Gil Bohrer
E-mail: gbohrer@fas.harvard.edu Homepage: http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~gbohrer/
Duke University, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering,
PH.D. – Civil & Environmental Engineering. Dissertation title: Large eddy simulations of forest canopies for determination of biological dispersal by wind. Supervisor: Prof. Roni Avissar. 2007.
Ben Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), Israel, Dept. of Life
Sciences and the Mitrani Dept. of Desert Ecology
M.Sc. (Cum laude) – Ecology. Dissertation title: Abundance of
VAM fungi and its interactions with host and environmental conditions in
natural semi arid habitats in the Kalahari Desert. Supervisors: Prof. D. Ward,
Dr. V. Kagan-Zur and Prof. N. Roth-Bejerano. 2001
B.Sc. (Suma cum laude) – Biology (Ecology major). 1998.
John & Elaine French Post-Doctoral Fellow, Harvard University Center for the Environment. 9/2007 – 9/2008.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Biosphere-atmosphere interactions; soil-plant-atmosphere hydrological continuum; large eddy simulations; regional atmospheric modeling; land-surface heterogeneity; atmospheric boundary layer; turbulence; wind dispersal; VR visualization of atmospheric models.
FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
Harvard University, Center for the Environment, The John & Elaine French Fellowship, 2007-2008.
American Geophysical Union, Outstanding Student Paper Award for Presentation at the 2007 Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA.
PUBLICATIONS
Bohrer G, Katul GG, Walko RL and Avissar R, Large eddy simulations of micro-scale structural heterogeneity of forest canopies. Bound. Layer meteor. 7/2008, under review.
Wright JS, Trakhtenbrot A, Bohrer G, Detto M, Horvitz N, Katul GG, Muller-Landau HC, Jones FA and Nathan R. Understanding strategies for seed dispersal by wind under contrasting atmospheric conditions. PNAS. 3/2008, under review.
Mandel JT, Bildstein KL, Bohrer G and Winkler DW. The movement ecology of migration in turkey vultures: contrasts in the mechanisms and linkages between energetics and the environment. PNAS. 2/2008, under review.
Bohrerova Z, Bohrer G, Bolch A, Cho KD and Linden KG. Viability of pollen under atmospheric conditions during long distance dispersal. Ecol. Appl. 11/2007, under review.
Bohrer G, Katul GG, Nathan R, Walko RL & Avissar R. 2008. Effects of canopy heterogeneity, seed abscission and inertia on wind driven dispersal kernels of tree seeds. J. Ecol., 96: 569-580.
Bohrer G, Wolosin M, Brady R and Avissar R. 2007. A Virtual canopy Generator (V-GaCe) for modeling complex heterogeneous forest canopies at high resolution. Tellus B. 59: 566-576.
Ewers EB, Oren R, Kim H-S, Bohrer G, Lai CT & Johnsen KH. 2007. Effects of hydraulic architecture and spatial variation in light on mean stomatal conductance of tree branches and crowns. Plant Cell Environ. 30: 483-496.
Ramos da Silva R, Bohrer G, Otte M, Werth D & Avissar R. 2006. Sensitivity of ice storms in the southeast US to Atlantic SST – Insights from a case study of the December, 2002 ice storm. Month. Weather Rev. 134: 1454-1464.
Bohrer G, Mourad H, Laursen TA, Drewry D, Avissar R, Poggi D, Oren R & Katul GG. 2005. Finite-element tree canopy hydrodynamics model (FETCH) using porous media flow within branching elements – a new representation of tree hydrodynamics. Water Resource Res. 41: W11404.
Bohrer G, Nathan R & Volis S. 2005. Effects of long distance dispersal for metapopulation survival and genetic structure at ecological time and spatial scales. J. Ecol. 93: 1029-1041 (+Journal cover).
Bohrerova Z, Bohrer G, Mohanraj S, Ducoste J & Linden KG. 2005. Experimental measurement of fluence distribution in a UV reactor using fluorescent dyed microspheres. Environ. Sci Technol. 39: 8925-8930.
Nathan R, Sapir N, Trakhtenbrot A, Katul GG, Bohrer G, Otte M, Avissar R, Sons MB, Horn HS, Wikelski M & Levin SA. 2005. Long distance biological transport processes through the air: Can nature’s complexity be unfolded in-silico? Divers. Distrib. 11: 131-137.
Volis S, Bohrer G, Oostermeijer G. & Van Tienderen P. 2005. Regional consequences of local population demography and genetics in relation to habitat management in Gentiana pneumonanthe. Conserv. Biol. 19: 357-367.
Bohrerova Z, Stralkova R, Podesvova J, Bohrer G & Pokorny E. 2004. The relationship between redox potential and nitrification under different sequences of crop rotations. Soil Till. Res. 77: 25-33.
