Florida International University Magazine Fall 2004: The Future of Medicine in South Florida

Copy of Florida International University Magazine published Fall 2004 with a feature article on the Honor College's Medical Education Program at Florida International University and its impact on the development of a school of medicine in South Florida.

Florida International University School of Medicine to add $1 billion to South Florida's economy

Official Florida International University press release on the economic impact expected to result from the establishment of a School of Medicine in South Florida.

Florida International University College of Medicine & South Florida: Partners in Health

Promotional news insert discussing the future of the Florida International University College of Medicine and its role on the health and medical community in South Florida.

The Future of Medicine in South Florida

Fall 2004 copy of FLorida International University Magazine. Feature article on the Honors College's Medical Education Program and the future of medicine in South Florida.

Clash of identities in South Florida: An examination of the complexity of racial and national identity and their impact on ethnic solidarity between black Americans and Jamaicans

Immigrants from the West Indies and other nations challenge the simple United States dichotomy of blacks versus whites. Many apparently black Caribbean immigrants proclaim that they did not know they were “black” until they arrived in the U.S. They seek to maintain their national identity and resist identity and solidarity with Black Americans. In response, many Black Americans respond that the immigrants are simply being naive, that U.S. society demands simple racial identity. Regardless of one's self-identity and personal history, in the U.S., if you look black, you are black, was their thinking. ^ This study examines the contemporary struggle of identity and solidarity among and between Black Americans and Jamaicans living in South Florida (Broward and Miami-Dade counties). Even though the primary focus of this study is to examine the relationship between Black Americans and Jamaicans, other West Indian nationals will be addressed more generally. The primary research problem of this study is to determine why the existence of common ancestry and physical traits are insufficient for an assumption of ethnic solidarity between Black Americans and Jamaicans. ^ In examining this problem, I felt that depth rather than breadth would provide insight into the current state of polarization between Black Americans and Jamaicans. To this end, a qualitative study was designed. A non-random snowball sample consisting of forty-seven informants was selected for this study. Realizing that such a technique presents problems with generalizations beyond the sample, this approach was, nonetheless, the most suitable for the current research problem. One of the initial challenges of this research was the use of the label “black” in discussing Caribbean immigrants. Unlike America, where distinctions based on skin color were at the bedrock of America's formation, this was not the case in the Caribbean. In the Caribbean skin color was an important marker as an indicator of class, rather than of race. Therefore, I refrained from using the label, “black Jamaicans,” but rather used Jamaicans throughout. ^

Molecular markers and human history: A tale of two haplogroup systems

To chronicle demographic movement across African Asian corridors, a variety of molecular (sequence analysis, restriction mapping and denaturing high performance liquid chromatography etc.) and statistical (correspondence analysis, AMOVA, calculation of diversity indices and phylogenetic inference, etc.) techniques were employed to assess the phylogeographic patterns of mtDNA control region and Y chromosomal variation among 14 sub-Saharan, North African and Middle Eastern populations. The patterns of genetic diversity revealed evidence of multiple migrations across several African Asian passageways as well within the African continent itself. The two-part analysis uncovered several interesting results which include the following: (1) a north (Egypt and Middle East Asia) to south (sub-Saharan Africa) partitioning of both mtDNA and Y chromosomal haplogroup diversity, (2) a genetic diversity gradient in sub-Saharan Africa from east to west, (3) evidence in favor of the Levantine Corridor over the Horn of Africa as the major genetic conduit since the Last Glacial Maximum, (4) a substantially higher mtDNA versus Y chromosomal sub-Saharan component in the Middle East collections, (5) a higher representation of East versus West African mtDNA haplotypes in the Arabian Peninsula populations versus no such bias in the Levant groups and lastly, (6) genetic remnants of the Bantu demographic expansion in sub-Saharan Africa. ^

The men behind the market: Merchants, the Atlantic slave trade, and the shaping of South Carolina plantation society, 1700–1756

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the role played by merchants in the shaping of South Carolina plantation society in its early stages of development. In 1700 South Carolina was on the fringes of the British Empire. By mid-century the colony had become an integral part of the British Atlantic system. This dissertation addresses merchants' activity in the shaping of plantation society through their involvement in the Atlantic slave trade. Records of the British and South Carolina governments, and petitions from merchants on both sides of the Atlantic have been extremely valuable in understanding the complex and rapidly changing political affiliations of merchants on both sides of the Atlantic. These sources are valuable to this study since they illustrate the merchants' strategy of utilizing government policies to acquire the absolute best terms of trade. Records such as wills and inventories yielded valuable information on merchants' economic portfolios and provided valuable insight into their personal lives. The data shows that the integration of Colonial South Carolina into the global economy can be attributed to its merchant class, who actively sought out business opportunities in the global economy while working within the framework of British mercantilism.

