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A scuba diver under water points at a trap.
Marine Science

Some coral species might be more resilient to climate change than previously thought

Some coral species can be resilient to marine heat waves by “remembering” how they lived through previous ones, research by Oregon State University scientists suggests.

A diver looks under clear blue water at corals.
Marine Science

Esteemed coral scientist to help identify sites for restoration in South Pacific

Sometimes knowing where not to deploy conservation efforts is the most valuable information. Oregon State Pernot Distinguished Professor of Microbiology Rebecca Vega Thurber and her team have received a half million-dollar grant to help grass roots conservation groups in French Polynesia identify ideal sites for coral restoration.

A background of brown soil with a white outline of earth.
Events

Saving soil: Inaugural Berg Lecture features prominent microbiologist

Internationally acclaimed microbiologist Jo Handelsman, who served as the science advisor to U.S. President Barack Obama as the Associate Director for Science at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, will give the inaugural Berg Lecture on Thursday, April 27 at 5 p.m.

Stephen Giovannoni and Sarah Wolf working together in Giovannonis lab.
Research

Grant Awarded to Study Low Oxygen Environments in Oregon Coastal Waters

Drs. Stephen Giovannoni and Francis Chan were awarded a SciRIS Phase II grant for their proposal, “Hypoxic Barrier: Oxygenase Enzyme Kinetics and Ocean Health”. They are excited about receiving College of Science support to extend their research, which started with a SciRIS Phase I proposal.

Ocean waves on a dimly lit day with the sun peering through the clouds.
News

Gas-passing plankton illuminate another piece of the carbon cycle puzzle

A new study shows that the ocean’s most abundant life form, a type of bacteria, consumes acetone and other climate-active gases.

A closeup of two hands holding and inspecting phytoplankton in a petri dish.
Microbiology

Oregon State microbiology research furthers understanding of ocean’s role in carbon cycling

Researchers from the Department of Microbiology have shed new light on the mechanisms of carbon cycling in the ocean, using a novel approach to track which microbes are consuming different types of organic carbon produced by common phytoplankton species.

Corals along seafloor in Lizard Island.
Research

Scientists awarded grant to investigate how microbiomes can help species withstand climate change

A pivotal National Science Foundation award will enable Oregon State scientists to investigate how microbes influence their wildlife host’s sensitivity and resilience to disruptive changes in the natural environment.

Scuba diver collecting samples on shallow sea floor in Antarctica.
Marine Science

Discovery of first active seep in Antarctica provides new understanding of methane cycle

The discovery of the first active methane seep in Antarctica is providing scientists new understanding of the methane cycle and the role methane found in this region may play in warming the planet.

Grace Deitzler working with microscope in lab
Graduate students

2020 NSF Graduate Research Fellowships awarded to alumni and students

Two Ph.D. students in the College of Science Grace Deitzler in microbiology and John Stepanek in integrative biology — are among three OSU students to receive prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) awards in 2020.

Researchers take a phytoplankton sample on an OSU research vessel.
Microbiology

Smaller than expected phytoplankton may mean less carbon sequestered at sea bottom

For the first time, scientists have taken a winter sampling of phytoplankton in the North Atlantic. The results revealed that the carbon-absorbing cells were smaller than what scientists expected, meaning a key weapon in the fight against excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may not be as powerful as previously believed.

Saving Atlantis
Marine Science

Oregon State University-produced coral reef documentary now streaming worldwide

"Saving Atlantis" producers followed coral microbiologist Rebecca Vega Thurber and other researchers from Oregon State and around the world who are uncovering the causes of coral decline and looking to find solutions so they don’t completely disappear.