MIT Summer Research Program Students Tour USGS Woods Hole Science Center


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MIT Summer Research Program Students Tour USGS Woods Hole Science Center

By Claudia H. Flores
September 2007

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Massachusetts Institute of Technology Summer Research Program students receive an introduction at the U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Science Center

Above: MSRP students receive an introduction at the USGS Woods Hole Science Center before viewing the GeoWall data-visualization system. Photograph by Chris Polloni. [larger version]

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)'s Woods Hole Science Center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, participated in a science-community tour for students in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)'s Summer Research Program (MSRP) on Saturday, July 7, 2007. The MSRP program provides an opportunity for talented undergraduate students from underprivileged backgrounds, first-generation college students, and underrepresented minorities in science and engineering fields to acquire research experience in their field of interest at MIT.

During their 1-day visit to Woods Hole, the MSRP students received morning tours of the Woods Hole Science Aquarium (part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Northeast Fisheries Science Center) and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's Redfield and Smith Laboratories. In the afternoon, the students split into groups to visit one of the following: the Sea Education Association (SEA) campus, the Woods Hole Research Center campus, and the USGS Woods Hole Science Center. To wrap up their day, the students heard representatives of the respective institutions describe research opportunities, summer programs, and graduate programs available in the Woods Hole science community.

Those students who visited the USGS Woods Hole Science Center received a tour of the GHASTLI (Gas Hydrate and Sediment Testing Laboratory Instrument) from Bill Winters, who also gave them a short presentation on gas hydrates. Claudia H. Flores used the center's GeoWall data-visualization system to illustrate various research projects conducted by the USGS Coastal and Marine Program and to show how the GeoWall is useful in visualizing spatial problems. Flores' presentation emphasized the diversity of academic fields represented by USGS scientists, who conduct research on such wide-ranging topics as sea-floor mapping, benthic-habitat studies, investigation of environmental problems, geophysical surveys of sub-sea-floor sediment, studies of tsunami hazards, and much more. Chris Polloni provided a more thorough explanation of the software and hardware that make the GeoWall data-visualization system possible.

Although their visit was brief, the students were excited to learn about the research being done here at Woods Hole, asked thoughtful questions, and enjoyed exploring what Woods Hole has to offer. This was a valuable outreach opportunity to lure young scientific minds into the possibilities of coastal and marine research.

Participants representing the USGS were Claudia H. Flores, Bill Winters, and Chris Polloni. Organizers of the visit were Christopher Jones of the MIT Graduate Students Office, Julia Westwater of the WHOI Academic Programs Office, and Regina Campbell-Malone of the MIT/WHOI Joint Program.

MIT Summer Research Program Students Visit USGS in Woods Hole
September 2006