Ecophysiology and biomechanics of Equisetum giganteum in South America

Equisetum giganteum L., a giant horsetail, is one of the largest living members of an ancient group of non-flowering plants with a history extending back 377 million years. Its hollow upright stems grow to over 5 m in height. Equisetum giganteum occupies a wide range of habitats in southern South America. Colonies of this horsetail occupy large areas of the Atacama river valleys, including those with sufficiently high groundwater salinity to significantly reduce floristic diversity. The purpose of this research was to study the ecophysiological and biomechanical properties that allow E. giganteum to successfully colonize a range of habitats, varying in salinity and exposure. Stem ecophysiological behavior was measured via steady state porometry (stomatal conductance), thermocouple psychrometry (water potential), chlorophyll fluorescence, and ion specific electrodes (xylem fluid solutes). Stem biomechanical properties were measured via a 3-point bending apparatus and cross sectional imaging. Equisetum giganteum stems exhibit mechanical characteristics of semi-self-supporting plants, requiring mutual support or support of other vegetation when they grow tall. The mean elastic moduli (4.3 Chile, 4.0 Argentina) of E. giganteum in South America is by far the largest measured in any living horsetail. Stomatal behavior of E. giganteum is consistent with that of typical C3 vascular plants, although absolute values of maximum late morning stomatal conductance are very low in comparison to typical plants from mesic habitats. The internode stomata exhibit strong light response. However, the environmental sensitivity of stomatal conductance appeared less in young developing stems, possibly due to higher cuticular conductance. Exclusion of sodium (Na) and preferential accumulation of potassium (K) at the root level appears to be the key mechanism of salinity tolerance in E. giganteum. Overall stomatal conductance and chlorophyll fluorescence were little affected by salinity, ranging from very low levels up to half strength seawater. This suggests a high degree of salinity stress tolerance. The capacity of E. giganteum to adapt to a wide variety of environments in southern South America has allowed it to thrive despite tremendous environmental changes during their long tenure on Earth.

Carbon and nitrogen stable isotopic patterns in South Florida coastal ecosystems: Modern and paleoceanographic perspectives

Long term management plans for restoration of natural flow conditions through the Everglades increase the importance of understanding potential nutrient impacts of increased freshwater delivery on coastal biogeochemistry. The present study sought to increase understanding of the coastal marine system of South Florida under modern conditions and through the anthropogenic changes in the last century, on scales ranging from individual nutrient cycle processes to seasonal patterns in organic material (OM) under varying hydrodynamic regime, to century scale analysis of sedimentary records. In all applications, carbon and nitrogen stable isotopic compositions of OM were examined as natural recorders of change and nutrient cycling in the coastal system. ^ High spatial and temporal variability in stable isotopic compositions were observed on all time scales. During a transient phytoplankton bloom, δ 15N values suggested nitrogen fixation as a nutrient source supporting enhanced productivity. Seasonally, particulate organic material (POM) from ten sites along the Florida Reef Tract and in Florida Bay demonstrated variable fluctuations dependent on hydrodynamic setting. Three separate intra-annual patterns were observed, yet statistical differences were observed between groupings of Florida Bay and Atlantic Ocean sites. The POM δ 15N values ranged on a quarterly basis by 7‰, while δ 13C varied by 22‰. From a sediment history perspective, four cores collected from Florida Bay further demonstrated the spatial and temporal variability of the system in isotopic composition of bulk OM over time. Source inputs of OM varied with location, with terrestrial inputs dominating proximal to Everglades freshwater discharge, seagrasses dominating in open estuary cores, and a marine mixture of phytoplankton and seagrass in a core from the boundary zone between Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Significant shifts in OM geochemistry were observed coincident with anthropogenic events of the 20th century, including railroad and road construction in the Florida Keys and Everglades, and also the extensive drainage changes in Everglades hydrology. The sediment record also preserved evidence of the major hurricanes of the last century, with excursions in geochemical composition coincident with Category 4-5 storms. ^

Tracking rates of ecotone migration due to salt-water encroachment using fossil mollusks in coastal South Florida

We determined the rate of migration of coastal vegetation zones in response to salt-water encroachment through paleoecological analysis of mollusks in 36 sediment cores taken along transects perpendicular to the coast in a 5.5 km2 band of coastal wetlands in southeast Florida. Five vegetation zones, separated by distinct ecotones, included freshwater swamp forest, freshwater marsh, and dwarf, transitional and fringing mangrove forest. Vegetation composition, soil depth and organic matter content, porewater salinity and the contemporary mollusk community were determined at 226 sites to establish the salinity preferences of the mollusk fauna. Calibration models allowed accurate inference of salinity and vegetation type from fossil mollusk assemblages in chronologically calibrated sediments. Most sediments were shallow (20–130 cm) permitting coarse-scale temporal inferences for three zones: an upper peat layer (zone 1) representing the last 30–70 years, a mixed peat-marl layer (zone 2) representing the previous ca. 150–250 years and a basal section (zone 3) of ranging from 310 to 2990 YBP. Modern peat accretion rates averaged 3.1 mm yr)1 while subsurface marl accreted more slowly at 0.8 mm yr)1. Salinity and vegetation type for zone 1 show a steep gradient with freshwater communities being confined west of a north–south drainage canal constructed in 1960. Inferences for zone 2 (pre-drainage) suggest that freshwater marshes and associated forest units covered 90% of the area, with mangrove forests only present along the peripheral coastline. During the entire pre-drainage history, salinity in the entire area was maintained below a mean of 2 ppt and only small pockets of mangroves were present; currently, salinity averages 13.2 ppt and mangroves occupy 95% of the wetland. Over 3 km2 of freshwater wetland vegetation type have been lost from this basin due to salt-water encroachment, estimated from the mollusk-inferred migration rate of freshwater vegetation of 3.1 m yr)1 for the last 70 years (compared to 0.14 m yr)1 for the pre-drainage period). This rapid rate of encroachment is driven by sea-level rise and freshwater diversion. Plans for rehydrating these basins with freshwater will require high-magnitude re-diversion to counteract locally high rates of sea-level rise.