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Science 5 December 2008:
Vol. 322. no. 5907, p. 1466
DOI: 10.1126/science.1161096
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Technical Comments

Comment on "Phytoplankton Calcification in a High-CO2 World"

Ulf Riebesell,1* Richard G. J. Bellerby,2 Anja Engel,3 Victoria J. Fabry,4 David A. Hutchins,5 Thorsten B. H. Reusch,1 Kai G. Schulz,1 François M. M. Morel6

Iglesias-Rodriguez et al. (Research Articles, 18 April 2008, p. 336) reported that the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi doubles its organic matter production and calcification in response to high carbon dioxide partial pressures, contrary to previous laboratory and field studies. We argue that shortcomings in their experimental protocol compromise the interpretation of their data and the resulting conclusions.

1 Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences, IFM-GEOMAR, D-24105 Kiel, Germany.
2 Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research, University of Bergen, N-5020 Bergen, Norway.
3 Alfred Wegener Institute of Polar and Marine Research, D-27570 Bremerhaven, Germany.
4 Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, San Marcos, CA 92096, USA.
5 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA.
6 Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: uriebesell{at}ifm-geomar.de

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)