Well I’m back in the lab after two solid weeks in the field. I rented a new car with 6 miles on the odometer and…
View More Gulf Sampling: White Sand with Black SpotsAuthor: Holly Bik
I am a computational biologist at the University of California, Riverside. My research uses DNA sequencing and genomics to study microbial eukaryotes (yeah, nematodes!) in marine ecosystems, with an emphasis on evolution and biodiversity in the deep-sea. I can neither confirm nor deny that I like Unix more than I like going to sea.
Will Gulf science be compromised by politics?
I’ve officially arrived back in New Hampshire (freezing my tanned little arms off, btw) after my marathon sampling trip in the Gulf, and I’ve been…
View More Will Gulf science be compromised by politics?I want to meet the legend who painted these
I spotted these kick-ass signs on the side of the road yesterday in Grand Isle, LA (the community profiled in Sunday’s Times-Picayune Article). Whoever took…
View More I want to meet the legend who painted theseOil on beaches “doesn’t stay gone”
Seeing as I seem to be living, eating and breathing this Gulf Oil Spill (figuratively, I hope, although the proximate air of New Orleans air…
View More Oil on beaches “doesn’t stay gone”I’m on a boat, and, its goin’ fast, and…
My first week in the Gulf of Mexico has been a whirlwind of labwork, long drives, and airports, but its been a productive trip so…
View More I’m on a boat, and, its goin’ fast, and…So big I could pet it
While sorting through my deep-sea Gulf of Mexico samples this morning I found this freakin’ huge nematode. Isn’t it awesome???? Usually its only the parasitic…
View More So big I could pet itHonest, its not our fault!
Yee-haw, my Gulf trip has officially begun with my visit to the University of San Antonio, Texas! I am infinitely happy to be sitting down…
View More Honest, its not our fault!Follow Dr. Bik to the Gulf!
Remember Dr. M’s recent disturbing post about the quelling of independent science in the Gulf? I can now officially announce that my lab was one…
View More Follow Dr. Bik to the Gulf!Dispersants! Part III: Do dispersants really promote degradation of oil?
Promoting microbial degradation of oil has been one of the main arguments in favor of dispersant use. Interestingly, the PWSRCAC review (covering literature from 1997-2008)…
View More Dispersants! Part III: Do dispersants really promote degradation of oil?Dispersants! Part II: Toxicity
Part II: How toxic are dispersants? This, I suppose, is the million-dollar question. The EPA has continually insisted that the actual dispersants is less toxic…
View More Dispersants! Part II: Toxicity