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"The Back Page" is an update on Sea 

 Grant activities— on research, marine 

 education and advisory services. It's 

 also a good place to find out about 

 meetings, workshops and new publica- 

 tions. For more information on any of 

 the projects described, contact the Sea 

 Grant offices in Raleigh (91 9/73 7-2U5U). 

 For copies of publications, write UNO 

 Sea Grant, NCSU, Box 8605, Raleigh, 

 N.C. 27695-8605. 



During peak seasons, 

 fishermen often spend 

 long hours on the water. 

 And there's not always 

 enough time for sleep. 



But going without rest 

 can affect a fisherman's 

 performance. In some cases, a lack of 

 sleep can lead to injuries. 



When people are tired, they become 

 careless, inattentive and less capable of 

 making quick decisions, says Rick 

 Steiner of the University of Alaska 

 Marine Advisory Program. Lack of 

 sleep can cause irritability, depression, 

 disorientation and a loss of con- 

 centration. 



Although most North Carolina 

 fishermen don't stay away from the 

 docks for days at a time, the odd hours 

 can wreak havoc on sleeping patterns, 

 says Bob Hines, a Sea Grant marine ad- 

 visory agent. 



Researchers say the only sure-fire 

 cure is sleep. Naps, particularly between 

 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., can help. 



When that's not possible, they pre- 

 scribe the following measures: 



• Rotate crew members so they don't 

 perform the same task continually. 



• Exercising and listening to high- 

 spirited music can increase arousal. 



• Brushing your teeth or taking a 

 quick shower can help keep fishermen 

 awake. 



• Crew members should help each 

 other out by keeping a conversation 

 going. 



Researchers who have studied sleep- 

 ing patterns don't recommend the use 

 of amphetamines or excessive amounts 

 of caffeine. 



"The buckets of coffee consumed by 

 many a tired-eyed skipper can lead to 

 some serious problems in the 

 gastrointestinal and cardiovascular 

 systems," says Steiner. 



Three Sea Grant 

 specialists recently won 

 awards for outstanding 

 achievements. 



Joyce Taylor, Sea 

 Grant's seafood education 

 specialist, received the 

 1987 J. Keith Porter Award from the 

 Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Development 

 Foundation. 



Taylor competed with seafood con- 

 sumer specialists from New York to 

 North Carolina for the award. She was 

 chosen for her extensive seafood educa- 

 tion program for consumers. 



For years, Tkylor has touted the vir- 

 tue of seafood with seminars, publica- 

 tions and interviews with the media. In 

 the past year, she traveled across the 

 state conducting workshops on seafood 

 selection and freshness, care and han- 

 dling, and nutrition. 



Marine agent Jim Bahen took on the 

 job of teaching commercial fishermen 

 about the unpopular turtle excluder 

 devices. He also was instrumental in im- 

 plementing marine weather reporting 

 and sea surface temperature programs 

 for fishermen. 



For his service, Bahen was selected as 

 one of North Carolina State University's 

 Outstanding Extension Service Award 

 recipients for 1986-1987. 



On August 7, the National Marine 

 Education Association presented its an- 

 nual President's Award to Lundie 

 Spence, Sea Grant's education specialist. 

 Spence, who shares the award this year, 

 received a plaque honoring her services 

 to the organization and its membership 

 at the annual conference in Kingston, 

 R.I. Spence was president of NME A in 

 1984. 



There's been a lot of coming and going 

 at the Sea Grant Aquaculture Lab in 

 Aurora. 



In May, advisory agent Randy Rouse 



resigned to pursue an endeavor in 

 private industry. And in June, lab tech- 

 nician BeLinda Hoots moved to the 

 Midwest. 



Now the lab is under the care of Dave 

 Bova and Luke Wood. 



Bova has a degree in marine biology 

 from the University of Miami. He has 

 several years of experience with a 

 Delaware firm that produced striped 

 bass for a restocking program. 



Wood is a 1987 graduate of North 

 Carolina State University's Department 

 of Biological and Agricultural 

 Engineering. 



They say necessity is 

 the mother of invention. 

 Sea Grant agent Bob 

 Hines and a Marshallburg 

 crab shedder agree. 



Early this spring, the 

 crabber built a system for 

 shedding soft-shell crabs. But the water 

 in his shedding trays remained too cool 

 for the crabs to molt. 



So Hines and the fisherman devised 

 a solar water heater for the system. 

 With a 4-by-8 foot box, some glass and 

 plenty of piping, they built a collector. 

 They wanted it to heat the water to 70 

 degrees and induce the crabs to shed. 



The collector worked, but it had some 

 problems. 



"The materials we used were not 

 ideal," Hines says. In addition, problems 

 with leakage and the small surface of the 

 collector complicated the operation. 



But Hines isn't giving up yet. On 

 sunny, but cool days in early spring the 

 collector raised and stabilized the water 

 temperature in the trays, he says. 



When outside temperatures ranged 

 from 45 to 55 degrees, temperatures in 

 the tanks reached 55 to 60 degrees. "We 

 were able to get it up to and over 70 

 degrees some days," Hines adds. 



Artificial seaweed has taken hold as 

 a prospective method of erosion control. 



In theory, the long strips or tufts of 

 fiber act as underwater sand fences that 

 build sandbars. But tests in North 



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