Marine Biology

The ocean is the last of the great frontiers on Earth and is widely heralded as the source of our future energy and food resources. The ocean is believed to be the cradle of life and certainly supports a much greater variety of living things than the freshwater or terrestrial environments. What is the nature of life in the ocean? How does marine life capture and share the sun’s energy? Why are some areas of the ocean rich in life and others almost devoid of life? Can we farm the seas? These and other questions will be discussed in a systematic inquiry into marine biology. We will study the physical characteristics of each of the major zones of the ocean and then examine the kinds of marine organisms and the adaptations that suit them to their characteristic zones. This will lead to a discussion of our present use of the seas and our impact on the organisms that live there. With this knowledge, we will examine some of the exotic schemes proposed to harvest food and energy from the ocean and evaluate their probable effects on the ocean system. Classes will be supplemented by laboratory sessions and field trips. Conferences will be used to explain class material, to review the tests, and to discuss conference papers, which may be written on any basic or applied aspect of marine biology.