Cindy Lee (scientist)

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Cindy Lee is a retired Distinguished Professor known for her research characterizing the compounds that comprise marine organic matter.

Contents

Education and career

Lee has a B.S. in chemistry and B.S.E. in chemical engineering from Arizona State University (1970) and a Ph.D. from University of California San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography (1975). [1] Following her Ph.D., Lee became a postdoc at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in 1975 which transitioned into positions as an assistant scientist (1977–1981) and associate scientist (1981–1986). In 1987, Lee moved to SUNY Stony Brook where she remained until her retirement as a distinguished professor in 2016. [1]

Research

Lee's first published paper was as an undergraduate [2] which she described as the "...thrill of discovering something new". [1] As a graduate student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Lee examined the abundance of dissolved amino acids in seawater. [3] [4] Following graduate school, Lee moved to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution where she first worked on sterols in marine sediments. [5] [6] [7] In the early 1980s Lee began an extended collaboration with John Hedges, Stuart Wakeham and Michael Peterson which she described in a 2019 publication in Annual Reviews of Marine Science. [1] This collaboration led to investigations into organic compounds found in particles sinking or suspended in the water column, and included developing new methods to capture particles [8] and investigations into the preservation of organic matter. [9] [10]

In the 1990s, Lee joined researchers in the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) in the Equatorial Pacific where she used information on the composition of compounds captured in sediment traps to estimate the degradation of organic material [11] and its susceptibility to biological degradation. [12] Lee also worked on the JGOFS Arabian Sea project where she examined the flux of organic carbon with changes in the Southwest Monsoon. [13] Lee later joined with modelers to estimate fluxes of particulate organic carbon and the resulting implications to the global carbon cycle. [14]

In 2019, Lee authored two papers that reflect back on her career and provide a path forward and questions for future scientists. In Annual Reviews of Marine Science, Lee focused on considerations regarding sampling organic matter and her observations regarding the state of graduate education in marine science. [1] In Marine Chemistry, Wakeham and Lee summarized past research in marine organic biochemistry while providing a set of open research questions for future scientists to address. [15]

Awards

Additional reading

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biological pump</span> Carbon capture process in oceans

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The bathypelagic zone or bathyal zone is the part of the open ocean that extends from a depth of 1,000 to 4,000 m below the ocean surface. It lies between the mesopelagic above and the abyssopelagic below. The bathypelagic is also known as the midnight zone because of the lack of sunlight; this feature does not allow for photosynthesis-driven primary production, preventing growth of phytoplankton or aquatic plants. Although larger by volume than the photic zone, human knowledge of the bathypelagic zone remains limited by ability to explore the deep ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio</span>

A carbon-to-nitrogen ratio is a ratio of the mass of carbon to the mass of nitrogen in organic residues. It can, amongst other things, be used in analysing sediments and soil including soil organic matter and soil amendments such as compost.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colored dissolved organic matter</span> Optically measurable component of the dissolved organic matter in water

Colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) is the optically measurable component of dissolved organic matter in water. Also known as chromophoric dissolved organic matter, yellow substance, and gelbstoff, CDOM occurs naturally in aquatic environments and is a complex mixture of many hundreds to thousands of individual, unique organic matter molecules, which are primarily leached from decaying detritus and organic matter. CDOM most strongly absorbs short wavelength light ranging from blue to ultraviolet, whereas pure water absorbs longer wavelength red light. Therefore, water with little or no CDOM, such as the open ocean, appears blue. Waters containing high amounts of CDOM can range from brown, as in many rivers, to yellow and yellow-brown in coastal waters. In general, CDOM concentrations are much higher in fresh waters and estuaries than in the open ocean, though concentrations are highly variable, as is the estimated contribution of CDOM to the total dissolved organic matter pool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine snow</span> Shower of organic detritus in the ocean

