Application procedure:
Applications for 2007 are now closed. We will post the announcement for the 2008 program in late November 2007. Applications should include a cover letter, a curriculum vitae, three letters of recommendation, and we would also like you to complete an online form. The cover letter should include a statement of your research interests (with specific mention of one of the following potential projects or areas), relevant coursework and grades, and complete contact details (home and work phone numbers and email address, if available). MBARI is an equal opportunity employer.
Below you will find a list of some potential projects and mentors (this list will be updated, so please bookmark and check this page from time to time). Clearly identifying a specific research interest/area is an important part of your application and is essential in the application process. Please contact George Matsumoto if you have any questions. I have provided links to the mentors home pages (if available) so that you can learn more about the various mentors, please DO NOT contact the mentor directly.
Geoinformatics Intern: This intern will help develop software to provide marine data aggregation (e.g. one stop-shopping-center ) using Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC - www.opengeospatial.org/ ) standards. Data aggregation is important to facilitate scientists access data more effectively. The successful applicant must know JAVA, understand Object Oriented Programming and be familiar with Geographic Information Systems (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographic_information_system ). During the summer, this intern will have the opportunity to learn about data aggregation by aggregating data from moorings, autonomous underwater vehicles and Research Vessel Expeditions, improve your JAVA coding abilities in particular regard to processing scientific data and you will improve your understanding about OGC standards, which are the most important standards to encode geographic information.
Lisa Borok and Kim Fulton-Bennett
Science communication: The MBARI Communications group is looking for an intern to create one or more "podcasts" (audio interviews/stories for the web) about selected MBARI research projects. The intern would be responsible for all aspects of production, including story outline, scripting, interviews, audio recording (equipment will be provided), voiceover (if appropriate), and audio editing. This would be a pilot project, so as a final paper, we would like the intern to report on the feasibility of creating podcasts on a regular basis. We are looking for an applicant with a science background and experience in journalism (especially radio journalism). Please include samples of writing and/or audio projects (or links to such samples on the web) with your application.
Ocean Chemistry: Become a part of an energetic laboratory team investigating the geochemistry of methane hydrates, and breakthroughs in identifying the future of a high CO2 ocean as climate change and greenhouse gases evolve. We have deployed novel tools, including laser Raman spectrometry at 3.6 km depth, for the measurement of hydrates and hydrothermal vents. We are carrying out studies of the fate of CO2 released on the ocean floor, and investigating techniques for simulating the biogeochemistry of the mid-21st century ocean. See: <http://www.mbari.org/ghgases/>
Submarine Volcanism: This intern will assist with data processing and interpretation for two mapping AUV surveys completed in 2006 on Axial and Davidson Seamounts. The project will include interpretation of sub-bottom CHIRP, sidescan, backscatter, and bathymetry in an effort to understand the volcanic histories of these seamounts. Another area is to continue our work on the drowned coral reefs around Hawaii. In particular, we have a lot of sample and bathymetric data from around Lanai that would make a good project to synthesize and interpret. In addition, we just ran a dive program using the Pisces submersible and have over 100 new reef samples from offshore Hilo to examine and describe.
Linking MBARI and MBA: A bilingual (Spanish and English) intern with teaching interest and experience would support and enhance MBARI's educational collaborations with the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Our collaborative programs include interpretation of the "Mysteries of the Deep" auditorium program which describes MBARI research to aquarium visitors, Teacher Workshops, the Mar Y Campo program at Pajaro Valley High School and Young Women in Science.
Craig Dawe and Steve Etchemendy
Monterey Accelerated Research System (MARS): Update and upgrade the MARS web pages on MBARI's system. Tasks to include a users guide for researchers and would include all relevant documentation for a user to build or rework existing equipment for deployment on MARS and contact information for possible funding and deployment scenarios. Compile and create an interface to engineering documentation along with an Operators manual. Perhaps also write articles on MARS for popular magazines.
Duane Edgington and Danelle Cline
Automated visual event detection: Our project involves implementing a computer vision system that analyzes video collected by observatory cameras or our ROVs to detect, classify, and identify organisms visible in the video. We are collaborating with labs at Caltech and University of Southern California to adapt and extend computer vision systems modeled after the human visual system. The internship involves analyzing videos from Eye-in-the-Sea, Neptune Canada, or ROV midwater or benthic dives and comparing the analysis with processing performed by the computer vision system, mining the MBARI database of annotated video to collect representative sample video clips for analysis, and participating in development. We welcome applicants with a background in computer science, machine vision, and marine biology.
Zooplankton and Bioluminescence: This summer we looking for someone interested in molecular and morphological phylogenetics of marine zooplankton. Work would include both molecular studies in the lab, microscopic observations for classification of a particular group of hydromedusae. The goal is to finish our analysis (including a potential reorganization of this group), and participate in the publication that will result. Prior relevant lab experience will be useful, but not necessary, for this project. A day or more at sea will be involved.
Wave Energy Extraction: This project involves the harvesting of ocean wave energy for powering oceanographic instrumentation onboard a vertical profiling platform. The profiler traverses a mooring cable and makes measurements throughout the water column. Currently the instrumentation is powered by batteries and this project is investigating the feasibility of utilizing the wave induced motion of the system to power the instrumentation instead. The work to be performed by the intern will involve at-sea testing of a prototype system and comparison of test results with numerical models of the system. The intern should be familiar with mechanical engineering basics, numerical modeling of mechanical systems, hydrodynamic and fluid dynamic principles, and be willing and able to go to sea for short trips.