Bohrer G, Kagan-Zur V, Roth-Bejerano N, Ward D, Beck G & Bonifacio E. 2003. Effects of different Kalahari-Desert VA mycorrhizal communities on mineral acquisition and depletion from the soil by host plants. J. Arid Environ. 55: 193-208.
Bohrer G, Shem-Tov S, Summer A, Or K. & Salts D. 2002. The effectiveness of various rabies spatial vaccination patterns in a simulated host population with clumped distribution. Ecol. Model. 152: 205-211.
Bohrer G, Kagan-Zur V, Roth-Bejerano N & Ward D. 2001. Effects of environmental variables on abundance of VA mycorrhizas in wild Kalahari Desert populations of Vangueria infausta. J. Veg. Sci. 12: 279-288.
BOOK CHAPTER
Bohrer G, Beck G, Ward D, Roth-Bejerano N, & Kagan-Zur V. 2007. VAM – host – environment interactions in a wild host, Vangueria infausta, from the Kalahari desert. In: Montaño NM, Camargo-Ricalde SL, García Sánchez R, A. Monroy-Ata (Eds.) 2007. Micorrizas arbusculares en ecosistemas áridos y semiáridos (Arbuscular mycorrhizae in arid and semiarid ecosystems). Mundi-Prensa SA of CV, Instituto Nacional de Ecología-SEMARNAT, UAM-Iztapalapa, FES-Zaragoza-UNAM. Distrito Federal, México (460 pages) pp 268-304.
INVITED CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
Bohrer G, Katul GG & Avissar R. Modification of mean boundary layer properties by micro-scale heterogeneity in large eddy simulations. 5/2008. Inaugural International Conference of the Engineering Mechanics Institute (EM08), Minneapolis, MN.
Bohrer G, Brady R & Avissar R. Immersed virtual reality visualization of a forest-atmosphere flow model. 5/2007. Duke Frontiers, Duke University, Durham, NC.
Bohrer G, Ward D, Roth-Bejerano N, Kagan-Zur V. Host-VAM interactions affect seedling survival and growth. Oral presentation, 10/1999. Combating desertification with plants. Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel.
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
Bohrer G, Katul GG, Avissar R & Moorcroft PR. Large-eddy simulations of the effects of forest canopy microscale structural heterogeneity. Poster, 5/2008. The 4th Annual Plant Biology Symposium, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA.
Bohrer G, Katul GG, Walko RL & Avissar R. Large-Eddy simulations of forest canopy micro-scale structural heterogeneity effects on the atmospheric boundary layer. Poster, 12/2007. AGU fall meeting 2007, San-Francisco, CA.
Bohrer G, Walko RL & Avissar R. A New Concept for Representing Trees in LES Simulations, Oral presentation, 12/2006. AGU fall meeting 2006, San-Francisco, CA.
Bohrer G, Walko RL & Avissar R. RAFLES – a new generation high-resolution model for simulation of turbulence and dispersal within and above forest canopies. Poster, 1/2006. 1st Integrated Land Ecosystem-Atmosphere Processes Study Conference, Boulder, CO.
Bohrer G, Ramos da Silva R, Otte M, Werth D, Avissar R. Sensitivity of ice storms in the southeast US to elevated Atlantic SST. Poster, 5/2005. International conference of Israeli Society for Ecology and Environmental Quality Sciences. Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel.
Bohrer G, Ward D, Roth-Bejerano N, Kagan-Zur V. Different hosts gain different benefits from communities of Kalahari VAM fungi. Oral presentation, 8/2000. 85th Annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America. Snowbird, Utah.
Bohrer G, Ward D, Kagan-Zur V, Roth-Bejerano N. Correlation between abundance of endomycorrhizal fungal communities, environmental conditions and plant community composition in the Kalahari desert. Poster, 7/1999. 42nd Annual symposium of the International Association for Vegetation Science. Bilbao, Spain.
INVITED SEMINARS
Harvard University, Department of Earth and Planetary sciences, Atmospheric Seminar. “3-D virtual reality visualization of wind in the Amazon forest: Atmospheric-biosphere interactions at local and regional scales", 4/2008.
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, St. Antony Falls Laboratory, “Large-eddy simulations of forest-canopy micro-scale structural heterogeneity and its effects on the atmospheric boundary layer”, 2/2008.
King’s College, London, Department of Geography, “Tree-scale hydrometeorology: determining the environmental consequences of forest structure”, 5/2007.
Duke University, Department of Computer Science, Visualization Technology Group, "See the wind blow – virtual reality as a development and a science-communication tool for large eddy simulations", 4/2007.
University of Georgia, Faculty of Engineering, “Tree-scale hydrometeorology: simulating the effects of forest heterogeneity on atmosphere-biosphere interactions”, 4/2007.
Ohio state University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science, “Tree-scale hydrometeorology: simulating the effects of forest heterogeneity on atmosphere-biosphere interactions”, 3/2007.
