One of the biggest compliments for a scientist is to have his or her research article cited by other scientists in their papers.

This kind of recognition is an acknowledgement that the research is important—and, in some cases, groundbreaking.

Professors and graduate students at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography received that distinction recently with their work over the years in Limnology & Oceanography, one of the most prestigious oceanographic magazines in the world.

To celebrate its 60th anniversary, the magazine selected the top 60 most cited research articles in the last six decades. Five former or current GSO faculty and four GSO graduates made the list.

To reflect what oceanographers have found valuable over time, the magazine selected the top five most cited papers from the 1950s and then the top 10 most cited papers since 2010.

The papers tackled topics common to fresh and ocean waters, addressing flowing waters, lakes, estuaries, coastal seas and deep ocean systems.

The URI professors recognized were:

* Former GSO Dean Robert A. Duce and former GSO oceanographer Neil W. Tindale for “Atmospheric transport of iron and its deposition in the ocean,’’ December, 1991.

* John McN. Sieburth for “Pelagic ecosystem structure: Heterotrophic compartments of the plankton and their relationship to plankton size fractions,’’ November, 1978.

* Theodore J. Smayda for “Harmful algal blooms: Their ecophysiology and general relevance to phytoplankton blooms in the sea,’’ July, 1997.

* Susanne Menden-Deuer for “Carbon to volume relationships for dinoflagellates, diatoms and other protist plankton,’’ April 2000.

The GSO graduates recognized were:

Philip N. Froelich for “Kinetic control of dissolved phosphate in natural rivers and estuaries: A primer on the phosphate buffer mechanism,’’ July 1988.

Evelyn J. Lessard for the article with Menden-Deuer.

Sybil P. Seitzinger for “Denitrification in freshwater and coastal marine ecosystems: Ecological and geochemical significance,’’ July, 1988.

Chris Langdon for “The Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, shows negative correlation to naturally elevated carbon dioxide levels: Implications for near-term ocean acidification effects,’’ April, 2012.

“Seeing this truly impressive list of past and current faculty and students of GSO recognized in this manner in one of oceanography’s premier science journals highlights the long-term relevance of their research contributions and that of GSO over the past six decades,” said Bruce Corliss, dean of GSO. “It is a great honor for these members. I congratulate each of them on their accomplishments and recognition, and I look forward to GSO remaining front-and-center in the ocean science community as we research new aspects of the world’s oceans going into the next 60 years.”

Oceanographer Menden-Deuer said the recognition is an honor. Her paper is about microscopic plankton—key agents in global geochemical cycles. The paper presents ways to convert the size of different kinds of plankton into the universal currency of oceanographers, carbon and nitrogen weights.

“Microscopic plankton are the lungs of the ocean and essential in carbon and nitrogen cycles,’’ said Menden-Deuer. “It is truly an honor to have contributed my paper to this fantastic volume in this flagship journal.’’

To read the GSO articles and other papers from scholars visit Limnology & Oceanography. 

 

Media Contact:

Elizabeth Rau
401-874-2116