Communications Update

May 2006

The day after An Unfortunate Truth: was less of a media event than The Day After Tomorrow. Developing an online summary for the OCCI Web site of the trustee/corporation panel discussion on global warming, featuring discussion by Terry Joyce, Ruth Curry, Peter Winsor, Karen Bice and Scott Doney. In final stages of review now. Goes live first week in June.

More Pod People. PodCasts—about 3-min video clips readable on an iPod or any other computer—are growing in popularity as an inexpensive and effect means to get across a message quickly. Produced podcasts of Rhian Waller (Deep Sea corals now on OLI site), draft versions of Glen Gawarkiewicz (Pioneer Array for CICOR site) and Chris German (NDSF for DOEI site).

Red tide season. Started HAB exhibit installation at Exhibit Center. An Associated Press wire service story on red tide in New England featuring Don Anderson appeared in newspapers, on radio and television broadcasts, and in online publications around the country and abroad.

Oceanus and Image of the Day marketing

·  Largest monthly growth so far in online Oceanus subscriptions, due to efforts to sign up trustees, promotional linkage with SEA, and promotions to teachers. 991 online subscribers. Monthly online traffic exceeded 32,000 visits.

·  Researching new subscription/mailing/database/marketing operations.

·  Oceanus marketing poster for Exhibit Center

·  Compiled list of ~50 NSF and ONR program managers to include in complimentary Oceanus distribution. NOAA program managers next.

·  Content-seeking-blogs continue to ping us: Links to Oceanus established on some science blogs, such as
http://citizensforscience.org/aggregator/sources/5 and to Image of the Day at http://www.algebraist.com/tkblog/ (see third link).

Annual report and donor report released. Online annual report includes a new feature on Oceans and Human Health, and media coverage and Oceanus articles by science department.

Web tools as WHOI IP? Discussions between the Web group and Wallace Stark to see if Web authoring tools have intellectual property potential, based on feedback from Fino presentation at Harvard Business School. Investigation continues.

Wide range of support activities around May trustee meeting, Ocean Institute committee meetings, June 7 open house.

Image Management System (www.whoi.edu/ims) hand-off from departure of Melissa Lamont to Jayne Doucette. IMS demos for the Buoy Lunch and AOP&E. Soft launch of beta internally, and then to the media list of editors and reporters. Fritz Heide investigating possible use of IMS to accommodate Watkins whale sound collection.

Paul Oberlander was selected as artist to illustrate the Woods Hole whale, a 6-ft NA right whale on display in Woods Hole this summer as part of a charity fund-raiser. (http://www.thewhaletrail.com/). Proceeds from whale auction to support reconstruction of the Fisheries seal pool.

Media Relations (Manager: Shelley Dawicki)

MR Office Visitors: 25 (excluding Communications Department staff)

Press clippings: 205 Broadcast stories: 3 News release/personal contact initiated clips: 99

Phone calls: 377 Emails: 2,401 Licensing Revenue: $ 3,151.50 Web visits: 19,979

Visual Requests (non-WHOI): 44 WHOI: 20 Cameras (still and video loaned to staff): 7

·  Prepared and distributed three news releases with Peter Huybers and Bill Curry on linking climate across time scales, with Sibel Karchner, Mark Hahn and Diana Franks on a possible test for dioxin sensitivity in wildlife, and on WHOI ImageSource. Articles appeared in FoxNews.com, physorg.com, The Hindu (India), politicalgateway.com,and LiveScience.com. A UPI wire service story on the climate study appeared in media around the world.

·  Articles/stories about other WHOI research projects appeared in such print and electronic publications and broadcast programs as The Washington Post, The News Tribune (Tacoma,WA), Cisco.com/Packet, Astrobiology magazine, Marine Technology Reporter, Physician’s Travel & Meeting Guide, Sea Technology, Morgan Hill Times (CA), The Royal Gazette (Bermuda), CBS4 (Boston), Monterey Herald (CA), Sun Herald (MS), and fortwayne.com (IN). An Associated Press wire service story on red tide in New England featuring Don Anderson appeared in newspapers, on radio and television broadcasts, and in online publications around the country and abroad.