In the deep ocean, marine snow is a continuous shower of mostly organic detritus falling from the upper layers of the water column. It is a significant means of exporting energy from the light-rich photic zone to the aphotic zone below, which is referred to as the biological pump. Export production is the amount of organic matter produced in the ocean by primary production that is not recycled (remineralised) before it sinks into the aphotic zone. Because of the role of export production in the ocean's biological pump, it is typically measured in units of carbon. The term was coined by explorer William Beebe as observed from his bathysphere. As the origin of marine snow lies in activities within the productive photic zone, the prevalence of marine snow changes with seasonal fluctuations in photosynthetic activity and ocean currents. Marine snow can be an important food source for organisms living in the aphotic zone, particularly for organisms that live very deep in the water column.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oceanic carbon cycle</span> Ocean/atmosphere carbon exchange process

The oceanic carbon cycle is composed of processes that exchange carbon between various pools within the ocean as well as between the atmosphere, Earth interior, and the seafloor. The carbon cycle is a result of many interacting forces across multiple time and space scales that circulates carbon around the planet, ensuring that carbon is available globally. The Oceanic carbon cycle is a central process to the global carbon cycle and contains both inorganic carbon and organic carbon. Part of the marine carbon cycle transforms carbon between non-living and living matter.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Particulate organic matter</span>

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Karen Frances Wishner is an American oceanographer currently at University of Rhode Island and an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her interests include coastal shelf and zooplankton behavior and environment, and has published her findings.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lycopane</span> Chemical compound

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Particulate inorganic carbon</span>

Particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) can be contrasted with dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), the other form of inorganic carbon found in the ocean. These distinctions are important in chemical oceanography. Particulate inorganic carbon is sometimes called suspended inorganic carbon. In operational terms, it is defined as the inorganic carbon in particulate form that is too large to pass through the filter used to separate dissolved inorganic carbon.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin curve</span> Mathematical representation of particulate organic carbon export to ocean floor

