Anne E. Giblin is a marine biologist who researches the cycling of elements nitrogen, sulfur, iron and phosphorus. She is a Senior Scientist and Acting Director of the Ecosystem Center at the Marine Biological Lab.

Education

Giblin earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology at

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...

, in Troy, NY in 1975. She went on to earn her Ph.D. in ecology at the

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

Marine Program, in Woods Hole, MA, in 1982. Giblin did her graduate work in the Massachusetts Great Sippewissett Marsh, studying trace metal solubility in salt marsh sediments which were contaminated with sewage sludge.

Career and research

Gilbin's research primarily focuses on the cycling of elements such as

nitrogen Nitrogen is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a Nonmetal (chemistry), nonmetal and the lightest member of pnictogen, group 15 of the periodic table, often called the Pnictogen, pnictogens. ...

sulfur Sulfur ( American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur ( Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms ...

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

, and

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol P and atomic number 15. All elemental forms of phosphorus are highly Reactivity (chemistry), reactive and are therefore never found in nature. They can nevertheless be prepared ar ...

in the environment. The majority of Giblin's research is focused around the circulation of these elements in different

redox Redox ( , , reduction–oxidation or oxidation–reduction) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of the reactants change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state, while reduction is t ...

(reduction-oxidation) conditions in soils and sediments. Another dominant theme in her work is to comprehend if sediment processes act as a buffer or act to exacerbate anthropogenic inputs of nutrients to the environment. For example, much of her work focuses on the

nitrogen cycle The nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into multiple chemical forms as it circulates among atmosphere, atmospheric, terrestrial ecosystem, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems. The conversion of nitrogen can ...

, and the effects ecosystems may have if there are high nutrient inputs from wastewater or fertilizer. Gilbin is the lead PI of the Plum Island Ecosystems Long Term Ecological Research Site (PIE LTER). The Plum Island Ecosystems is composed of estuaries and watersheds located in northeastern

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. The three rivers that make up the ecosystem are the

Ipswich River Ipswich River is a small river in northeastern Massachusetts, United States. It held significant importance in early colonial migrations inland from the ocean port of Ipswich, Massachusetts, Ipswich. The river provided safe harborage at offshore ...

, Parker River, and the Rowley River. The goal of this research site is to develop an understanding of the long-term effect's sea-level rise linked to climate change may have on the watershed. The knowledge gathered through this research site is used in policy and land management with the initiative to protect the natural resources of the coastal zone. Giblin is also works at the Arctic Long-Term Ecological Research (ARC LTER). The project is located on the north slope of Alaska. Similar to PIE LTER, this project was created to study anthropogenic as well as natural environmental change on ecosystems. Giblin conducted a long-term fertilization experiment in a pair of lakes and observed their recovery, to anticipate the effects of what will happen with a longer growing season. Data from this project could inform the management of the landscape. Giblin has also worked have had to do with acid deposition on the

sulfur cycle The sulfur cycle is a biogeochemical cycle in which the sulfur moves between rocks, waterways and living systems. It is important in geology as it affects many minerals and in life because sulfur is an essential element (CHNOPS), being a consti ...

of lakes, the movement of trace metals in

salt marsh A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. I ...

sediments, nitrogen inputs and hydrologic disturbances to estuaries and Arctic lakes.

Awards and honors

* Phi Lambda Upsilon Chemical Honor Society. * 2001 - Aldo Leopold Leadership Fellowship * 2013 -

Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellowship of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (FAAAS) is an honor accorded by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to distinguished persons who are members of the Association. Fellows are elected ...

Grants: Giblin's research is supported by numerous grants from the National Science Foundation and the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an government agency, agency of the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geograp ...

Publications

Giblin's publications include the following: # Responses of Arctic Tundra to Experimental and Observed Changes in Climate, 1995, Ecological Society of America. #Resource-based niches provide a basis for plant species diversity and dominance in arctic tundra, 2002, Nature international journal of science. #Methods for Measuring Denitrification: Diverse approaches to a difficult problem, 2006, Ecological society of America #Global Change and the Carbon Balance of Arctic Ecosystems: Carbon/nutrient interactions should act as major constraints on changes in global terrestrial carbon cycling, June 1992, ''BioScience'', Volume 42, Issue 6 #¹⁵N natural abundances and N use by tundra plants, 1996, Oecologia

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giblin, Anne E. Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni Women marine biologists Boston University alumni Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science American marine biologists