Founding Editor(s): Richard Gordon and Joseph Seckbach

Series Editor(s): Janice L. Pappas

Scope: Diatoms are a single-cell algal group, with each cell surrounded by a silica shell. The shells have beautiful attractive shapes with multiscalar structures at 8 orders of magnitude and have several uses. Twenty percent of the oxygen we breathe is produced by diatom photosynthesis, and they feed most of the aquatic food chain in freshwaters and the oceans. Diatoms serve as sources of biofuel and electrical solar energy production and are impacting nanotechnology and photonics. They are important ecological and paleoclimate indicators. Some of them are extremophiles, living at high temperatures or in ice, at extremes of pH, at high or low light levels, and surviving desiccation. There are about 100,000 species and as many papers written about them since their discovery over three hundred years ago. The literature on diatoms shows about 60,000 papers during the period 2006-2023. In this context, it is timely to review the progress to date, highlight cutting-edge discoveries, and discuss exciting future perspectives. To fulfill this objective, this Diatom Series has been launched under the leadership of two experts in diatoms and related disciplines. The aim is to provide a comprehensive and reliable source of information on diatom biology and applications and enhance interdisciplinary collaborations required to advance knowledge and applications of diatoms.

About the Series Editor(s):
Janice L. Pappas has BA, BS, PhD degrees from the University of Michigan and an MA degree from Drake University. She is a theoretical and mathematical biologist and her work includes studies on diatoms and other organisms in morphometrics, morphogenesis, biological symmetry and complexity, evolutionary processes, and evolutionary ecology. Diatom research includes studies in Great Lakes ecology and limnology, taxonomy, micropaleontology, and environmental and paleoenvironmental studies. Mathematics used in studies includes differential and partial differential equations, orthogonal polynomials, differential geometry, probability theory, machine learning, and information theory. Some specific studies include Morse theory and diatom morphospace dynamics; diatom lineage network morphospaces; fuzzy measures in diatom systematics; Cenozoic diatom origination, extinction, and diversity; diatom life cycle dynamics; diatom clade biogeography; diatom food web dynamics; diatom adaptive radiation.
Email: jlpappas@umich.edu

Submission to the series:

Published and Forthcoming Titles