·  Prepared May issues of the tip sheets Ocean Pulses and Eyes on the Ocean. News items and photos featured the work of Stephanie Watwood, Andy Solow, Peter Wiebe and Larry Madin, the Deep Submergence Laboratory, Simon Thorrold and Chris Linder, Terry Joyce, Anne Cohen and Delia Oppo, and Barrie Walden, Dan Yoerger and Al Bradley.

·  A film crew spent May 4 interviewing Lloyd Keigwin, Konrad Hughen and Ray Schmitt and filming at McLean Laboratory for a History Channel program on abrupt climate change scheduled to air later this year.

·  Prepared four obituaries of WHOI retirees, hosted two Cape Cod Academy students for the month for their senior project, gave a presentation on WHOI to the Mid-Cape Men’s Club May 17 (125 attended), prepared/distributed materials for the Quissett Campus Open House June 7, prepared various reports and materials for the May Trustee meeting.

·  Images and information were provided for a number of individuals and groups around the Institution, including Larry Madin, Ken Brink, Joan Bernhard, Breck Owens, Susan Humphris, Andrew Daly, Erich Horgan, John Waterbury, Dicky Allison, Terry Joyce, Christian Miller, Sue Tomeo, Christine Hunter, Cyndy Chandler, and Elizabeth Orchard.

Coming in June: Quissett Campus Open House June 7, film crew visit in late June to interview Karen Bice for the upcoming Smithsonian Oceans Hall exhibit.


Web Group (Manager: Danielle Fino)

1)  2005 Annual Report site completed and live May 19

  1. From May 19 to June 1 there have been ~3,000 visits

2)  Image of the Day

  1. Added links to the captions
  2. Added caching to the archive page
  3. ~1,500 visits to Image of the Day page in May and ~500 visits to the archive page
  4. Set up WebTrends so can accurately measure visits to entire Image of the Day area, including individual archived images

3)  Launch of Biology people pages. AOPE, and G&G pages will go live June 9.

4)  WHOI.edu redesign/site builder full/content management system (cms)

  1. Development of site builder full administrator interface
  2. Prepare to user test in June
  3. Continued work on roles and groups
  4. Started development on templating and asset building
  5. Ongoing development of code library

5)  New pages/sites/content highlighted on WHOI.edu this month include:

  1. Three Oceanus Magazine articles
  2. Two press releases
  3. Image of the Day
  4. Updates to Trustees site and Director’s Office site

6)  Site Builder Lite help

  1. Antarctica Invertebrates cruise site
  2. Morss Colloquium site
  3. Ocean Science & Technology site
  4. Northeast PSP site
  5. WHOI Awards sites
  6. Bigelow Award
  7. Stommel Medal
  8. Mary Sears Woman Pioneer in Oceanography Award
  9. Will give a demo to Deep Submergence Lab on June 20th

7)  On-site visit to Harvard Business School’s technology department

8)  Adam Shepherd talk to Data Mongers group on web services

9)  Preparation of six month stats for COI related topics

10) Ongoing discussions on intellectual property from Web tools

11) WebTrends – new reports and maintenance


Graphics (Manager: Fritz Heide)

Publishing and Illustration

1.  Finalized and printed Annual Report and Report to Donors

2.  Printed and mounted maps for D. Gallo and P. Winsor

3.  Posted 9 Oceanus articles for www.whoi.edu/oceanus

4.  Produced illustrations for A. Shapiro, A. Michele, M. Charette, B. Beardsley & Oceanus

5.  Produced posters for B. Weller, R. Stephen, and A. Buckllin

6.  Updated OCCI and OLI websites and set up Q&A web page for Climate Change

7.  Produced a lite Web site, posters, and signs for Ocean Science and Technology Conference for J. Rakowski

8.  Produced student posters, PowerPoint presentations, and various signs for Trustees Meeting and climate change panel discussion

