1. pets
2. aquariums

The Massachusetts Marine Educators (MME) support all
educators to inspire students of all ages to be stewards of the ocean by
providing relevant learning opportunities, experiences, and resources for
marine education.
Symposium Sponsors
The Massachuestts Marine Educators present
The Third Annual North Shore
High School
Marine Science Center
Marine Science
Symposium
Special Thanks to
Salem State University
particularly to
Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, Mary Dunn
Department Chair and Associate Professor of Biology, Ryan Fisher
Professor of Geography, Stephen Young
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
for logistical support
Teachers, chaperones, and students for attending
Keynote speakers and presenters for sharing their passion and knowledge
Volunteers, without whose help we could never pull off this event
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Salem State University, Salem, Massachuestts
12. Seeking Relief from Sea Level Rise—Student Mapping and
Leadership Initiative
Room 325, Meier Hall
Liz Duff and Lindsey Duff
Mass Audubon
Symposium Agenda
8:15 a.m.
Registration
North Campus
Dining Commons
9:00 a.m.
Introduction
North Campus
Dining Commons
9:20 a.m.
Workshop A
Sullivan Building and
Meier Hall
10:25 a.m.
Workshop B
Sullivan Building and
Meier Hall
11:30 a.m.
Featured
Presentation
Veteran’s Memorial Hall,
Ellison Campus Center
12:15 p.m.
Lunch
North Campus
Dining Commons
1:00 p.m.
Depart
How can high school students help their towns prepare for rising sea level,
and increased storm surges? What tools are available to help us see what areas are most vulnerable to coastal flooding? Learn how high school students
on are helping Mass Audubon and local communities plan and prepare for
the future. Use maps to assess vulnerability of some coastal towns on the
North Shore.
13. Fisheries, Then and Now
Room 209, Sullivan
Kat O’Brien and Chris Baillie
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
Students will be able to explore how the cod fishing industry has changed
over the last hundred or so years. As the technology of the fisheries increases, students will be able to see how the cod population decreases, and the
other affects this has on the ecosystem. Fisheries change the ecosystems, and
force the fishery itself to adapt, along with the society around it. Through a
hands on activity seeing the impact of technology, this all will become clear.
Also, some juvenile lobsters will make an appearance to show students exactly what species are being affected.
14. Out of Sight, Out of Mind? What Can We Do Now to Reduce
Waste in Our Community?
Room 108, Sullivan
Beach Sisters Peer Leaders
Girls Inc. of Lynn
Hear from a group of high school students from Lynn about their experience
at Girls Inc. of Lynn, leading programs in marine and environmental science.
Learn about how we can reduce waste and protect our oceans, through hands
on games and competitions. Leave inspired to improve the environmental
health of your community!
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8. Talking Trash for Cleaner Oceans
Room 104, Sullivan
The Talking Trash Teens
Salem Sound Coastwatch
Learn how one local group of teens in Salem is working to change behaviors
and improve the environment. Teen empowerment at its best, this project
showcases how we can make change happen and stop street trash from polluting the oceans right in our own backyard.
9. How Scientists Survey and Identify Corals and Their Prey
Room 401, Meier Hall
Sara Williams, Amanda Dwyer
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
Changing environmental conditions like ocean acidification and ocean warming are predicted to have dire consequences for coral reefs. Scientists are
studying these important, biologically diverse ecosystems as they are declining in order to better protect and conserve the coral reef environment. In
this workshop, learn how scientists survey coral reefs and how to identify key
coral species and coral food – zooplankton! Students will identify and quantify coral species in photo-quadrats and zooplankton from samples taken over
healthy and degraded coral reefs.
10. Using Ocean Stewardship to Face Climate Challenges
Room 202, Sullivan
The ClimaTeens
New England Aquarium
ClimaTeens from the New England Aquarium will share three hands-on climate change activities and talk about how climate change is impacting the
ocean. They will also be discussing best practices around community level
solutions.
11. Boston’s Rising Seas: Are We In Over Our Heads?
Keynote Speaker
Liz Magee
Dive Master, Northeastern University Marine Science Center
Two Weeks Living Under the Sea:
Research and Daily Life On Mission 31
Earlier this year, researchers from Northeastern Univesrity joined forces with
Fabien Cousteau for an incredible month of underwater research, exploration,
and outreach. Under the direction of Northeastern Professors, Mark Patterson and Brian Helmuth, and assisted in the field by a cadre of Marine Science
Center graduate students and research technicians, Liz and the other aquanauts gathered two years worth of data related to physical changes impacting
the marine environment due to changing climate. Specific research focused
on answering questions related to: how corals respond to daily changes in
water quality, how zoolplankton communities are affected by climate change,
how giant barrel sponges filter material, the mechanics of a goliath grouper’s
feeding strike, and what environmental contaminants are found on the local
coral reef. Liz will present a picture of the Mission’s research activities, as well
as what it was like to become trained as an aquanaut and live underwater.
