© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole Chapter 1 Science and Marine Biology
Jan 18, 2018
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Chapter 1
Science and Marine Biology
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Key Concepts
• Marine and terrestrial environments are interrelated, interactive, and interdependent.
• The ocean is an important source of food and other resources for humans.
• Marine biology is the study of the sea’s diverse inhabitants and their relationships to each other and their environment.
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Key Concepts
• The history of marine biology is one of changing perspectives that have shaped the modern science and its applications.
• Marine laboratories play an important role in education, conservation, and biological research.
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Key Concepts
• It is important to study marine biology in order to make informed decisions about how the oceans and their resources should be used and managed.
• Scientists use an organized approach called the scientific method to investigate natural phenomena.
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Importance of the Oceans and Marine Organisms
• Principal physical feature of the planet
• Drive weather patterns
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Importance of the Oceans and Marine Organisms
• Productive—provides substantial part of the human food supply
• Marine organisms are useful as subjects of scientific study for many areas of research
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Study of the Sea and Its Inhabitants
• Oceanography– study of the oceans and their phenomena,
such as waves, currents and tides• Marine biology
– study of the living organisms that inhabit the seas and their interactions with each other and their environment
• Ecology of the marine environment
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Marine Biology: A History of Changing Perspectives
• Early studies of marine organisms– Aristotle and the “ladder of life”– Pliny the Elder’s Natural History
• Renewed interest in marine organisms– voyage of the HMS Beagle and Charles
Darwin’s On the Origin of Species – discovery of organisms on retrieved
transatlantic telegraph cable
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Marine Biology: A History of Changing Perspectives
• Beginnings of modern marine science– Challenger expedition
• 4,700 new species collected and described• Charles Wyville Thomson collected plankton
– marine studies in the United States• expeditions of Alexander Agassiz• funding of the first marine biology laboratory:
Anderson Summer School of Natural History, predecessor of the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole
• other U.S. marine laboratories
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Marine Biology: A History of Changing Perspectives
• Marine biology in the twentieth century– Fridtjof Nansen’s Arctic expedition– Sir Alistair Hardy’s Antarctic expedition
• Marine biology today– Deep-sea submersibles– Information sharing via the Internet
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Process of Science
• Hypothesis• Scientific method – an orderly pattern
of gathering and analyzing information– inductive reasoning– deductive reasoning– observations
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Steps in the Scientific Method
• Making observations• Using inductive reasoning to form a
hypothesis• Using deductive reasoning to design
experiments– experimental variable– experimental set– control set
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Steps in the Scientific Method
• Gathering results• Drawing conclusions
– theory versus hypothesis• Plant growth in a salt marsh: a case
study of the scientific method– observation of growth patterns and
analysis of soil samples– experiment to test hypothesis– analysis of results of the experiment
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
© 2006 Thomson-Brooks Cole
Process of Science
• Alternative methods of science– experimentation is not always possible– observational science – observation alone
must be used to support or deny the hypothesis
• The science of marine biology– Introduction to Marine Biology 2nd edition
contains “Science of Marine Biology” features to illustrate the application of the scientific method in studying the seas