9.  Printed and laminated 3 posters for MBL clients

10.  Produced a SeaBED brochure for B. Foley

11.  Paul Oberlander painted a Whale Trail whale, installed in Woods Hole

12.  Created a Powerpoint presentation and a Places to Visit map for K. Patterson

13.  Prepared two Technical Reports (A. Pleuddemann and R. Weller)

14.  Prepared 5 business card orders

15.  K. Joyce prepared and presented introductory Photoshop Course at WHOI for C. Hammond in CIS (2nd session upcoming)

Video, Animation, and Conference Support

1.  Videotaped Oral History session of Wylie Pogue, at USGS

2.  Provided A/V support and videotaped Trustees Meetings and climate change panel discussion

3.  Produced an animation for OceanSITES website for T. White

4.  Produced podcasts of Rhian Waller (Deep Sea corals now on OLI site) and draft versions of Glen Gawarkiewicz (Pioneer Array for CICOR site) and Chris German (NDSF for DOEI site)

5.  Provided various tape duplications and transfers for S. Dawicki

6.  Provided video conference support for various committee meetings, the Ocean Science and Technology Conference and Joint Program classes.

7.  Edited & compressed various video clips for J. Hain, D. Allison, and R. Chandler

8.  Produced a DVD of converted 16mm film footage for D. Gallo

Photography

1.  Ongoing event, lab and people shots such as J. Donnelly coring in Oyster Pond, the welding shop, ongoing construction of HROV, K. Sims and B. Peucher-Ehrenbrink, and B. van Mooy for Communications and Oceanus and entered them in the IMS.

2.  Assumed responsibility for the Image Management System including training and some internal marketing to departments and started investigation of preserving and including Bill Watkins Whale Sound Collection into the system in the future.

3.  Photographed work on a project underway for the MBL Ecosystems Center

4.  Photographed and videotaped C. Reddy, J. Farrington, B. Tripp, G. Hampson, and others at Winsor Cove, site of 1974 oil spill for C.Reddy

5.  Ongoing search and preparation of photos for Image of the Day

6.  Photographed Technology Transfer Conference for Development and the Trustees Meeting for Board Relations

7.  Scanned 356 slide set and archived on DVD and CD for D. Gallo

8.  Prepared 200 CD dupes for MBL client

9.  Photographed 8 passports

Reproduction:

a. 11 proposals e. 2 envelopes i. 1 bulletin m. 1 financial Report

b. 2 manuscripts f. 2 letterhead j. 1 flyer n. 1 postcard

c. 1 memo g. 2 check lists k. 2 agendas o. 1 poster

d. 2 Tech Reports h. 3 Brochures l. 1 ballot

Coming in June

Early start to WHOI wall calendar – Polar Work (IPY)

CT Facility Web site for D. Ketten

May 2006: Information Office & Exhibit Center (Manager: Stephanie Murphy)

Activities /

May 2006

/

April 2006

Visitors to Exhibit Center / 1704 / 634
Group Visits to Exhibit Center /

18

/

12

Gift Shop Sales / $12,563 / $5,976.57
Exhibit Center Donations / $938 / $427
Peanut Butter Club attendees / 231 / 208
Peanut Butter Club donations / $287 / $273

·  Public Information

o  Produced & distributed four issues weekly calendar

o  Information Requests – received 460 email requests for info.

o  Updated one-pager “WHOI on the Internet”

o  Fifty-five requests from educators for a total of 131 “Hydrothermal Vents” CDs

o  Four requests from educators for Oceanus collection CD

o  Sent Oceanus magazine promo email to 50 teacher contacts

·  Internal Communication

o  Headlines - produced & distributed four issues

o  Created database of WHOI employees and the foreign languages they speak

o  Met w/Ron Tim/GMPC re: survey results & implications for communication

o  Conducted nine Q sorts on Institutional values; beginning to analyze results

o  Working on articles for WHOI Buoy

·  Exhibit Center

o  Supported Trustee/Corp meeting with Gift Shop table under tent.

