Humans have spent billions of dollars, and millions of man hours conducting research of sea life. As technology advances and the ability to stay underwater for longer periods of time become available, new information about sea life and there ecosystems surface. The vast ocean covers more than 70 percent of planet Earth’s surface (NOAA). However researchers and scientists have explored less than five percent of what really lies under water (NOAA). Leaving behind and amazing ninety-five percent left for new information to be found and researched. Sadly the amount of exploration of the ocean is low because the danger that come with researching such a vast ocean. Whether in a scuba unit or a submarine, many different dangers can arise at low and deep depths when studying the ocean floor. Even with these dangers researchers still dive into a new world, and come out with information that could aid humans on the surface. Such as cures to certain poisons created by different species, gaining a food source, and understanding different sea life. Scientists need to go the extra mile and find more information about the ocean at deeper depths and continue research in shallow waters so as to gain more viable facts that could benefit humans on the surface even more.
For thousands of years the ocean has helped species survive. An interesting quote said by John F. Kennedy the 35th president stated; “We all came from the sea. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea whether it is to sail or to watch it-we are going back from whence we came.” (Association) People around the world go through years of education just to understand the plentiful information that the ocean has to offer. Once those new researchers go through the years...
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...an ecosystems balance. As research is being done to protect sea life, more can be done. With minimal funds, and low awareness around the world, the need for protection of the ocean is of most importance.
The ocean is a guardian angel sitting in the background as millions benefit from. The sea affects people’s lives without anyone really noticing a change it has helped supply people with food, water, and simple fun and interesting new world for people to explore. The ocean needs to be here forever, not until your life is over, but for the next generation, and the generation after that to enjoy. Money is being used to launch a billion dollar space ship into space to see what rocks could be collected, while minimal money is being used to help keep humans alive on this planet. The sea needs research to be done to help, preserve humans most importance natural resource.
understanding of how the oceans work. The hope is that as a result, we will
Review: The opportunity and endeavor of exploring the Earth’s oceans can reap great rewards for mankind and unravel many of the mysteries that the Earth has left to discover.
Imagine a lush underwater place. Beautiful structures colorful animals and places that would never have been thought of before. In reality that's not what it really looks like, really the ocean is a desolate place that is barren like a desert. Many marine species have been lost by as much as 49%.(seeker) A big part of that reason is because of coral bleaching which causes as stated above a decline in species that depend on the coral as there home. Coral bleaching is a serious problem that could cause problems for everyone if we don’t fix it.
A big change that has occurred in the oceans all over the world is the Coral Reefs are dying and are predicted to be dead by the end of the century due to the rising acidity of the oceans caused by many different threats to marine ecosystems. Coral reefs cover less than 0.2% of our oceans but they contain 25% of the world’s marine fish species according to Endangered: Biodiversity on the brink, 2010: pg.45). If this is the case that means by the time the end of the century comes around we will have lost close to 25% of the worlds marine ecosystems.
Ocean Pollution is a serious issue in today's global politics. The delicate balance of Earth's ecosystem is put in jeopardy when the ocean is not clean. Problem evolving from ocean pollution directly harm marine life and indirectly affect human health and the Earth's many valuable resources. Ocean Pollution is a Broad term that encpompasses any and all foregin matter that directly or indirectly makes its way into the ocean. This includes everything from the extreme: oil spills, Toxic Waste dumping and industrial dumping-- to the small scael: human activities and basic carelessness. Because the oceans and all other water bodies are invariably, somehow connected, and because they account for 3/4 of the Earth's surface, they are an ideal method of transportation for pollution, allowing the rapid spread of seemingly far away toxins into a river near you! It is increasingly important that we educate ourselves as to what, exactly, ocean pollution is, so that we can identify the causes at their source and take action in small and large ways, and hopefully, prevent this terrible form of pollution from getting any worse than it is today.
While both fields carry importance within the science community, I feel that both should be given equal opportunities to be explored. Prager also expresses that students should have more opportunities for fieldwork and research when studying the seas. She continues to express the importance of fieldwork to not only students in marine sciences, but in any field of science. The physical action of working and collecting data alongside performing observational studies has been proven to improve students’ ability to learn. Prager vocalizes that the discovery and uncover of the mysteries of the oceans is through the future generation of scientists. In my eyes, the money spent on ocean and space exploration should be equal. The general understanding is that the creation of life might have begun in the depths of the oceans. With a scientific background I feel as if the exploration of the oceans should be given more attention to the exploration of space. The exploration of the oceans might lead to new clues on how the human population truly came to be. Marine exploration should be just as important as space exploration because this bias of funding is not evenly distributed within the science community. I learned that our actions here on land in terms of trash and debris management have a huge impact on the marine life throughout the oceans, as certain areas of the ocean are becoming dead zones due to our negligence and improper disposable of our debris. Prager concludes with the discussion of how the oceans are changing due to the impact of human negligence, and the importance of scientific research to understanding how these changes will affect our lives in the
"Oceans." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 8 May 2014.
