NSU Currents Spring 2014 Newsletter - Volume XXIV, Issue 1

9 Scholarship recipient and Ph.D. candidate Matthew Johnston Scholarships The following students have received scholarships to support their research in the 2013–2014 academic year: Scholarship recipient Francesca Fourney Scholarship Sponsor Batchelor Foundation Scholarship Recipient/Project Francesca Fourney/Human Impacts on Early Post-Settlement Mortality in Corals Fourney’s research aims to investigate the effects of sedimentation and nutrient load on early post-settlement mortality in corals to inform policy makers and managers of the most effective management actions that could be undertaken to increase coral recruitment success. Scholarship Sponsor Batchelor Foundation Scholarship Recipient/Project Noah Goodson/Memory-Enhancing drugs (Nootropics) and Recovery from Central Nervous System Lesions in the Goldfish Model of Hemilabyrinthectomy Goodson’s project will evaluate the potential of memory- enhancing drugs (nootropics) to promote recovery in the goldfish model of hemilabyrinthectomy. In this lesion model, unilateral removal of the labyrinth inducesapostural imbalance in response to light (dorsal light reflex or DRL), from which the animals recover over time. This recovery, once thought to be simply anatomical reorganization, is now understood to be a complex process involving neuroprotection, neuroplasticity, neurogenesis, and a host of neurotransmitter processes. The hemilabyrinthectomy model has been used, with multiple vertebrates, to study the vestibular system with an eye to understanding pathological conditions, as well as functional recovery of the central nervous system. Title V fellows Alex Marks (left) and Michael Nakama Fellowship Title V PPOHA Recipients Alex Marks and Michael Nakama Part of the $2.8 million grant to the Oceanographic Center through the federal Department of Education Promoting Postbaccalaureate Opportunities for Hispanic Americans (PPOHA) Program, the fellowship’s guidelines specify the development of a flexible, supportive, and effective academic and career pathway as students with bachelor’s degrees efficiently transition into graduate degree programs. Part of the fellowship will be used to assist with the OC Peer Mentorship Program. Scholarship recipient Noah Goodson Scholarship Sponsor Annual Scholarship Fishing Tournament Scholarship Recipient Matthew Johnston Matthew Johnston , Ph.D. candidate, will be researching the spread of marine invasive species in the Caribbean basin using cellular automata and agent-based computer models. His previous work has already yielded fundamental insight into the voracious spread of lionfish through this delicate ecosystem.