o  Begun installing Harmful Algal Bloom display in lower level

Coming in June

o  Start of summer walking tours

o  Meeting and training for volunteer tour guides

o  Busy month for school group visits to EC

o  WHOI Buoy newsletter


Editorial (Managing Editor: Lonny Lippsett)

• Published 7 articles and 7 briefs on www.whoi.edu/oceanus involving 23 WHOI scientists, students, or staff, plus assets: (Blusztajn, Clift, Moore, Bogomolni, Ketten, Lin, ten Brink, Bender, Jin, Saito, Sims, Madin, Keafer, D. Anderson, McCauley, Norton, Erdner, Gawarkiewicz, Shcherbina, McGillicuddy, He, Kosnyrev, Kosnyreva, L. Anderson, Alvin, Sentry, Knorr, Atlantis, Tioga, REMUS)

• Reporting, writing, and graphic development for stories: (Karchner/Hahn, Ashjian, Gallager, Kite-Powell, Tarantino/Alvin, Hammerschmidt, Sims, Cenedese, Helfrich, Foley/Singh/Camilli, Polz/Gast, Polz/Lerzcak, Gast, Anderson/Keafer/McGillicuddy/Erdner, Buesseler, Valdes, Stanton, Singh, Michel, Jakuba, Sellers, Fornari, Shank, Bernhard, Solow, Mullineaux, Scheltma, Lin, Madin, Moore, Luyten, Detrick, Humphris, Spears, Wiebe, Alvin, Atlantis, Knorr, Oceanus, Sentry, Jason).

• Oceanus marketing:

—Researching new subscription/mailing/database/marketing operations (Heide, Canavan, Lippsett)

—Oceanus marketing poster for EC (Lippsett, Canavan, Patterson)

• News releases: Karchner/Hahn (Madin, Dawicki)

• Editorial help developing climate panel for May Trustees meeting (Lippsett, Nemmers)

• Editing transcript of climate change panel discussion for Web (Lippsett, Kent)

• Preliminary work on OCCI Oceanus (Lippsett, Nevala, Carlowicz, Madin)

Coming in June

• Work on Vo. 45, No.2, OCCI Oceanus, www.whoi.edu/oceanus

• News release for Gallager/ships of opportunity (Madin, Dawicki)

Online Oceanus Visitor Stats

Metric / January / February / March / April / May
Visits Average/day* / 28,969 / 26,400 / 29,979 / 29,311 / 32,221
Total Online subscribers** / 713 (+59) / 769 (+56) / 801 (+32) / 864 (+63) / 988 (+124)
*Visits include visitors and search engine robots
** (54% from .com/.net; 20% .edu; 15% international; .06% .org; .02% .gov, .01% .mil)
Of interest: United Nations, NOAA, ONR, Boeing, EPA, NewScientist.com, IEEE, EOA Scientific Systems, NASW, Scholastic, Petrobras (a Brazilian oil company), Exxon, and various aquariums subscribe
Referrals / Top 5 referred sites: 56% direct (know us or emailed from friend), 20% Google, 10% WHOI.edu, .97% Whyville, .17% Wikipedia
Sample referrers: NOAA’s NMFS, Wikipedia, Google’s Scholar search,
Top 5 Pages: Hunt for 18˚ Water, Photo Gallery, Live from the Tropics, What Brings the Food That Brings the Whales?, Ocean Life Topics page
Top 5 keyword phrases: big sharks, squirts, roman omens, ocean chemistry, ocean resources

The big news is that we jumped 124 new subscribers this month--almost double our highest ever of 63/month—to a total of 991. The influx seems to be associated with new SEA and Trustee subscribers, as well as another mailing to teachers, so we should expect more.
The compilation of stats has changed slightly to incorporate Oceanus content that is being used in COI & OCCI. Danielle pointed out that this may be why our numbers have dropped over recent months. They are still reading Oceanus content, but in a different place than they did before.