About the Speaker
Liz Magee manages the Three Seas Program and diving operations at
Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center located in Nahant, Massachusetts. An alumna of the same three Seas Program, Liz graduated from
Northeastern University with a Bachelor’s degree in biology in 2008. Since
graduating, she has worked in marine education and research for many
years, including kelp forest monitoring in southern California, feeding sharks,
rays and turtles and New England Aquarium, and teaching young children to
scuba dive off Catalina Island, California. In 2014, Liz completed aquanaut
training and went to spend two weeks living aborad the Aquarius Reef Base
off the Florida Keys, conducting over one hundred hours of research 63 feet
below the surface.
Room 302, Sullivan
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Jenn Mocarski, Val Perini
Northeastern University Marine Science Center (UCSI)
Students will participate in a board game style climate change scenario. We
will look at issues that are literally in our own backyards – in Boston’s neighborhoods, and in ocean habitats right off the Massachusetts coast. Students
will choose roles, and they will need to make challenging decisions from the
perspective of their roles. Discussion will likely be thought provoking and relevant. The presenters are from Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center and Urban Coastal Sustainability Initiative.
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Workshops
1. Ocean Acidification, Calcification, and How They Work
Room 405, Meier Hall
Isaac Westfield
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
Calcification is the process many marine organisms (corals, clams, snails, urchins, etc.) use to create their skeletons from carbonate minerals. These skeletons and organisms are sensitive to changes in ocean acidity. The oceans
are currently becoming more acidic as carbon dioxide increases in our atmosphere. This ocean acidification threatens the calcifying marine community.
Come learn about these processes and take part in them yourselves.
2. How Old is that Fish?
Room 420, Meier Hall
Scott Elzey
Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries Age and Growth Lab
The age of a fish is one of the most valuable pieces of information scientists
use to manage species, but how do we figure it out? In this workshop we will
explore a few of the many different techniques that we use to decipher the
age of a fish. Learn how to remove scales and otoliths (“ear stones”) from
specimens and then interpret the markings on these structures to discover
their ages.
3. Rescuing NH Marine Mammals
Room 119, Sullivan
Sarah Toupin
Seacoast Science Center
What would you do if you found bones on the beach? If you were on the
CSI forensic science squad, you’d be investigating human remains. But could it
be some other mammal? There are an amazing number of similarities when
comparing anatomy between different marine mammal species. Using real
bones, students will “reconstruct” skeletons and determine what marine
mammal species it is. Learn all about the Center’s Marine Mammal Rescue
Team and what they do.
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4. Marine Archeology: Mapping a Shipwreck
Room 109, Sullivan
Victor Mastone, Leland Crawford, Calvin Mires, Laurel Seaborn
Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources and SEAMAHP
The field of archaeology is a destructive science. In order to maintain context, understanding how each piece of the puzzle relates and connects to its
surroundings, archaeologists record everything they observe. Learn how marine/nautical archaeologists survey, record, and interpret a shipwreck.
5. Life in the Rocky Intertidal: Challenges and Adaptations
Room 429, Meier Hall
Kate McClure
Northeastern University Marine Science Center
We will learn about the challenges faced by organisms living on rocky shores
in Massachusetts. We will discuss different ways organisms have adapted to
deal with these challenges and observe live animals and seaweed collected
from local shores. We will then use what we have learned to design our own
intertidal critters.
6. Ocean Engineering and Underwater Vehicles
Room 431, Meier Hall
Kathryn Shroyer
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sea Grant
Ever wondered about the field of Ocean Engineering? What is it exactly that
engineers do? How do they do it? Come learn how engineers design and
build technology to study and interact with aquatic environments. This workshop will introduce you to the field of Ocean Engineering, specifically underwater vehicles like Remote Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). Learn how to design and make your very own ROV.
7. Squid Dissection
Room 414, Meier Hall
Curtis Sarkin
Maritime Gloucester
Through a hands on investigation students become acquainted with one of
the ocean’s most fascinating creatures. As students examine the squid’s external anatomy they search for clues to the squid’s behavior based upon its
unique adaptations. During the dissection students are introduced to the basics of lab procedure and provided with an opportunity to examine the internal anatomy of a squid. All of the squid used for dissections is frozen for use
as food in Maritime Gloucester’s aquarium system.
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