2012 AWRI Summer Student Interns

One of the joys of summer at AWRI is our student intern program. This summer, we welcome 10 student interns to the Institute. These students are funded by a variety of sources and work with different principal investigators.

Four interns are being funded through the D.J. Angus-Scientech Educational Foundation, a long-time sponsor of student internships at AWRI: Shaughn Barnett will be working with Mark Luttenton; Alex Ebenstein will be working with Jim McNair; Tara Eilers will be working with Janet Vail; and Terry Felty will be working with Rick Rediske.

Three interns are being funded through the R.B. Annis Foundation: Youssef Darwich will be working with Ryan Thum; Anna Harris will be working with Al Steinman; and Elizabeth Sommers will be working with Bopi Biddanda.

In addition, 3 other students will be funded through a variety of grants. Tony Weinke will be working with Bopi Biddanda; Danielle Grimm and Jeff Bashnick will be working in Ryan Thums lab.
A special thanks to all of these bright, young researchers for their hard work and dedication!

LMC Events

June 1, 7 and 8
Daisybrook Elementary 5th graders visited the Annis Educational Foundation Classroom for hands-on activities and took a vessel cruise on the W.G. Jackson.

June 4
Alto Elementary 4th graders visited the Annis Educational Foundation Classroom for hands-on activities and took a vessel cruise on the W.G. Jackson.

June 5 and 6
Murray Lake Elementary 4th graders visited the Annis Educational Foundation Classroom for hands-on activities and took a vessel cruise on the W.G. Jackson.

June 11
The GVSU Muskegon Group held their quarterly meeting.

June 14
The Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership held a public meeting at AWRI which included a featured presentation by Dr. Rick Rediske on the 2012 Muskegon Lake Fish Contaminant Report.

June 15
Wyoming area teachers attended a GVSU Science Teacher Education Development (STEAD) grant workshop and took a vessel cruise on the W.G. Jackson.

June 16
The Scientech Club/Indiana science student group visited the AWRI as part of their annual trip. Their visit included a luncheon and tour of the LMC followed by a vessel cruise aboard the W.G. Jackson.

June 22
Elizabeth LaRue, graduate student working with Ryan Thum, successfully presented her Thesis Defense.

June 26
Andrew Sisson, graduate student working with Rick Rediske, successfully presented his Thesis Defense.

June 28
Two groups of middle school students from Team 21 Kelloggsville Public visited the Annis Educational Foundation Classroom for hands-on activities and took a vessel cruise on the W.G. Jackson.

 

Activities

The W.G. Jackson traveled to Ludington on June 18 for three days of events. West Shore Community College and Mason Lake Intermediate School District helped with the funding, along with the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The W.G. Jackson then traveled to Manitowoc, WI for another three days of events, including looking for a shipwreck with ROVs, a teacher workshop with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, open houses, and public cruises.

AWRI partnered with the Alliance for the Great Lakes for three days of teacher workshops on June 13, 14, and 15. The teachers worked with Great Lakes in My World curriculum, conducted a beach clean-up, and had a trip on the D.J. Angus.

 

Presentations

Bopi Biddanda visited India in June, and gave 2 invited seminars while there:
Biddanda, B. Carbon Cycling, Sinkhole Exploration and Observing Systems in the North American Great Lakes. Department of Marine Science, Bharathidasan University, Trichy, Tamil Nadu, India (June 7, 2012).

Biddanda, B. Adventures of an Oceanographer in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Central Electrochemical Research Institute, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu, India (June 8, 2012).

Sara Damm gave a presentation titled Studies to support Ruddiman Creek implementation-ready TMDL for biota at the Ecolunch held at AWRI on June 1.

Geraldine Nogaro gave a presentation titled Influence of burrowing chironomid larvae and invasive filter-feeding mussels on nutrient biogeochemistry in eutrophic lake sediments at the Ecolunch held at AWRI on June 15.

Rick Rediske gave a presentation to the White Lake PAC on June 7 about contaminate levels in fish and the removal of the Restrictions on Fish and Wildlife Consumption BUI. The White Lake PAC is preparing public notices to remove the Degradation of Benthos, Eutrophication and Undesirable Algae, and Restrictions on Fish and Wildlife Consumption BUIs.

Al Steinman was a guest lecturer for NRM 150, Paul Keenlances class in Allendale on June 13.

Janet Vail was the featured speaker at a meeting of the Spring Lake Rotary on June 15. Her topic was AWRI: Who we are and what we do.

Janet Vail presented MEECS Air Quality and Climate Change Unit training at the Global Change Workshop at Michigan Tech on June 18.

 

Publications

Andrew Sisson and Rick Rediske were among the co-authors of an article accepted for publication, which is based on the first chapter of Andrews master's thesis:
Sisson, A.*, P. Wampler, R. Rediske, and A. Molla. In Press. An assessment of long term Biosand Filter use and sustainability in Haiti. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development.

 

Grants & Contracts

Al Steinman's lab recently received a grant for $20,000 from the Community Foundation for Muskegon County for a collaborative P18O4 project with Rick Rediskes lab, USGS, and MSU.

 

AWRI In the News

Interdisciplinary project could improve water quality in Haiti
GVNext, June 1, 2012 Rick Rediske and other faculty recently traveled to Haiti to collect water samples and interview residents. This was possible because of a grant from the GVSU Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence.

Students, profs studying area bacteria
The Alpena News, June 1, 2012 Graduate student Michael Snider and undergraduate student Tony Weinke were interviewed about their study of the Alpena Library fountain, because it has water like that found in nearby sinkholes.

Muskegon: natural forces create uniqueness of Muskegon Lake
Muskegon Chronicle, June 5, 2012. Also carried by LegalNews.com. Mark Luttenton is interviewed about the history of Muskegon Lake.

WGVU, June 11, 2012
Anchor Shelley Irwin interviewed Peter Wampler, Rick Rediske, and Azizur Molla about their recent trip to Haiti to look at water quality, consumption, and cultural perspectives.

Research ship offers cruises, programs
Htrnews.com, Manitowoc/Two Rivers, WI, June 17, 2012 The article is about the W. G. Jacksons trip to Manitowoc from June 23 25. Public cruises were made available during this trip.

Lake Express strengthens its Muskegon operations with staff promotion, contributes to GVSU
MLive.com, June 19, 2012 The event highlighting AWRI, hosted by the Lake Express that took place in May, was mentioned. AWRI received $5124.00 to put toward the new Field Station.

Working vessel offers tours
Ludington Daily News, June 20, 2012 The visit of the W.G. Jackson to Ludington made the front page news. AWRI intern, Tara Eilers, was featured in a picture along with a detailed article about the outreach events that were offered as part of our EPA Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant.

Muskegon's history reflected in the unique geology of lake
The Detroit News, June 25, 2012 Mark Luttenton is interviewed about the geological history of Muskegon Lake.