Curriculum Vitae
Warren J.S. Currie
 Ph.D. Biological Oceanography
 email: curriew@ohio.edu
http://www.biosci.ohiou.edu/faculty/currie/

Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University
223 Life Sciences Building, Athens, OH, 45701,
Phone: 740-597-1924     fax: 740-593-0300
| Research Interests | Teaching Interests | Publications and Posters | Education | Research Experience | Teaching Experience | Awards and Scholarships | Special Skills | Committee Work |

Research Interests

The foci of my research center around the the collection of in-situ data and the use of models to capture the essence of complex biotic distributions in aquatic environments. These include a coupled bio-physical ocean model (ROMS) to predict the initiation of red-tide blooms of the dinoflagellate Karenia brevis. The initial findings indicate that upwelling on the West Florida Shelf caused by equatorward winds is capable of initiating large-scale harmful algal blooms (HAB) in the absence of other nutrient inputs. Another modeling approach involves the application of a generalized model of eutrophication in shallow coastal estuaries in New England. Increased nitrogen loading from land-use leads to water quality issues such as loss of seagrasses, and anoxia from plankton blooms and algal-mat growth. I am also incorporating my previous research of scale invariance in the distributions of plankton in the near-coast zones of the Gulf of St. Lawrence into models of plankton population growth. The use of an optical plankton counter (OPC) permited both the investigation of both nearest-neighbor relationships and more traditional spatial analysis of zooplankton densities which can be compared to simultaneous data from acoustics, and in-situ fluorescence (CTD). The analysis of these continuous measures has involved spectral and multifractal analysis to determine patterns of zooplankton distributions in these zones of high heterogeneity. The oceanic measurements show two basic groupings: physical measures such as temperature, turbidity etc. which scale according to turbulence, and biological measures (chlorophyll, zooplankton biomass), which deviate from a passive scaler in turbulence at scales that can be predicted from phytoplankton growth, zooplankton movement, and trophodynamics. Multifractal analysis provides a method of correctly scaling up and down measurements of complex (patchy) distributions, in order to account for resolution dependence. These empirical measurements of realistic food patchiness have been incorporated into individual-based models to investigate the effect on copepod foraging success.

Teaching Interests

 I feel there is a need for additional focus placed on the instruction of physical and chemical oceanography into traditional marine biology curriculum. A good marine biologist must also be a good biological oceanographer. Almost all regions of the oceans are heavily influenced by the effects of physical processes such as turbulence. These processes in turn influence the distribution and ecology of the organisms that occupy these regions. True enlightenment of an ecology student can take place when they understand not only the processes involved, but also the time and spatial scales at which they operate. As humans, we usually operate at much different time and spatial scales compared to our study organisms. As a result, our perceptions of the natural world may colour our sampling techniques and the resulting conclusions regarding the major influences driving biological distributions.

Education
University of Guelph : September 1994 - 2001
PhD (Department of Zoology) - Plankton Ecology and Oceanography
Thesis: "Scale invariance and patchiness in the plankton"
University of Waterloo : September 1992 - December 1993
Bachelor of Arts - Speech Communication
electives in Sociology, Philosophy, and Languages
University of Waterloo : September 1988 - April 1992
Bachelor of Science - Honours Biology
electives in Chemistry, Psychology, Anthropology, and Film Studies

Research and Employment Experience
Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio
Sept 2003

Postdoctoral Fellow - Oceanographic Modeling, Department of Integrative Biology, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Dec 2001-Aug 2003
  • Creation of biological model coupled with a physical ocean model (ROMS) to predict initiation of Harmful Algal Blooms (HAB) off the West Florida Shelf.
     
    Postdoctoral Fellow - Coastal Modeling, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut, Groton, CT
    May 2000-Nov 2001
  • Creation of interactive model of eutrophication in shallow coastal embayments
    • Cruise Experience
  • Sept. 05-16, 1997 R.V. New Horizon (Scripps) NAVO/MBARI out of Pt. Hueneme
  • Zooplankton vertical hauls and OPC work, growth incubations, 14C incubation, stable nitrogen, nutrient sampling
    • Editorial Assistant - Network and Electronic Media, C.J.F.A.S. (Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences), University of Guelph, Guelph, ON
    May 1997 - June 1998.
  • Database management, electronic information support, server and workstation maintenance, printer support, co-ordination of electronic submission formats, proofing manuscripts.
    • Web Manager - Department of Zoology & Plant Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON
    Feb. 1995 - present.
  • HTML, Javascript, and PERL programming, consulting and teaching HTML for departmental members, support on web design for multimedia teaching modules, maintenance of the departmental directories and faculty research pages.
    • Graduate Research - Plankton Ecology Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON
    April 1994 - present.
  • Collection and analysis of multiscale scale (km - cm) plankton distributions from the Gulf of St. Lawrence
  • Data collected via oceanographic probes: Optical Plankton Counter (OPC), Conductivity Temperature Depth Probe (CTD), Fluorometer, and Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP)
  • Analyses includes statistics, nearest neighbour, spectral analysis, and multifractal analysis
  • Creation of an individual based model of copepod feeding behavior in patchy food environments
    • Undergraduate research experience - Lake Survey, Forest Pests, Black Bear Ecology, Oceanography

