Overview
Dr. Houshuo Jiang's primary research interest lies at the interface between small-scale fluid physics and the ecology and biology of marine plankton.
Marine planktonic organisms are predominantly microscopic and slow-moving relative to the macroscopic world. Consequently, within the fluid immediately surrounding a planktonic organism, low-Reynolds-number fluid dynamics and small-scale diffusion govern the transport of mass and momentum. These processes shape the flow of energy, matter, and information to and from plankton. The interaction between small-scale fluid physics and the morphology, behavior, perception, and responses of marine plankton results in a variety of fascinating phenomena, patterns, processes, and functions that are fundamentally important to marine life, population dynamics, ecosystem functioning, and evolution.
Research in this burgeoning field requires multidisciplinary approaches and synergies among fluid physics, plankton ecology, and biological oceanography, with the goal of developing a mechanistic understanding based on first principles.
Research Areas
Hydrodynamics and Ecology of Planktonic Copepods
Small-scale Fluid Physics and Ecology of Planktonic Ciliates
Small-scale Fluid Physics and Ecology of Planktonic Dinoflagellates
Hydrodynamics of Swimming, Feeding, and Signaling in Marine Invertebrate Larvae
Hydrodynamics and Lateral Line Sensory Ecology of Fish
Hydrodynamics of Jet Propulsion in Marine Animals