Reef Research: Volume 6 No. 4 December 1996

AIMS SCIENTISTS WIN PRESTIGIOUS AWARD

Kim Davis
C
ongratulations to Dr Eric Wolanski and his team at the Australian Institute of Marine Science who won the 1996 Queensland Information Technology and Telecommunication Award for Public Sector Use of Information Technology for developing innovative models of marine processes.

In 1994 Dr Wolanski was awarded a $1.4 million research grant from the IBM International Foundation to develop information technology as a tool for marine science and management. This grant was the only grant awarded by IBM in the Asia-Pacific region and one of only four grants awarded world-wide outside the United States of America.

Dr Wolanski and Dr Brian King were able to collate data on marine ecosystems and produce three-dimensional `models' to illustrate various marine processes. The funds derived from the grant were used to purchase the necessary computer equipment for such a project, for partial salary support and necessary travel.

The researchers were able to model key environmental issues, including coral and fish recruitment, oil and metal pollution in tropical waters and the movement of cohesive sediment, not only along the coast of Queensland but also in Vietnam, Thailand, China and Malaysia.

Dr Wolanski believes the model is instrumental in assisting the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and other management agencies in information technology and data evaluation for projects and developments.

For further information on this project contact Dr Eric Wolanski at the Australian Institute of Marine Science on +61 77 53 4211.


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