Christopher M. Reddy

Christopher Michael Reddy (born 1969) is a senior scientist in the Department of Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and faculty member of the MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering.

Reddy's research includes the source, fate, and transport of combustion-derived materials, PCBs, and DDT; the environmental chemistry of oil spills, biofuels, plastics, and nanoparticles; and the development of environmentally friendly products. He is considered a leading scientist on oil spills and conducted an in-depth and long-term investigation into the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and its long-term aftereffects.

Reddy holds eleven U.S. patents. He has testified before the U.S. Congress five times, written more than 20 opinion pieces, and given hundreds of interviews for print, radio, and television. Reddy gave a TEDx talk on the role of science in a crisis. A newly discovered microbe that can aid in the breakdown of hydrocarbons was named in his honor.

Early life and education

Reddy grew up on Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay and has always lived within a few miles of the coast. After attending public schools in Rhode Island, Reddy earned a BS in chemistry with a minor in mathematics from Rhode Island College, graduating in 1992. While there, he was named the American Chemical Society's Outstanding Undergraduate Student in 1991. In 1997, he was awarded a PhD in chemical oceanography from the Graduate School of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island. While a graduate student, he was named the American Chemical Society's Outstanding Graduate Student in Environmental Chemistry. 2024 - Gold Winner Nonfiction Book Award by the Nonfiction Authors Association for Reddy's book Science Communication in a Crisis: An Insider's Guide. 2023 - The Rhode Island College Charles B. Willard Professional Achievement Award to a graduate who has brought honor to the college by distinguished achievement in their field. 2023 - The naming of a newly discovered marine microbe capable of degrading branched alkanes (acyclic saturated hydrocarbons) Candidatus Reddybacter in Reddy's honor. 2022 - The ACS Environmental Au Best Paper Award 2021–2022 for a paper on the environmental effects of the spill of more than 70 billion nurdles (plastic pellets) off the coast of Sri Lanka when the cargo ship M/V X-Press Pearl caught fire there in May 2021. 2018 - The American Geophysical Union's Ambassador Award because Reddy "embodies the concept of a scientific ambassador through his tireless efforts to represent, promote, and translate science to a diverse range of groups outside the ivory tower." 2016 - Appointment to WHOI's Stanley W. Watson Chair for Excellence in Oceanography. 2014 - The Geochemical Society's prestigious Clair C. Patterson Award for Reddy's work on the effects of oil spills on the ocean. Named for geochemist Clair Cameron Patterson, this annual award recognizes the contributions of a scientist who has made "an innovative breakthrough in environmental geochemistry of fundamental significance within the last decade, particularly in service to society." 2013 - The R. A. Glenn Award for the most innovative and interesting technical paper 2011 - The University of Rhode Island Dean's Award to honor alumni who "personify URI’s tradition of excellence in achievement, leadership, and service." 2007 - The John B. Philips Award (International GCxGC Symposium) to the inventor of an application of comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) viewed to have the most potential impact on the technique's future. 2003 - Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Program Award for research in use of comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography to enhance assessment and management of hydrocarbons in the ocean.

Fellowships 2018 - Geochemical Fellow, American Geophysical Union (AGU). 2014 - Geochemistry Fellow, the Geochemical Society and European Association of Geochemistry, which confer this highly prestigious, honorary title on "outstanding scientists who have, over some years, made a major contribution to the field of geochemistry." 2009, 2010, 2011 - Kavli Fellow, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences premiere recognition of distinguished young scientists, i.e., those 45 years of age or under. 2006 - Leadership Fellow, the Aldo Leopold Foundation (now the Earth Leadership Program).

