Ken Barbor. Photo provided by The University of Southern Mississippi’s School of Ocean Science and Engineering.

GoMRI Mourns the Passing of Kenneth E. Barbor

It is with deep sadness that we share the news that Rear Admiral Kenneth “Ken” Eicher Barbor passed away on Sunday July 22, 2018 after battling cancer. Barbor served as Commander of Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command and was the Director of the International Hydrographic Bureau in Monaco. Barbor was also the founding Director of the Hydrographic Science Research Center at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM).

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Study author Hernando P. Bacosa onboard the RV Pelican collecting water samples from the Gulf of Mexico. Photo provided by Zhanfei Liu.

Study Finds Environmental Factors Influence the Selection of Oil-Degrading Microbes

Researchers conducted incubation experiments and examined the roles of temperature, nutrients, and initial bacterial community on oil biodegradation. Higher and lower temperatures yielded distinctly different bacterial community compositions, indicating that temperature is a key influencer of bacteria that respond when oil is present.

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