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Lee, Cindy (2019-01-03). "Passing the Baton to the Next Generation: A Few Problems That Need Solving". Annual Review of Marine Science. 11 (1): 1–13. Bibcode:2019ARMS...11....1L. doi: 10.1146/annurev-marine-010318-095342 . ISSN   1941-1405. PMID   29852088.
  2. ↑ Munk, M.E.; Kulkarni, C.L.; Lee, C.L.; Brown, P. (1970). "Conformational effects in electron impact induced elimination reactions in the 1,2-diphenylethanol system". Tetrahedron Letters. 11 (16): 1377–1380. doi:10.1016/S0040-4039(01)97974-2. ISSN   0040-4039.
  3. ↑ Lee, Cindy; Bada, Jeffrey L. (1977). "Dissolved amino acids in the equatorial Pacific, the Sargasso Sea, and Biscayne Bay1". Limnology and Oceanography. 22 (3): 502–510. Bibcode:1977LimOc..22..502L. doi: 10.4319/lo.1977.22.3.0502 . ISSN   1939-5590.
  4. ↑ Lee, Cindy; Bada, Jeffrey L. (1975-05-01). "Amino acids in equatorial Pacific Ocean water". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 26 (1): 61–68. Bibcode:1975E&PSL..26...61L. doi:10.1016/0012-821X(75)90177-6. ISSN   0012-821X.
  5. ↑ Lee, Cindy; Farrington, John W.; Gagosian, Robert B. (1979-01-01). "Sterol geochemistry of sediments from the western North Atlantic Ocean and adjacent coastal areas". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 43 (1): 35–46. Bibcode:1979GeCoA..43...35L. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(79)90044-9. ISSN   0016-7037.
  6. ↑ Gagosian, Robert B.; Lee, Cindy; Heinzer, Franz (August 1979). "Processes controlling the stanol/stenol ratio in Black Sea seawater and sediments". Nature. 280 (5723): 574–576. Bibcode:1979Natur.280..574G. doi:10.1038/280574a0. ISSN   1476-4687. S2CID   4334122.
  7. ↑ Lee, Cindy; Howarth, Robert W.; Howes, Brian L. (1980). "Sterols in decomposing Spartina alterniflora and the use of ergosterol in estimating the contribution of fungi to detrital nitrogen1". Limnology and Oceanography. 25 (2): 290–303. Bibcode:1980LimOc..25..290L. doi: 10.4319/lo.1980.25.2.0290 . ISSN   1939-5590.
  8. ↑ Peterson, M. L.; Hernes, P. J.; Thoreson, D. S.; Ifedges, J. I.; Lee, C.; Wakeham, S. G. (1993). "Field evaluation of a valved sediment trap". Limnology and Oceanography. 38 (8): 1741–1761. Bibcode:1993LimOc..38.1741P. doi: 10.4319/lo.1993.38.8.1741 . ISSN   1939-5590.
  9. ↑ Lee, Cindy (1992-08-01). "Controls on organic carbon preservation: The use of stratified water bodies to compare intrinsic rates of decomposition in oxic and anoxic systems". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 56 (8): 3323–3335. Bibcode:1992GeCoA..56.3323L. doi:10.1016/0016-7037(92)90308-6. ISSN   0016-7037.
  10. ↑ Lee, C; Cronin, C (1982). "The vertical flux of particulate organic nitrogen in the sea : decomposition of amino acids in the Peru upwelling area and the equatorial Atlantic". Journal of Marine Research. 41: 227–251.
  11. ↑ Hernes, Peter J.; Hedges, John I.; Peterson, Michael L.; Wakeham, Stuart G.; Lee, Cindy (1996-01-01). "Neutral carbohydrate geochemistry of particulate material in the central equatorial Pacific". Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. 43 (4–6): 1181–1204. Bibcode:1996DSRII..43.1181H. doi:10.1016/0967-0645(96)00012-4. ISSN   0967-0645.
  12. ↑ Wakeham, Stuart G.; Hedges, John I.; Lee, Cindy; Peterson, Michael L.; Hernes, Peter J. (1997-01-01). "Compositions and transport of lipid biomarkers through the water column and surficial sediments of the equatorial Pacific Ocean". Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. 44 (9–10): 2131–2162. Bibcode:1997DSRII..44.2131W. doi:10.1016/S0967-0645(97)00035-0. ISSN   0967-0645.
  13. ↑ Lee, C.; Murray, D. W.; Barber, R. T.; Buesseler, K. O.; Dymond, J.; Hedges, J. I.; Honjo, S.; Manganini, S. J.; Marra, J.; Moser, C.; Peterson, M. L.; Prell, W. L.; Wakeham, S. G. (1998-08-01). "Particulate organic carbon fluxes: compilation of results from the 1995 US JGOFS Arabian Sea Process Study: By the Arabian Sea Carbon Flux Group". Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. 45 (10–11): 2489–2501. Bibcode:1998DSRII..45.2489L. doi: 10.1016/S0967-0645(98)00079-4 . ISSN   0967-0645.
  14. ↑ Armstrong, Robert A.; Lee, Cindy; Hedges, John I.; Honjo, Susumu; Wakeham, Stuart G. (2001-01-01). "A new, mechanistic model for organic carbon fluxes in the ocean based on the quantitative association of POC with ballast minerals". Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. 49 (1–3): 219–236. Bibcode:2001DSRII..49..219A. doi:10.1016/S0967-0645(01)00101-1. ISSN   0967-0645.
  15. ↑ Wakeham, Stuart G.; Lee, Cindy (May 2019). "Limits of our knowledge, part 2: Selected frontiers in marine organic biogeochemistry". Marine Chemistry. 212: 16–46. Bibcode:2019MarCh.212...16W. doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2019.02.005. S2CID   146028590.
  16. ↑ "AGU Union Fellows". Honors Program. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  17. ↑ "Harald Sverdrup Lecture |AGU". www.agu.org. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  18. ↑ "Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg - Institute for Advanced Study: Fellow". hanse-ias.de. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  19. ↑ "Geochemistry Fellows".
  20. ↑ "2019 John Hedges Visiting Scholar". www.ocean.washington.edu. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  21. ↑ "SoMAS's Cindy Lee Receives ASLO's 2011 G. Evelyn Hutchinson Award". SoMAS. 2011-04-07. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  22. ↑ "Inaugural Class of ASLO Fellows includes Two SoMAS Professors". SoMAS. 2015-11-20. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
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