Training the 21st Century Marine Professional: A new vision for marine graduate education and training programmes in Europe

Press release for the exhibition "Woven to Honor: The Steven G. Alpert Collection of Indonesian Textiles," December 20, 1987-February 7, 1988, held at the Dallas Museum of Art. The press release, dated December 17, 1987 announces and describes the exhibitions "Power and Gold" and "Woven to Honor." Includes schedule of related education programs

Legionella Infection Risk from Domestic Hot Water

We investigated Legionella and Pseudomonas contamination of hot water in a cross-sectional multicentric survey in Italy. Chemical parameters (hardness, free chlorine, and trace elements) were determined. Legionella spp. were detected in 33 (22.6%) and Pseudomonas spp. in 56 (38.4%) of 146 samples. Some factors associated with Legionella contamination were heater type, tank distance and capacity, water plant age, and mineral content. Pseudomonas presence was influenced by water source, hardness, free chlorine, and temperature. Legionella contamination was associated with a centralized heater, distance from the heater point >10 m, and a water plant >10 years old. Furthermore, zinc levels of <20 μg/L and copper levels of >50 μg/L appeared to be protective against Legionella colonization. Legionella species and serogroups were differently distributed according to heater type, water temperature, and free chlorine, suggesting that Legionella strains may have a different sensibility and resistance to environmental factors and different ecologic niches

Taxonomic and Environmental Variability in the Elemental Composition and Stoichiometry of Individual Dinoflagellate and Diatom Cells from the NW Mediterranean Sea

Here we present, for the first time, the elemental concentration, including C, N and O, of single phytoplankton cells collected from the sea. Plankton elemental concentration and stoichiometry are key variables in phytoplankton ecophysiology and ocean biogeochemistry, and are used to link cells and ecosystems. However, most field studies rely on bulk techniques that overestimate carbon and nitrogen because the samples include organic matter other than plankton organisms. Here we used X-ray microanalysis (XRMA), a technique that, unlike bulk analyses, gives simultaneous quotas of C, N, O, Mg, Si, P, and S, in single-cell organisms that can be collected directly from the sea. We analysed the elemental composition of dinoflagellates and diatoms (largely Chaetoceros spp.) collected from different sites of the Catalan coast (NW Mediterranean Sea). As expected, a lower C content is found in our cells compared to historical values of cultured cells. Our results indicate that, except for Si and O in diatoms, the mass of all elements is not a constant fraction of cell volume but rather decreases with increasing cell volume. Also, diatoms are significantly less dense in all the measured elements, except Si, compared to dinoflagellates. The N:P ratio of both groups is higher than the Redfield ratio, as it is the N:P nutrient ratio in deep NW Mediterranean Sea waters (N:P = 20–23). The results suggest that the P requirement is highest for bacterioplankton, followed by dinoflagellates, and lowest for diatoms, giving them a clear ecological advantage in P-limited environments like the Mediterranean Sea. Finally, the P concentration of cells of the same genera but growing under different nutrient conditions was the same, suggesting that the P quota of these cells is at a critical level. Our results indicate that XRMA is an accurate technique to determine single cell elemental quotas and derived conversion factors used to understand and model ocean biogeochemical cycles

Influence of stratification on marine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) dynamics: The Mediterranean Sea case

•Strong influence of stratification on the DOC dynamics in the Mediterranean Sea.•More DOC will accumulate in a warmer and well stratified ocean.•DOC may contribute to oceanic carbon export more than is currently recognized.•DOC should be included in models studying the carbon cycle in a warmer ocean.•The Mediterranean Sea is a model system for studying C cycle in a warmer ocean. Vertical distributions of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were determined in different seasons in the southern Adriatic and Tyrrhenian Seas to study the role of stratification in DOC patterns. These two seas are located at similar latitude but differ in extents of vertical stratification. Stratification affects DOC dynamics in both basins, but with interesting differences. In the Tyrrhenian Sea, where the upper water column was stratified during all cruises, DOC showed high surface layer values without substantial seasonality. By contrast, in the southern Adriatic Sea, the seasonal cycle of stratification forced opposite trends in the 0–50m and 50–800m stocks, with DOC removal from the upper 50m associated with DOC increase below 50m. Regarding DOC export via deep water formation in the southern Adriatic Sea, we estimate that 0.19TgCyr−1 was exported to the 50–800m layer by convective overturn, while 0.85–1.19TgCyr−1 was sequestered below 1000m due to a continental shelf pump mechanism. We hypothesize that enhanced stratification associated with a warmer ocean could further increase DOC concentrations in the mixed layer, changing the role of DOC in the oceanic carbon cycle

Plankton in the open mediterranean Sea: A review

44 pages, 19 figures, 7 tablesWe present an overview of the plankton studies conducted during the last 25 years in the epipelagic offshore waters of the Mediterranean Sea. This quasi-enclosed sea is characterized by a rich and complex physical dynamics with distinctive traits, especially in regard to the thermohaline circulation. Recent investigations have basically confirmed the long-recognised oligotrophic nature of this sea, which increases along both the west-east and the north-south directions. Nutrient availability is low, especially for phosphorous (N:P up to 60), though this limitation may be buffered by inputs from highly populated coasts and from the atmosphere. Phytoplankton biomass, as chl a, generally displays low values (less than 0.2 μg chl a l−1) over large areas, with a modest late winter increase. A large bloom (up to 3 μg l−1) is observed throughout the late winter and spring exclusively in the NW area. Relatively high biomass values are recorded in fronts and cyclonic gyres. A deep chlorophyll maximum is a permanent feature for the whole basin, except during the late winter mixing. It is found at increasingly greater depths ranging from 30 m in the Alboran Sea to 120 m in the easternmost Levantine basin. Primary production reveals a west-east decreasing trend and ranges between 59 and 150 g C m−2 y−1 (in situ measurements). Overall, the basin is largely dominated by small autotrophs, microheterotrophs and egg-carrying copepod species. The microorganisms (phytoplankton, viruses, bacteria, flagellates and ciliates) and zooplankton components reveal a considerable diversity and variability over spatial and temporal scales, although the latter is poorly studied. Examples are the wide diversity of dinoflagellates and coccolithophores, the multifarious role of diatoms or picoeukaryotes, and the distinct seasonal or spatial patterns of the species-rich copepod genera or families which dominate the basin. Major dissimilarities between western and eastern basins have been highlighted in species composition of phytoplankton and mesozooplankton, but also in the heterotrophic microbial components and in their relationships. Superimposed to these longitudinal differences, a pronounced biological heterogeneity is also observed in areas hosting deep convection, fronts, cyclonic and anti-cyclonic gyres or eddies. In such areas, the intermittent nutrient enrichment promotes a switching between a small-sized microbial community and diatom-dominated populations. A classical food web readily substitutes the microbial food web in these cases. These switches, likely occurring within a continuum of trophic pathways, may greatly increase the flux towards higher trophic levels, in spite of the apparent heterotrophy. Basically, the microbial system seems to be both bottom-up and top-down controlled. A >multivorous web> is shown by the great variety of feeding modes and preferences and by the significant and simultaneous grazing impact on phytoplankton and ciliates by mesozooplanktonThis paper was supported by a grant provided by the European Network of Excellence EUR-OCEANS contract number 511106-2. We thank the authors who directly provided their data. Additional funds were provided to D. Vaqué by the MICROVIS project (CTM 2007-62140) (Spanish Ministry of Science) and to M. Ribera d’Alcalá by the EU IP SESAME (contract number 036949)Peer Reviewe