The ocean is an abundant source of life. It is home to thousand of different creatures, provides a great source of food, and provides the earth with about one half of the oxygen needed to sustain life. (National Geographic) Pollution especially plastic, is a catastrophic problem. Ironically plastic, which is a material designed to last forever is generally used for things we tend to throw away. Every year about one hundred to two hundred billion pounds of plastic are manufactured. Only 31% of that plastic is actually recycled. Biomass packaging estimates 10% of that plastic ends up in the ocean annually. About 20% of it coming from ships and other platforms, and the other 80% coming from land derived sources, such as international garbage dumping, winds or tides either way it finds its way to the ocean.(Biomass Packaging Co., et al)
Oceans are such so vast that people underestimate the impact their actions —seeming so insignificant— have on them. Humans have by and large taken the oceans for granted; not considering how important a healthy ocean is to our survival. A popular mind-set is that the oceans are a bottomless supply of fish, natural resources, and an infinite waste dump. There are myriad reasons why the oceans should be saved and the most obvious one is marine life. With 71% of the Earth being covered by water, it is obvious that sea creatures are predominant form of life, making up 80% of the species of life on Earth. However, as important as marine life is, that is not the only reason why saving the oceans is crucial. The ocean floor provides natural resources such as, oil, natural gas, petroleum, minerals, medications, and ingredients for foods and products. The economic benefits of the oceans are huge and significant, as well. Fishing and fish products have provided employment to 38 million people and have generated about $124 billion in economic benefits. However, oceans are on the verge of crisis, marine life, natural resources, transportation, the economy, and important ingredients are at risk due to overfishing, pollution, and acidification. Thus, in this essay I will argue that, oceans are not impervious to human activity and threatening the health of the ocean threatens the health of humanity, since oceans key to our survival.
James Cameron, a well known film director with interests in deep sea exploration recently launched and piloted a deep sea probe called DEEPSEA CHALLENGE. This mission of this voyage was to reach to bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest place on Earth, 6.85 miles below the surface. At this depth the pressure of the water column was over 1000 times greater than the pressure at sea level (McMahon, 2014). To withstand the pressure, Cameron built the walls of the vehicle 2.5 inches thick. Cameron completed the dive on March 26th 2012 at a record depth of 35,756 feet. Although the dive was successful, there was little to no life at the bottom of the trench. Instead most life was restricted to 0- 15,000 feet (the deepest living fish ever recorded was at a depth of 25,000 feet). Cameron’s dive, however spectacular it may be, did not further the search for life in the deep places of the world (Cameron, 2013).
Over the course of the existence of humans we have caused quite a lot of chaos. We all have heard that the ocean is one of the most unexplored areas of the planet we live on. Although the vast majority of the oceanic terrain has yet to be pioneered, the notion that it has gone unscathed is ill-informed one. Sharks tend to be forget sometimes, because of their menacing presence. But like all forms of nature, sharks face dangers of their own. Humans seem to be the main culprit of their demise, mostly because of overfishing.
Vannela, Raveender. "Are We “Digging Our Own Grave” Under the Oceans?" Environmental Science & Technology 46.15 (2012): 7932-933. Print.
Marine education and promotion of the protection of the ocean ties closely to my service work and I believe the advocacy of the ocean is critical for the generations to come in order to preserve its fragile beauty. There are organizations which claim to help the mission to save the ocean and raise awareness but these companies are just building on the billion dollar industry of animals exploitation. Seaworld's and other Marine park facilities demonstrates their negligence and immoral intentions through the inadequate enclosures, the barbaric harvesting of these animals and their claim that it provides apparent “education” to the public. Marine parks around the world claim that the habitat which the animals live in embodies a healthy and sustainable environment, which the animals enjoy and flourish in. The animals in these marine parks that they claim “flourish”,
Did you know that more than 90 percent of all organisms that have ever lived on Earth are extinct? According to Pandey, the author of Humans Pushing Marine Life toward ‘Major Extinction’, nearly 10,000 species go extinct each year, and this rate is estimated to be 1,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate (1). Human beings are causing irreversible damage to the oceans and their wildlife, which is being led by two major reasons: Commercial fishing or over-fishing, which damaged the marine environment and caused a loss in the marine life diversity, and pollution, which is a primary way of the extinction causes that drastically modifies the marine life habitat. As a result of the commercial fishing and pollution, many of the marine species will start disappearing of the oceans. Briggs emphasizes that over-fishing “has induced population collapses in many species. So instead of having less than a hundred species at risk, as was the case some 30-40 years ago, there are now a thousand or more (10).”
The ocean can serve man purposes things for many different people; as a school, a home, a park...