海洋生物學(xué)導(dǎo)論英文原稿

Welcome to the American Museum of NaturalHistory in our course in Marine Biology. My name is John Sparks, I'm a Curatorin our Department of Ichthyology and professor in our Richard Gildergraduate school. Marine Biology encompasses a study ofeverything that lives in earth's oceans, but it also involves exploringthe environment of the ocean. We know less about what the terrain lookslike under the waves than we do about the surface features of some otherplanets in our solar system. With new technologies andcreative use of instruments, scientists are making significantbreakthroughs in studying marine life and learning more about the deep ocean. Part of our challenge has been to developequipment that can spend hours or sometimes weeks indifficult ocean conditions. Think about putting your cell phone insalt water under high pressure far from a power source,how long do you think it would last? Marine biologists have to be part timeengineers to meet the demands of this challenging environment. Another important theme to our studyof marine biology will be to understand some of the ecosystems whichmarine life is part of. When we look out over the ocean,it's difficult for us to comprehend how manydifferent ecosystems it holds. But tidal rivers,deep sea reefs and kelp forests, just to name a few marine ecosystems,contain numerous interconnected species. Each has a unique food web which cyclesenergy and nutrients to its related parts. Finally, through the flowing medium ofwater impacts in one marine ecosystem may soon reach another. This course will take a hard look athow human society disrupts marine life the world over. Our plastic waste has been foundin earth's deepest waters, the famed Mariana trench. Microplastics permeate the flesh of mostfish, including the ones we eat, and human health itself depends onfunctioning, resilient oceanic ecosystems. The oceans are an important food source,but that's not all they do for us. They also produce most of the world'soxygen and absorb carbon dioxide and much of our water borne waste, andthey are a source of recreation and spiritual enjoyment forso much of humanity. I'm thrilled you are joining us onthis dive into the marine world, we have much to learn and explore. Now, let's get started.