Dear all:
If I haven’t met you yet, my name is Dave Lawrence. I am working temporarily (until December
31) at WHOI as a science writer whose purpose is to build up the climate content on the Ocean
Topics section of WHOI’s Web site.
I have spent the last few days getting familiar with the institution and evaluating the list of
potential Ocean Topics. After consultations with Danielle Fino and Lonny Lippsett, I have
selected my list of climate-related topics and determined where they fit within a set of six
priorities: Carbon Cycle, Water Cycle, Heat Transport & Storage, Global Warming, Abrupt
Climate Change, and Ocean-Monitoring Systems/Technology.
Now it is your opportunity to help determine how I will focus my reporting and writing efforts
over the next few months. The list, broken into topic groups, is in the following format: Subtopic
(Priority).
First topic group: Climate & Oceans
Global Warming (Global Warming)
Abrupt Climate Change (Abrupt Climate Change)
Ocean & Atmosphere (Global Warming)
Carbon Cycle (Carbon Cycle)
Ocean-Monitoring Systems (Ocean-Monitoring Systems/Technology)
Polar Science (Global Warming)
Studying the Past [Paleoclimatology] (Global Warming)
Water Cycle (Water Cycle)
Ocean Iron Fertilization (Carbon Cycle)
Ice Ages (Global Warming)
Sea Level Rise (Global Warming)
Ocean Acidification (Carbon Cycle)
Solar Energy Budget (Heat Transport & Storage)
Airborne Particles (Heat Transport & Storage)
Oceans & Wind Systems (Heat Transport & Storage)
Second topic group: Ocean Circulation
El Nino & Other Oscillations (Abrupt Climate Change)
Currents (Heat Transport & Storage)
The Ocean Conveyor (Heat Transport & Storage)
Gyres (Heat Transport & Storage)
Subsurface Circulation (Heat Transport & Storage)
Water Masses (Heat Transport & Storage)
Third topic group: Natural Hazards
Hurricanes (Global Warming)
Volcanoes (Heat Transport & Storage)
Nor'easters & Other Extratropical Storms (Global Warming)
Fourth topic group: Marine Life
Coral Reefs (Global Warming)
Human Impacts (Global Warming)
Polar Ecosystems (Global Warming)
Microbial Communities (Carbon Cycle)
Life in Extreme Environments (Global Warming)
Deep-Sea Ecosystems (Global Warming)
Plankton (Carbon Cycle)
Fifth: Ocean Engineering
Ocean Observatories (Ocean-Monitoring Systems/Technology)
Underwater Vehicles (Ocean-Monitoring Systems/Technology)
Remote Sensing Technology (Ocean-Monitoring Systems/Technology)
Sixth topic group: Coastal Science
Dynamic Shorelines (Global Warming)
Coastal Policy & Management (Global Warming)
Seventh topic group: Ocean Policy
Marine Conservation (Global Warming)
Eighth topic group: Ocean Resources
Alternative Energy [wind power, tidal power] (Global Warming)
Oil & Gas (Global Warming)
Ninth topic group: Ocean Chemistry
Minerals/Nutrients (Carbon Cycle)
Tenth topic group: Pollution
Land Use/Land Cover Changes (Global Warming)
Eleventh topic group: Underwater Archaeology
Black Sea/Great Flood (Abrupt Climate Change)
This should be about it. Thank you very much for your time.
Sincerely,
Dave Lawrence