NSU Horizons Spring 2014

Hunter Noren, a marine biology master’s degree student from West Palm Beach, said work- ing in Fogarty’s lab has been an amazing experi- ence. “From the start, I was included in projects and have had many great opportunities,” said Noren, whose master’s degree project is studying deep-water mesophotic reefs to see if they are a viable source of larvae that can help repopulate shallow reefs. “[Fogarty’s] previous work with the Smithsonian has allowed us to perform this research at a fantastic research facility, Carrie Bow Cay, that is operated by the Smithsonian.” Noren has accompanied Fogarty on three trips to Belize, where they dive the reefs to collect samples for the grad student’s thesis. While there, the two have conducted exper- iments on Fogarty’s own project, coral hybrids, profiled in a documentary by the South Florida PBS station, WPBT-2, on the hybridization of elkhorns and staghorns. The corals are important reef builders and among the ecosystem’s most threatened species. And yet, in the midst of their decline, Fogarty said, the staghorn and the elkhorn have found a way to thrive, together, by creating a hybrid species. That has both pros (continued survival, for example) and cons (diluting the parental species’ genome). But the experienced researcher has found some reasons for optimism: The relatively “new” coral, in existence for the past 10,000 years but cropping up in more locations over the past 10 to 15 years, can survive in just three feet of water. “It seems to be pretty robust,” Fogarty said. “The fact that they can survive in that extreme environment is encouraging.” n The Atlantic Ocean is Nicole Fogarty’s workplace, as the assistant professor and her students try to unlock clues to the survival of endangered corals. around NSU NSU’s Oceanographic Center has been awarded part of a $400,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to help fund a project in conjunction with Florida Atlantic University’s SeaTech facility. Richard Spieler, Ph.D., a professor and director of Academic Programs at NSU’s Oceanographic Center, will study the effects electromagnetic field emissions—which are created by offshore energy generating devices, such as windmills—have on marine life in and on the seafloor. Faculty members from the Farquhar Col- lege of Arts and Sciences and the Oceano- graphic Center have earned a federal research grant of nearly $500,000 from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Army Research Office to fund new equipment and support several undergraduate and graduate research projects. The grant will be used to support research through January 31, 2015. The principal researchers include Robert Smith, Ph.D.; James Munoz, Ph.D.; Aurelien Tartar, Ph.D.; Jaime Tartar, Ph.D.; and Jose Lopez, Ph.D. The U.S. Geological Survey has awarded the Oceanographic Center a grant of more than $84,000 to investigate Florida’s hydrogeology and groundwater resources and a grant of $16,000 for technical and laboratory assistance to research and monitor threatened and endangered species. n GRANTS awarded at NSU The new Employee Health and Wellness Center has opened on the third floor of the Sanford L. Ziff Health Care Center on NSU’s main campus. The clinic is being run exclusively by faculty physicians from NSU’s College of Osteo- pathic Medicine. Open from 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, the clinic provides full primary- care services to all NSU employees, their spouses/partners, and adult children on their medical plan. The mornings are kept open for walk-in sick or injured employees; the after- noons are used for scheduled appointments. Contact the center at (954) 262-8477. n Employee Health and Wellness Center open 27 HORIZONS