Benthic Rover Software Interface: MBARI's Benthic Rover is a untethered, mobile science lab on the seafloor. The Rover will conduct autonomous missions performing benthic respirometry. During a mission, the vehicle can communicate through an onboard acoustic modem. The intern will work with a small team to develop the software to remotely interface with the Rover including the GUI, the communication protocol, and the interfaces to the acoustic modem. The candidate must be well-versed in object-oriented programming and design, have good writing and verbal skills, and be able to work within a dynamic team environment. At least a couple days at sea will be required to test the software.
Judith Kildow
Economics of Marine Science and Ocean Observations: Marine science has economic values that can be estimated in several ways. Bringing the scientific and human dimensions together to better understand our oceans is crucial and MBARI is well poised to address this issue. The focus for this summer project can be on either the value of the scientific observations themselves to various elements of society or the value that the scientific enterprise contributes to the economy.
Project A involves a) carrying out a literature search for articles related to valuing ocean observations and marine science research; b) developing a framework to explain and summarize what the literature tells us and what it doesn’t tell us; c) draft a paper discussing the results of the study. OR
Project B involves a) compiling economic information from the marine research and education institutions in California to estimate the economic value they bring to the California economy in terms of wages, jobs and revenue generated; b) create an information format consistent with the information system of the National Ocean Economics Program, including determining the information necessary to complete the task; c) work with the NOEP team to create a user-friendly format for accessing the information through the NOEP web-based system.
Bill Kirkwood with collaborators Dr. Geoff Wheat (NOAA/NURP) and Dr. Chris Kitts (Univ. Santa Clara)
Optimizing an Autonomous SWATH Platform for Near Shore Science Missions: This project builds upon previous efforts which designed and constructed a prototype Small Water-plane Area Twin Hull (SWATH) autonomous surface craft. The tasks for a candidate intern will be to integrate further instrumentation for remote command and control, integrate a selected science instrument, complete the logistical tasks for deployment and recovery at a primary local test site, and to complete a field demonstration. The field demonstration will include remote operations from shore as a primary goal including the successful collection of science instrument data. A secondary goal will be demonstration of a limited autonomous operation also collecting data for a specified science objective. The project will conclude with the data processed, vehicle data processed, and both data sets cross correlated against an accurate time source for discussion on SWATH performance or impacts on science data collected.
Intern Logistical Coordinator: This intern will be assisting with the MBARI intern program. This assistance will likely include assisting the interns with travel logistics during the program as well as coordinating some educational activities on the weekends. It is expected that this intern will also be working on their own independent research project. The successful applicant will be an alumna/alumnus of the MBARI intern program and will stay in the same housing as the interns. Letters of recommendation are not required, but please elaborate on what your research project will entail in your application letter.
- Midwater Ecology: Interns will have the opportunity to develop a project compatible with the lab’s several ongoing research projects concerning the ecology and systematics of mesopelagic and bathypelagic animals. Members of the lab group are currently working on the ecology, physiology, behavior and systematics of a number of midwater animals, including pelagic free-living isopods, other crustaceans, fishes, and gelatinous zooplankton such as: polychaetes, medusae, siphonophores, ctenophores, larvaceans, and doliolids. Intern projects may involve the ROV Ventana, an extensive archive of quantitative video and hydrographic data, and a seawater lab. A molecular component of the project is also a possibility.
John Ryan and Erich Rienecker
Coastal ocean plankton ecology: Integrating observations of Monterey Bay made from satellites, aircraft, moorings and autonomous underwater vehicles, the intern will explore coastal oceanography. The focus of the project will be to understand physical-biological interactions of the plankton, including the development of red tide blooms. Experience with computer data analysis will be helpful, and the intern will have the opportunity to participate in research cruises.
Chris Scholin and Christina Preston
Environmental Sample Processor: Molecular diagnostic procedures for identifying microbes, their genes and gene products typically require the return of discrete samples to a laboratory for analysis. As a step towards overcoming this limitation, we are exploring use of the Environmental Sample Processor (ESP), a novel instrument that can be used to detect water borne microorganisms remotely, subsurface, in near real-time. The ESP automates application of custom DNA probe arrays to detect particular species and transmits results of those assays via radio modem. The ESP also archives samples for microscopy and nucleic acid analyses. To date, assays for several bacterioplankton groups, harmful algal species and invertebrate larvae have been tested and deployed on the instrument. We are interested in developing several other assays to target other bacterioplankton groups that can be used in conjunction with the ESP.
Ken Smith and Henry Ruhl
Bentho-pelagic coupling: Our lab is studying the connections between climate variations, surface-water conditions, and deep-sea ecology at 4,100 m depth in the NE Pacific. Time-lapse and line-transect photography are used to evaluate the behavior, activity, body size, abundance, and distribution of animals on the abyssal seafloor at a long-term study site. There are currently image datasets from short and long-term time-lapse camera deployments, benthic camera-sled transects, as well as ROV and manned submersible photographic transects available for analysis. We are looking for an intern interested in utilizing such deep-sea photography to address ecological hypotheses, conduct comparisons of photographic techniques, or assist in transitioning from film-based to all-digital analytical methods. One or more days at sea collecting photographic data may also be possible during the internship.
Molecular ecology: We use molecular tools to study evolutionary and ecological relationships between populations of deep-sea animals and their associated symbiotic bacteria. Vesicomyid clams transmit their bacterial symbionts vertically, and the hosts and symbionts exhibit parallel phylogenetic patterns. However, vestimentiferan tubeworms acquire their bacterial symbionts from the local environment, and the hosts and symbionts exhibit independent phylogenetic patterns. We regularly discover new species of mussels, clams, snails, and worms from deep-sea hydrothermal vent and cold-seep environments. We are interested now in assessing the geographical structure of genetic diversity within and among symbiont populations and their invertebrate hosts.