BEMAN LAB

There are a million microorganisms in a drop of water, but we have only a limited understanding of what these organisms do: what they ‘eat,' how they survive, or how they interact. However, we do know that the collective activities of these tiny cells drive global cycles of essential elements such as nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen. As a result, microbial communities play a central role in controlling Earth's climate and habitability-yet these global biogeochemical cycles have been subsequently altered by human activities. The overarching goal of our research is to connect these perspectives by developing a predictive understanding of microbial ecology and biogeochemistry in rapidly changing aquatic ecosystems. We try to figure out: (1) what microbes can ‘do' and how they do it; (2) how they interact with each other; (3) how this can change; and (4) what the implications are.