Patents

Reddy, Christopher Michael, Mullins, Oliver C., Raghuraman, Bhavani, and Nelson, Robert K. High accuracy contamination estimation in hydrocarbon samples using GC×GC. U.S. Patent 7805979B2, filed October 22, 2007, and issued October 5, 2010. Reddy, Christopher M. Biofuel manufacturing methods and systems incorporating radiocarbon analysis techniques. U.S. Patent 20100273210A1, filed April 7, 2010, and issued September 17, 2013. Plata, Desiree L., Gschwend, Philip M., Hart, Anastasios John, Meshot, Eric R., and Reddy, Christopher M. Alkyne-assisted nanostructure growth. U.S. Patent 9394174B2, filed August 26, 2013, and issued July 19, 2016. Gupta, Ananya Sen, Reddy, Christopher, M., and Nelson, Robert. Systems and methods for topographic analysis. U.S. Patent 8838393B2, filed April 2, 2012, and issued September 16, 2014. Plata, Desiree L., Gschwend, Philip M., Hart, Anastasios John, Meshot, Eric R., and Reddy, Christopher M. Alkyne-assisted nanostructure growth. U.S. Patent 9394174B2, filed August 26, 2013, and issued July 19, 2016. Lindell, Scott R., Reddy, Christopher M., and O'Neil, Gregory W. Use of marine algae for producing polymers. U.S. Patent 9879288B2, filed November 17, 2011, and issued January 30, 2018. Reddy, Christopher M., O'Neil, Gregory W., and Lindell, Scott R. Use of marine algae for co-producing alkenones, alkenone derivatives, and co-products. U.S. Patent 9970034B2, filed January 17, 2015, and issued May 15, 2018. Reddy, Christopher M., O'Neil, Gregory W., and Lindell, Scott R. Use of marine algae for co-producing alkenones, alkenone derivatives, and co-products. U.S. Patent 20190161777A1, filed January 28, 2019, and issued September 14, 2021. O'Neil, Gregory W., and Reddy, Christopher M. Alkenone-based formulations for topical applications. U.S. Patent 20240122828A1, filed November 2, 2023, and pending. Reddy, Christopher M., O'Neil, Gregory W., and Lindell, Scott R. Use of marine algae for co-producing alkenones, alkenone derivatives, and co-products. U.S. Patent 11634738B2, filed July 29, 2021, and issued April 25, 2023. O'Neil, Gregory W., and Reddy, Christopher M. Alkenone-based formulations for topical applications. U.S. Patent 20240122828A1, filed November 2, 2023, and pending. such as those afforded by fiddler crabs and marsh grass. These residues form the majority of the unresolved complex mixture (UCM) resulting from the breakdown of crude oils which GC had previously been unable to resolve but which Reddy’s novel GCxGC application has made accessible, enabling determination of “the underlying processes controlling petroleum fate” as it degrades in a marine environment. in fiddler crabs Similarly, Reddy and the WHOI chemistry team conducted an extensive study of the Bouchard Oil Spill, which occurred in Massachusetts’ Buzzards Bay in 2003, using GCxGC.

Reddy and his team were some of the first chemists involved in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and spent the following ~10 years investigating the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and its aftermath. Reddy was thus involved in mapping the surface plumes, characterizing the oil and gas emitted from the seafloor, estimating the flow rate of oil streaming from the damaged well, modeling the fate of oil and gases in the ocean and atmosphere, monitoring the breakdown of the oil, and gauging the efficacy of dispersants.

Reddy and his team members were unfortunately drawn into the ensuing legal aspects of the spill when the U.S. Government used the data he and his team had collected to determine how much BP owed by way of restitution. BP challenged the amount of this restitution and requested Reddy's and his team members' emails and personal correspondence for the time period over which they had studied the spill, a request with which they were reluctantly forced to comply in 2011 following litigation. The Deepwater Horizon spill also led to one of Reddy's appearances before the U.S. Congress, testifying on 15 June 2010 regarding government agencies' preparedness to respond to crises such as Deepwater Horizon. replacement of hydrocarbons from fossil fuels in personal care products with chemicals derived from marine algae, and design of safer and more sustainable plastics.

Science communication

Reddy reportedly views communication of scientific matters to diverse audiences and "building connections between the scientific community and societal stakeholders" to be important parts of being a scientist and has sought to develop and communicate this skill to peers and students. draws on Reddy's years of responding to environmental crises and communicating actionable information to peers, journalists, regulators, and the public. John E. Riutta, author of The Well-Read Naturalist, describes the book as "a collection of analyses and recommendations for those ... faced with presenting important scientific information to audiences both large and small during times of profound uncertainty" and terms it "very timely" given "the many destructive environmental and medical crises" that have occurred over recent decades.

Publications Reddy published around 500 pieces in academic journals.

Reddy wrote two books: Science Communication in a Crisis: An Insider's Guide