Winter 2013, Volume 24
Happy Spring! From Professor Billie J. Swalla, Acting Director of FHL
I love the seasons, as they mark the passage of time. 
Winter is a quiet time on the FHL campus
for visitors. However, ask any staff member and they will tell you that they are working hard,
preparing for the busy research and teaching that will go on at FHL in the spring, summer and
fall of 2013. It has been my privilege for the past two months to work with such a dedicated
group of people as the FHL staff, FHL Advancement Board and the College of the Environment
at the University of Washington. It’s been a challenging and unique learning experience, but I
am happy to report that Friday Harbor Laboratories is continuing its stated mission of carrying
out diverse, cutting edge, marine teaching and research. Read More…
You in Partnership with FHL
by Cara Mathison, UW College of the Environment
Friday Harbor Laboratories has a deep and committed network of alumni and supporters who rally together to support this tremendous resource at the center of the Salish Sea. We are indeed fortunate to have over a century’s long history as part of this community, one which we rely on as we continue to build on our strengths and plan for the next century. Read more…
A Small Thing Can Make A Big Difference
by Kevin Schofield, FHL Advancement Board
Being able to support the Adopt-a-Student program, and interacting with the students who benefit from the program, gives me hope for the future: I see smart, driven students who are passionate about the oceans and marine life, and who are getting a great education that will enable them to make the world a better place. Read more…
What’s in the Secret Sauce of FHL?
by Trish Morse, PhD
Chair, FHL Advancement Board
What makes FHL an important destination for marine biology investigators? I wish to present a number of the ingredients for us to consider….In this article, Trish Morse makes tangible the magic of Friday Harbor Labs; a quiet, unassuming marine station on the northwest edge of our border that attracts scientists and students from around the world. Read more…
Secrets of Filter-Feeding Sharks and Rays
by Misty Paig-Tran, Ph.D
Imagine a fish that is longer than a school bus. Now imagine that fish feeds on animals smaller than your pinky nail! How is this incredibly large fish able to filter these tiny organisms from the water? My research at the Friday Harbor Labs focused on answering how some of the largest fishes in the ocean filter tiny planktonic prey from the water column. To answer these questions, I set off with my colleague Silvia Hinojosa to the Yucatán Peninsula (near Cancun) to swim with whale sharks and manta rays. Read more…
Playing on the Dock Prepared Me for Graduate School
by Rachel Sanford, PhD program University of Florida
My first impression of Friday Harbor
Laboratories was at five am, watching the sun rise slowly over the town when I arrived at the Lab. Everything was so quiet and beautiful. There was a light mist of rain falling but it wasn’t enough to really bother anyone. I remember the morning being filled with the color blue. I had been traveling for a good ten hours in busy airports, shuttles and taxies previous to that peaceful moment. That is when I knew I had arrived at a wonderful place and that moment will stay with me for the rest of my life. Read more…
Sun, Sand Dollars, and the Huts: My summer at Friday Harbor Labs
by Ceri Weber, Undergraduate researcher in the Swalla Lab; 2012 FHL BEACON/BLINKS/NSF REU Intern
I had the wonderful opportunity to do research at Friday Harbor Labs this past summer through the NSF REU program. I had heard a lot about FHL from Dr. Billie Swalla as well as the graduate students in her lab, but I had never visited the Labs myself. So I was thrilled when I was accepted into the program and I ended up spending the summer studying the effects of salinity on the mechanics of development in the sand dollar Dendraster excentricus with Dr. Michelangelo von Dassow. Read more…
Coming Events
May 18: UW Friday Harbor Labs Annual Open House
June 1: Jazz at the Labs (Fundraiser for the Science Outreach Program)
June 20: Illg Lecture, Dr. Gonzalo Giribet from Harvard University
For all the details, read more…
FHL Science Outreach Program (FHLSOP) Expansion
by Jenny Roberts, FHLSOP Program Director
New this year - Friday Harbor Labs Science Outreach Program staff, Jenny Roberts and Kari Koski, are excited to offer science outreach programs to groups outside its Partnership with San Juan Island School District and Spring Street International School. For a fee, FHLSOP can design a program of activities to meet a visiting school’s interest and needs for as little as an hour or up to several days. Read More…
FHL Science Outreach Program (FHLSOP) Update
by Jenny Roberts, FHLSOP Program Director
Locally, FHLSOP has been very busy engaging our partner schools’ students in dynamic science activities in the classroom, field, and lab and aboard the UW R/V Centennial. Students are involved in hands-on, inquiry projects involve them in the process of science while fostering good stewardship of our marine and freshwater environments. Read more…
