Spartan Daily - Serving San Jose State University since 1934

Issue date: 9/27/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Courtesy of Moss Landing Marine Lab Michael Graham, an SJSU associate professor at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, holds up kelp discovered in the Galapagos Islands once thought to be extinct.

A research team led by Michael Graham, an SJSU associate professor in Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, has discovered vast green forests of kelp believed to be extinct.

Graham teaches and conducts his research at the laboratories, a national research facility consisting of seven CSU campuses including SJSU.

A journal of the research team's discovery of the kelp in the Galapagos Islands was published in the September 24 issue of "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences".

"The water is like uncharted territory," Graham said of the searching in the Galapagos Islands. "To have a model that works, it's a sign of where science is now."

According to a press release, predictions of the existence of this kelp, Eisenia galapagensis, and its location was based on "information from satellites and oceanographic instruments on conditions including light, depth and nutrient availability."

"What this model does for us is to track these populations," Graham said. "To ask questions about their health, it can potentially set up management areas for their protection."

Graham said they had completed a lot of research in preparation for the expedition.

"This demonstrates that we have enough information to make good predictions where organisms live on this planet," he said.

However, there was a difficulty in receiving funds for the search.

"When we came up with this model, people didn't think it could be true," Graham said. "It was hard to get money to get on this cruise."

Jonathan Tran, a sophomore biology major, said that he wasn't aware of the research, but was glad to see that the science department is getting recognized.

"It makes our science department look good," Tran said. "It makes our school look more distinguished."

Although there were no SJSU students involved in the discovery of the kelp there were students from other CSU and UC schools involved, Graham said, adding that with the success of this search, SJSU students may have the opportunity on board for the next expedition.

Continued...

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