MEDIA CONTACT: Patsy Jones
561-297-1307, patsyj@fau.edu
BOCA RATON, FL (December 27, 2007) – Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Science will begin its 2008 Spring Frontiers in Science public lecture series with a presentation by Dr. Jeanette Wyneken, an associate professor in FAU’s department of biological sciences. “Sun, Sand, Sea Turtles and Sex on the Beach” will take place on Thursday, January 10 at 3:30 p.m. in Room 126 in the Charles E. Schmidt Biomedical College of Science Building, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton campus.
Wyneken will discuss how the gender of marine turtles is determined. Wynkenen will explain that the gender is not determined at birth but instead is determined by the environment in which the turtles develop and mature because it is conditions on the beach and variations among beaches that give sometimes surprising results as to where the boys are and where the girls are.
“Long term implications of beaches and beach management in Florida have to include components for wild life, including the nests of sea turtles,” said Wyneken. “The long term study of the sex ratio rising from Florida beaches is a topic that now sets standards for conservation management of sea turtles.”
Wyneken’s professional goals emphasize maintaining an active research program, training students and educating the public about how organisms contend or interact with their environment. Wyneken joined FAU in 2000 and is currently writing a book titled The Anatomy of Reptiles.
“We are looking forward to our spring schedule for this increasingly popular Frontiers in Science public lecture series,” said Dr. Gary W. Perry, dean of FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. “The program, which began seven years ago, continues to grow as we feature renowned professors in our own college as well as prominent scientists from other academic communities.”
This lecture is free and open to the public, and is sponsored by the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science and supported by FAU’s Lifelong Learning Society Endowed Professorship.
The reception that follows the program is made possible by the Warren Lloyd Holtzman Seed Grant, a component of the Community Foundation of the New River Valley.
For more information, contact Patsy Jones at 561-297-1307 or patsyj@fau.edu.
-FAU-
Florida Atlantic University opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University serves more than 26,000 undergraduate and graduate students on seven campuses strategically located along 150 miles of Florida's southeastern coastline. Building on its rich tradition as a teaching university, with a world-class faculty, FAU hosts nine colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts & Letters, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Biomedical Science, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Barry Kaye College of Business and the Colleges of Education, Engineering & Computer Science, and Architecture, Urban & Public Affairs.
