In this research study the presence of the metal selenium was simulated in the North San Francisco Bay, which is the largest estuary on the Pacific coastline. Selenium is a metal commonly used in electronic and photocopier components but also in glass, rubber, textiles, medical therapeutic agents and petroleum. Some of the main sources of selenium in water is discharge from petroleum and metal refineries, from mines, as well as erosion of natural deposits. Possible health effects of long term use of drinking water contaminated with selenium are fingernail or hair loss and problems with blood circulation. This particular study considers point and non-point sources of selenium, transport and mixing of selenium, transformations between different types of selenium, the distribution of different types of dissolved and particulate selenium, and biological absorbance by phytoplankton, bivalves (mollusks), and then higher organisms within the food chain. The model used in the bay to simulate selenium concentrations also was able to represent salinity, suspended material and chlorophyll within different flow conditions, and compared to longer-term data, over a 15-year period. The study also looked at the relationship between the amount of selenium being put into the bay and variations in inflow, in-bay concentrations, as well as biological concentrations in order to manage the impacts on wildlife in the area.

The research topic is selenium’s concentrations in water and how that effects other aspects of the San Francisco Bay. The study asks the research question; how would the presence of the metal selenium, in different forms and concentrations, effect the wildlife food chains within the San Francisco Bay? The data type needed to answer this question would be aggregate interval or ratio data taken from water samples. Selenium was simulated into the water and then effects of the metal were analyzed through water samples as well as observation of phytoplankton and other forms of wildlife in the bay. Models were created to show what effect the metal had on the Bay.

This particular study was hard to understand, the article used a lot of big words that could not be universally comprehended. In addition, there was not enough background on the metal selenium and where it comes from.

Chen, L., Meseck, S. L., Roy, S. B., Grieb, T. M., & Baginska, B. (2012). Modeling fate, transport, and biological uptake of selenium in north san francisco bay. Estuaries and Coasts, 35(6), 1551-1570. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12237-012-9530-y