Stanford University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, “Tree-scale hydrometeorology: simulating the effects of forest heterogeneity on atmosphere-biosphere interactions”, 3/2007.
Colorado state University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, “Tree-scale hydrometeorology: simulating the effects of canopy heterogeneity on atmosphere-biosphere interactions”, 3/2007
Harvard University, Center for the Environment, “Simulations of tree-scale atmosphere-biosphere interactions”, 3/2007.
University of California Irvine, Global Change Ecology Group, “Forest hydrometeorology from the trees perspective”,1/2007.
Duke University, Department of Computer Science, Visualization Technology Group, "A tour in the virtual forest", 10/2005.
Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel, Dept. of Environmental Sciences & Energy Research. "Simulating a forest – From tree hydrology to wind in the canopy", 6/2005.
Ben Gurion university, Mitrani Dept. for Desert Research, "Sponge, big leaf or electric circuit – Which is a better model for tree hydrology?", 5/2005.
Tel-Aviv University, Israel, Dept. of Plant Sciences, "Modeling the population and genetic effects of LDD", 5/2005.
Ben Gurion university, Institutes of Applied Research, "Modeling the population and genetic effects of LDD", 5/2005.
Duke University, Department of Computer Science. Certificate in Computational Science in Engineering, 2007.
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Pre-Doctoral Fellow, 2005-2008.
University of Amsterdam, Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics. Visiting Researcher, Supervisor: Prof. Peter van Tienderen, 6-7/2003.
STUDENT AWARDS
Duke University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Utku Award for best pre-doctoral peer-reviewed paper in 2006.
Duke University, Graduate School, Study-abroad travel award for research project in Panama, 2005.
The Krupp Foundation, scholarship for distinct M.Sc. students 1999-2000.
Ben Gurion university, Mitrani Dept. of Desert Ecology, the Ben Gurion graduate research project award, 1999.
Ben Gurion university, Dept. of Life Sciences, Summer research award for prospective M.Sc. students, 1998.
Ben Gurion university, Kreitman Award for outstanding junior achievements, 1997.
GRANTS
Co-investigator and participated in writing of:
US Department of Agriculture-CSREES grant # 2005-03804 – “Dispersal of viable GM pollen”, 2005-2008. Williams C (PI), Linden KG, Avissar R, Katul GG.
NSF grant # DEB-0453665 – “Seed dispersal by wind and plant recruitment in tropical forests – an interdisciplinary investigation across multiple scales”, 2005-2007. Nathan R (PI), Wright J, Muller-Landau H, Avissar R.
Minnesota Supercomputing Institute – “Modeling wind for determination of landscape-level seed dispersal and genetic connectedness” (17000 CPU-hour units), 2006–2007, Muller-Landau H (PI).
Guest Lecturer
Haifa University, Israel, School of Social Works, in course: "Developmental Disabilities". Lecture title: "Introduction to genetics and inherited diseases", 5/2000.
BGU, Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, lectures in "MASHAV International Course". Lecture title: "Genetic methods in ecological research", 4/1999, 4/2000.
Teaching Assistant
Duke University, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Courses taught: Engineering Systems Optimization, 2005; Engineering Data Analysis, 2004.
BGU, Dept. of Life Sciences. Course taught: Genetics, 1998;1999.
Instructor
Duke University, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Introduction to MATLAB, (1 class session) in courses: Engineering Systems Optimization, 2005; Engineering Data Analysis, 2004.
BGU, Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, Workshops: Introduction to statistics; Introduction to data analysis with MS-Excel, in MASHAV International Course, 1999;2000.
BGU, Dept. of Life Sciences. Botany Laboratory, 1999.
Mentoring of a Visiting Graduate Student
Duke University, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Mentoring James T. Mandel, visiting Ph.D. student from Cornell University, Biology Dept. Project title: “Implementing a regional atmospheric model (RAMS) in vulture migration studies”, 7-8/2006.
Primary and Middle School Teacher
"Eichut" Creative Studying (supported by “Keren Karev” – Andrea and Charles Bronfman Foundation). Nature and environment through art, 1995-1997.
Outdoor-Skills Group Instructor
The Memorial Society for Uri Maymon, and Israeli Society for Protection of Nature. Environmental education initiatives in conservation and outdoors skills for high-school students, 1989-2000.
REFEREE FOR JOURNALS:
Biological conservation (2008);Journal of Hydrometeorology; Water resources Research; Ecological modeling (2006); Journal of Ecology; Biotropica; Journal of Tropical Forest Science; Annals of Botany (2005); Journal of Arid Environments (2004).
PROFESSIONAL AFFILATIONS
American Meteorological Society; American Geophysical Union; Sigma Xi.
Mercalink; MMI services: Data analysis and data-warehouse consultant. 2002.
SupplyScience LTD. (Currently merged with Retalix), Algorithmic Department: Statistician and algorithm developer, 2000-2002.