, Sarah uses observations from a wide range of sources. She uses information that has been collected from research cruises, satellites, floats that travel beneath the ocean surface, and surface drifters. When not working, Sarah enjoys spending time with her husband and her preschool-aged son.

Christopher D. Hewes, Staff Research Associate
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego
Christopher investigates phytoplankton and protozoplankton of marine systems.  He has developed methods to observe these tiny organisms with the microscope. These organisms form the base of the food web of most open ocean systems.  It is important to understand how the chemistry and physics of oceans influence them.  The location and amounty of phytoplankton have an impact on the higher organisms that depend on them for food. Christopher’s research has focused on Antarctic marine systems, and he has worked with the U.S. Antarctic Marine Living Resources program since 1997. He has made approximately 14 cruises in the Southern Ocean. Other research interests include the microscopic plants (algae) that live within the surface layer of sediments in shallow lagoons.  He is currently studying these in the Venice Lagoon, Italy. When he has time off, Christopher’s passion is big game fishing in Mexico's Pacific Ocean and Sea of Cortez.

Brian Hopkinson, Graduate Student
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
Brian studies the role of iron as a nutrient in marine ecosystems. He got his undergraduate degree in chemistry at the College of William and Mary in Virginia. While he was a student there, Brian also studied biology and physics, but no oceanography. Brian’s graduate research has included cruises off Antarctica, Mexico, and California, to study what happens to phytoplankton when iron is limited. He also does work in the laboratory, where he studies how marine bacteria use different forms of iron. When not involved in scientific activities, Brian enjoys biking, surfing, reading, watching “The News Hour with Jim Lehrer”, and brewing hoppy beer.

Maura Manganelli, Researcher
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Prevention,
Rome, Italy

Maura is interested in marine bacteria that cause illness. She is also interested in the interactions between bacteria, organic matter and small algae. Maura uses the microscope to look at the microbes’ world. She also measures how much bacteria grow and how much they transform materials in the water. She has worked in the Mediterranean Sea, and then she discovered the real ocean in California and Antarctica. When not working, Maura likes to ride her motorcycle, swim, play with her numerous nieces and spend time with friends.

B. Greg Mitchell, Research Biologist
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego

Ty Samo, Graduate Student
Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
UC San Diego
Ty studies the interactions of bacteria, archaea, and phytoplankton with the environment.  He looks specifically at dissolved and particulate organic matter.  He applies various fluorescent and histological stains to membranes through which seawater has been filtered.  In this way, it is possible to visualize and hypothesize how microbes are behaving.  When not working, Ty likes to snowboard, work on his 1972 Chevrolet truck, and barbeque with friends.