De'Marcus Robinson
Tell us about yourself:
I’m De’Marcus Robinson a graduate student at the University of California, Los Angeles in the Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Department. What got me interested in oceanography was from an intro to oceanography class my senior year in high school along with various internship experiences from my undergraduate institution, at Florida A&M University. This led me to pursue a career in ocean science with the hopes of inspiring a younger generation of marine scientist. Outside of graduate school, I am involved in several Los Angeles Community Projects along with founding a non-profit organization called BehindTheSTEAHM with the goal to dismantle misinformation in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Humanities, and Mathematics.
What is your research about?
My research is studying the biogeochemical feedbacks in the Santa Barbara Basin. I am interested in how the benthic microbial community influences the biogeochemical cycling of the ocean from the mineralization of organic matter along to various flux in and out of the sediment that contribute to the deoxygenation in the water column and nutrient cycling. I am also interested in Cable Bacteria and their effects on the geochemistry and microbial ecology of different niches.
What excites you about your research?
What excites me about my research is investigating the unknown and understanding more about how microbes effect their environment, and how resilient the microbial community structure is. I get excited with being able to communicate this with other people outside my field of study.
What broader importance does your research have for society?
The broader impact my research has on society is providing knowledge from an under communicated part of science and the ocean so that society has a better understanding on how the microbial communities affect the environment. It will show how important these microbial communities are especially when understanding environmental changes caused by from natural and anthropogenic sources. This will allow us to focus on what happens on the microscopic level to determine what impact it has on other micro and macro communities and human life.
What inspired you to pursue a career in Earth Science?
My interest in science is what motivated me to pursue a career in Earth Science. Even though I was interested in the ocean from taking an oceanography class in high school. My primary interest came from an environmental justice point of view wanting to address the air pollution problem in Atlanta Georgia. This motivated me to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Florida A&M University while conducting research on designing a material that absorbs oil from oil spills. From various internships in undergrad, my experiences funnel down to pursuing a PhD in the field of Marine Science.
What are you looking to do after you complete your PhD?
After completing my PhD I would like to pursue a career for NOAA while also being a professor at an academic institution. My goal is to increase the number of POC in Marine Science
Given unlimited funding and access to resources, what is your dream project that you would pursue?
My project would be to design an instrument that gives Realtime in situ biogeochemical signatures in the sediment along with the identification of the microbial environment that causing these metabolic changes. It would be similar to the Argo float program, but for sediment.
What else do you do? Any hobbies or interests outside of work?
Outside of work I am involved with several Los Angeles organizations and community projects. Outside of that you can find me playing various percussion instruments or planting.