    Teaching Experience
      Courses Taught and Invited Seminars
    • Marine Biology - BIOS 429/529. Biological Sciences, Ohio University
    • Limnology - BIOS 431/531. Biological Sciences, Ohio University
    • Introduction to the World's Oceans - EPS82. Summer 2003. Earth and Planetary Sciences, UC Berkeley
    • Biological Oceanography - IB106. Fall 2002. Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley
    • "Collection and Analysis of Marine Biological Patchiness". Fall 1999. Marine Ecological Processes, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Pelagic Community Structure: Competition, Predation, and Resources". Fall 1998. Marine Ecological Processes, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Scaling and Analysis of Biological Patchiness". Fall 1998. Marine Ecological Processes, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Collection of Biological Distributions in the Oceans". Fall 1998. Marine Ecological Processes, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • Scaling and the Problem of Processes: Lessons from cm scale plankton and CTD measurements in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Spring 1998. Department of Oceanography Seminar Series, Dalhousie University. Department of Oceanography, Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S.
    • Visualization of Biological Distributions in the Oceans. Fall 1997. Noon Hour Seminar, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Technological advances in oceanography: Tools to measure plankton distributions in natural systems". Winter 1997. Marine Environment, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Biological Patchiness". Winter 1996. Marine Environment, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    • "Salt and Temperature: Density discontinuities in marine systems". Winter 1996. Marine Environment, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph.
    Lecturer, University of California - Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
    Fall 2002, Summer 2003
    Introduction to the World's Oceans - EPS82
    Biological Oceanography - IB106
    Teaching Assistantship Experience
    Skills and Technical Training

    Awards and Scholarships
    • U. Guelph Zoology Department Graduate Entrance Scholarship, Fall 1994
    • U. Guelph Graduate Scholarship, Fall 1996
    • American Society of Limnology and Oceanography Student Travel Award, Summer 1998

    Activities and Committee Work
    • Ohio University Dept of Biological Sciences - IT committee / Dept Webmanager
    • Ohio University Dept of Biological Sciences - Strategic Planning committee
    • Advisory Board Member: Planktology Cyberjournal
    • Designer and Manager of the University of Guelph Department of Zoology; and the Plankton Net: Plankton Ecology and Biological Oceanography WWW sites
    • College of Biological Sciences representative - University of Guelph electronic media committee
    • Elected President, University of Waterloo Science Council Fall 1991 - Spring 1992
    • Elected President, University of Waterloo Biology UnderGraduate Society (BUGS), Fall 1990 - Spring 1991; Elected Vice-President (BUGS), Fall 1988 - Spring 1990
    • Icebreaker Coordinator, supervision of Icebreakers during UW Orientation Week, Fall 1991
    • Co-author of the Waterloo Science Endowment Fund (WatSEF) Constitution
    • Nomination Committee Chair for selecting the first WatSEF Board of Directors
    • Board member of the WatSEF Executive Board of Directors 1991-1992
    • Undergrad representative - UW Faculty of Science Foundation 1991-1992
    • Member of the Ad Hoc Committee for the Federation of Students new Student Life Building, later passed by referendum, and opened Spring 1995

    Publications
    • Currie WJS and JC Roff. 2006. Plankton are not Passive Tracers: Plankton in a Turbulent Environment. J. Geophysical Res. Oceans, VOL. 111, C05S07, doi:10.1029/2005JC002967
    • Currie WJS. 2001. Scale invariance and patchiness in the plankton. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Guelph.
    • Lovejoy S, WJS Currie, Y Tessier, MR Claereboudt, E Bourget, JC Roff, and D Schertzer. 2001. Universal multifractals and ocean patchiness: Phytoplankton, physical fields and coastal heterogeneity. J. Plankton Res 23:117-141.
    • WJS Currie. 2001. Plankton: Uncharismatic Microfauna. Science's NextWave. April 6, 2001.
    • Currie WJS, Claereboudt MR, and JC Roff. 1998. Gaps and patches in the ocean: a one-dimensional analysis of plankton distributions. Marine Ecology Progress Series. Vol. 171 p. 15-21.
    • Claereboudt MR, WJS Currie, Y Tessier and JC Roff.. 1996. Multifractal Modelling of Plankton Abundance in Coastal Waters. International Liège Colloquium on Ocean Hydrodynamics, Belgium.

