An International Integrative Undergraduate Research Program for Under-represented Students
Join us for an exiting summer research along the sandy shores of Indonesia and in Boston, Massachusetts. You'll experience a new part of the world, see the amazing biodiversity of Indonesian coral reefs, learn to apply cutting edge genetic techniques to the understanding of the origins of marine biodiversity, and develop skills that will further your career development, no matter what your career path is. All that, and it doesn't cost a thing!
Students will receive the following support:
1. Weekly food and lodging stipend of $365 per week while living in Boston.
2. Transportation from your home to Boston.
3. Transportation from Boston to Indonesia.
4. Transportation within Indonesia.
5. Food and lodging while in Indonesia.
Go to the Online Application to apply. Application deadline for Summer 2008 participation is January 18th, 2008.

Program Overview: The summer of 2005 marked the beginning of a new research opportunity for undergraduate students in the laboratory of Dr. Paul Barber at Boston University. The Diversity Project is a 10-week educational program is designed to increase participation of under- represented minority students in the biological sciences through an integrated research experience that combines field work on the colorful and diverse coral reefs of Indonesia with cutting edge molecular genetic research at Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts. Students will join a research team comprised of Dr. Barber, graduate students, and Indonesian reef scientists. Together, we will work with a variety of vertebrate and invertebrate species throughout coral reefs in Indonesia. Upon returning to Boston, students will apply genetic techniques to the samples they just collected to gather data that will help improve our understanding of the origins of marine biodiversity in Indonesia, as well as the conservation of this biodiversity. Hands-on field and laboratory research will be complemented by mentoring on career development, ranging from successfully applying to graduate school to choosing a career. We expect The Diversity Project to run through 2009.

Project Summary: Understanding the origins of high marine biodiversity in the Indo-Pacific. Indonesia is the center of the world's marine biodiversity with an unprecedented wealth of marine species. However, we don't understand why diversity in this region is so high. Traditionally it is believed that speciation results from divergence of populations separated by a physical barrier to dispersal, such as a river or mountain range. Although this model of speciation works well in terrestrial ecosystems, it is unclear whether similar mechanisms operate in marine environments because most marine organisms have a pelagic dispersal stage, where larvae enter into the plankton, potentially dispersing great distances on ocean currents. Because of pelagic larval dispersal, it is believed that there should be limited barriers to dispersal in the oceans, and limited opportunities for the creation of new species. Thus, there is a paradox of high biodiversity in an environment that should have limited opportunities for speciation. Over the next five years, funded by a National Science Foundation grant, we will try to answer this paradox, integrating ecology, physical oceanography, and molecular genetic techniques to explore the evolution of marine biodiversity in the Indo-Pacific.