 exploring, preserving and protecting the genetic diversity of the world's oceans
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OGL Newsletter
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Greetings!
When you think of computers what comes to mind? Facebook? iTunes? Twitter? What about biology? Read on as we talk with Dr. Beth Tenorio, OGL's own Biological Data Specialist, about the field of Bioinformatics and what it takes to do modern biological research in the information age.
And, as always, follow our expeditions and other news from the marine world on our Facebook and Twitter pages!
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Bioinformatics: Data Analysis at the Touch of a Button
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Over the past few decades, advances in molecular biology and genome sequencing have created an explosion of biological information, requiring computerized databases and specialized tools to store, organize, index, view and analyze this flood of data. This in turn has lead to the need for a new kind of scientist who can merge biology, information technology and computer science in a new discipline known as "bioinformatics", or "computational biology".
According to Prof. Thomas Cech, Nobel lauriate and Director of the Biofrontiers Institute at University of Colorado - Boulder, "We are at the beginning of a new golden age for bioscience. New technologies have produced mountains of biological data. Navigating these mountains for meaning demands a new kind of scientist. One who is comfortable with mathematical and computational analysis. One who can reach across a wide range of disciplines, work with multiple experts, and think fearlessly."
 | | An example of a typical DNA sequencing "pipeline" combining automated sequencing and a variety of computers and programs. A pipeline like this was used to decode the Human Genome. Illustration: Bishop Heber College |
Here at Ocean Genome Legacy, we rely heavily on computers and databases to manage and disseminate the vast amount of information generated from samples held in our biorepository and used in our research. Dr. Elizabeth Tenorio, OGL's Biological Data Specialist, combines her knowledge of biology and skills in informatics, and computer programing to build and maintain the databases that support OGL and its various projects.
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Dr. Elizabeth Tenorio does QC testing of modifications to the PMS-ICBG database's user interface.
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Says Dr. Tenorio, "The goal of designing these systems is to keep the user from getting buried in all that data, and instead to see these websites and databases as just a tool to get at the information they want and a look at the big picture. Everybody can appreciate the complexity of databases like this, like the one for shopping at Amazon, without realizing how much effort went into creating it and making it work seamlessly. It seems very simple, so we only notice when something goes wrong!"
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Take a look at the OGR Catalog for a glimpse of how OGL manages data for over 22,000 specimens of marine wildlife.
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How Healthy Are Our Oceans?
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Check out this brand-new interactive website that attempts to show how we (mankind that is) are doing at maintaining the health of the world's oceans. Called Ocean Health Index, it takes current data from 133 different countries and evaluates their performance across 10 different goals to come up with a real-time score for overall sustainability. These goals represent a new way of thinking about our relationship with the ocean, through assessment of the benefits that a healthy ocean provides to humankind. The analysis was developed by a team of 65 researchers led by Dr. Ben Halpern of the University of California at Santa Barbara's NCEAS (National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis) and CMAP (Center for Marine Assessment and Planning) programs. A paper describing exactly how they did it is fresh off the press in Nature magazine.
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According to the Ocean Health Index, the United States is doing only slightly better than the average worldwide score of 60 at protecting its marine environments.
Graphics courtesy of Ocean Health Index
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| OGL 2012 Fall Fundraising Drive Begins | |
With cooler weather come changing colors in the leaves, the aroma of apple and pumpkin pie in the air, and the OGL Annual Fall Appeal. Please consider helping OGL to continue its good work in preserving and protecting the biodiversity of our world's oceans by contributing today. It's easy! Just visit our Donations page at http://www.oglf.org/Support.htm, where you'll find instructions on how to donate by check or by credit card.
Thanks in advance for your support!
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| Coming Soon... | |
The Oceans' Dead Zones
Dead zones, regions of the ocean where microorganisms thrive but animals cannot survive, are on the increase in many areas of the world. Join us next month as we investigate the causes and potential ramifications of The Dead Zones.
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The Missisippi River dead zone is overloaded with nutrients from upstream sources. This photo shows the color change between the hypoxic (brown) and oxygen-rich (blue) waters.
Photo courtesy of NOAA
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DONATE TO OGL
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Want to help OGL document and preserve the spectacular genetic diversity of our world's oceans? Visit http://www.oglf.org/Support.htm
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