Objective "Perhaps the most striking example of the influence of aquatic microorganisms in global cycles is their role in the oxygenation of the Earth's atmosphere and the transfer of photosynthetically fixed carbon from the ocean's surface to the deep ocean through sinking, a mechanism referred to as the Biological Carbon Pump, the process responsible for most of the oceanic uptake of anthropogenic CO2.Mainly driven by phytoplankton sinking, the Biological Carbon Pump is, at its core, a fluid dynamical problem coupling physiological processes with biogeochemical cycles. As such, it spans multiple levels of biological organization and its study requires an integrative and interdisciplinary approach.This proposal aims at critically advancing our knowledge of the biological pump and its response to global changes in the environment by breaking through the current physiological bottleneck and examining the range of scales necessary to predict what the future is likely to hold. Specifically, I will focus on understanding the organism's role in organism-environment linkages, promoting phytoplankton to an active - physiologically controlled - performer in the carbon cycle. The interplay between active physiological responses and fluid transport, in what I like to call Complex (or Intelligent) Advection, remains largely unexplored whereas its consequences for biogeochemical cycles in the ocean are of paramount significance.The role of organisms in organism-environment interactions, its study through the integration of living and physical systems analysis, and its repercussions for the time course of adaptation and acclimation are three of the ""Grand Challenges"" in organismal biology, identified by the Executive Committee of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB). All three challenges will be tackled within the proposed research program for the case of one of the most successful groups of eukaryotic micro-organisms in aquatic environments: the diatoms." Fields of science medical and health sciencesbasic medicinephysiologynatural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologynatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesgeochemistrybiogeochemistry Programme(s) FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) Topic(s) FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG - Marie-Curie Action: "Career Integration Grants" Call for proposal FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MC-CIG - Support for training and career development of researcher (CIG) Coordinator UNIVERSITAT DE LES ILLES BALEARS EU contribution € 100 000,00 Address CARRETERA DE VALLDEMOSSA KM 7.5 07122 Palma De Mallorca Spain See on map Region Este Illes Balears Mallorca Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Administrative Contact Xavier Garcias (Dr.) Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Total cost No data