      Conference Presentations and Published Abstracts
    • WJS Currie and TM Powell. 2006. Florida Red Tide Initiation by Wind Generated Upwelling: HAB-ROMS v2. OS15M-08, "Harmful Algal Blooms: From Research to Management Applications". Ocean Sciences Meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii.
    • WJS Currie. 2005. Dragon-slaying for ecologists: Dealing with spatial/temporal complexity in ecological systems. OS5:"Aquatic Ecology: System Heterogeneity", ESA 2005 Annual Meeting, Montréal, QC
    • WJS Currie 2005. Tyranny of scale and the consequence of patchiness. SS83:"Spatial Processes in Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems". ASLO summer meeting. Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
    • WJS Currie, CV Lewis, TM Powell. 2004. Upwelling generated Harmful Algal Blooms: A modeling approach. ASLO/TOS Meeting, SS2-12 "Structure in an Apparently Uniform Environment". Honolulu, Hawaii.
    • WJS Currie, S Lovejoy 2003. The multifractal nature of plankton. Eos Trans. AGU, 84(46), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract NG41D-02, 2003 (AGU Fall Meeting. San Francisco, CA)
    • WJS Currie, S Lovejoy. 2002. Multifractal zooplankton: modeling grazing and growth in the plankton. AGU 2002 San Francisco, CA.
    • Kremer JN, WJS Currie, J Brawley. 2001. Changing Land-Use And Estuaries, A C.L.U.E. for informed management. ASLO 2001 Albuquerque, New Mexico.
    • Currie WJS and JN Kremer. 2000. Model seeks data for mutual gratification. NEERS Fall meeting, Block Island, RI.
    • Lovejoy S, WJS Currie, D Schertzer, MR Claereboudt, E Bourget, JC Roff. 2000. An active diffusion model for zooplankton grazing. AGU Spring Meeting, Washington, DC
    • Currie, WJS. 1999. The turbulent life of plankton: do they really go with the flow? ASLO meeting, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
    • Currie WJS and KM Cuddington. 1998. The importance of patchy distributions for predator foraging success: zooplankton in a multifractal field. ASLO/ESA Meeting, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
    • Currie WJS, MR Claereboudt and JC Roff. 1998. Mixing by Internal Waves: Mixing the Plankton Soup. Ocean Sciences Meeting, San Diego, CA. (Abstract) Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union. 79(1).
    • Currie WJS, MR Claereboudt and JC Roff. 1997. Fractals and Randomness in the Plankton: Implications for Feeding Ecology. ASLO meeting, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
    • Currie WJS and MR Claereboudt. 1997. The Ubiquitous Multifractal in Marine Environments. Canadian Coastal Conference, Guelph, ON, Canada.
    • Currie WJS and MR Claereboudt. 1997. Applications of Multifractals in Marine Sciences. European Geophysical Union meeting, Vienna, Austria.
    • Claereboudt MR, WJS Currie, Y Tessier and JC Roff.. 1996. Multifractal Modelling of Plankton Abundance in Coastal Waters. International Liège Colloquium on Ocean Hydrodynamics, Belgium.
      (Online poster version : http://www.biosci.ohiou.edu/faculty/currie/mf-main.htm)
    • Currie WJS, MR Claereboudt, Y Tessier, and JC Roff. 1996. The CHASE experiment: modelling centimetre to kilometre scale variability in zooplankton abundance in coastal waters. International Liège Colloquium on Ocean Hydrodynamics, Belgium.
    • Currie WJS, MR Claereboudt and JC Roff. 1996. Time Between Lunch and Dinner in the Plankton: Measuring Distance Between Organisms in Coastal Marine Zooplankton Using an Modified Optical Plankton Counter (OPC). Ocean Sciences Meeting, San Diego, CA. (Abstract) Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union. 76(3).

      Submitted or in Preparation

    • Currie WJS and KMD Cuddington. The Importance of Patchy Distributions for Predator Foraging Success: Foragers in a Multifractal Field.
    • Claereboudt MR, Y Tessier, S Lovejoy, WJS Currie, and JC Roff. (submitted). Universal Multifractals and Ocean Patchiness: A Scaling Framework.
    • Currie WJS and JN Kremer (submitted). The CLUE model: A generalized model for the investigation and management of shallow estuarine eutrophication
    • Currie WJS and JN Kremer. (submitted). An empirical A6 relationship to account for macroalgae patchiness.
    • Currie WJS and JC Roff (available). Scaling properties of coastal plankton distributions in relation to turbulence.
    • Currie WJS, TM Powell, and CV Lewis. (available). A simple model produces realistic initiation of a Harmful Algae Bloom (HAB) in an upwelling system
    • Currie WJS, S Lovejoy, and JC Roff (available). A multifractal analysis of coastal zooplankton distributions.
    • Currie WJS. and JC Roff. Scaling discontinuities in zooplankton biomass.
    • Currie WJS and JC Roff. Breaking non-linear internal waves as a source of plankton patchiness.
    • Currie WJS, S Lovejoy, and KMD Cuddington. Scaling up and down measurements in ecology.
    • Currie WJS, S Lovejoy, and KMD Cuddington. Diffusion in a multifractal world: how to walk the random walk.
    • Currie WJS., MR Claereboudt and JC Roff. Randomness and uniformity within planktonic patches.
    • Claereboudt MR and WJS Currie. Validation of acoustically sampled plankton data from an ADCP: Comparison to concurrently collected OPC data.
    • Cuddington KMD and WJS Currie. Population dynamics of plankton foraging in a patchy food environment.

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