And so end’s Stony Brook University’s first Tropical Marine Ecology class.  I couldn’t have been more pleased with the way the class played out.  The facilities at the Discovery Bay Marine Lab were perfectly suited to all aspects of the class.  The students worked extremely hard, learned a tremendous amount about coral reef organisms and function, and executed successful, in-depth research projects.  It was  gratifying to oversee many student firsts during the class:  First SCUBA dive, first trip out of the country, first examination of a coral reef, first experience making a graph, first experience with a statistical test, first independent research project, etc.  Student gave final PowerPoint presentations of their research projects on Friday afternoon which were impressive and of a high quality.  I’ll hold off final judgment of each project until Friday…the last day they may hand in their final papers.

For site visitors, continue to check back, as we will post more pictures and information about student projects in the near future.