Hi, this is Wayne again with a topic “Combining forces to advance ocean science”.
[, MUSIC PLAYING ] DESIREE PLATA. I think it might not be obvious to people right away why you would need to or want to study processes that go on in the ocean.. It might seem kind of esoteric or far away or other., But really what people need to remember is that humans are part of the Earth. Ecosystem. We’re inextricably linked.
KEN BUESSELER. When you think of climate change, you often think of what we experience on land.. We know that gases greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide in particular – is going up in the atmosphere., But what you might not be thinking about is well, where else does that carbon go And a lot of it ends up in the ocean., DESIREE PLATA, And so what’s key about This is that oceanographers and Earth scientists are really critical to help us understand how man’s influence on the Earth’s system is going to influence the oceans and ecosystems there, but also how we might adapt or respond to those changes.. [, MUSIC PLAYING ], EDWARD BOYLE, The Woods Hole, Oceanographic Institution was founded in 1930.
And there’s a fairly long history of involvement back and forth between people at MIT and Woods Hole.. But the joint program was founded in 1968.. There was a two-page memorandum of understanding that was signed by the presidents of both institutions at the time.. In the initial days, from the MIT perspective, access to Woods Hole ships at sea was a big feature for MIT who had no ships and no access to the ocean., But we had oceanographers and engineers that wanted to study the sea.. So we started going down to Woods: Hole. DESIREE PLATA, When the joint program was founded.
This was a really unique and exceptional partnership that was formed. MIT. Was this great intellectual, innovation, powerhouse. And Woods Hole? Was this remarkable seagoing institution where you could have access to the sea and really go to places where people hadn’t gone before.? Bringing the two together helped foster an environment where we could train the next generation of Earth, scientists and oceanographers to really approach problems systematically with deep educational context, but also with access to the experimentation that they needed.
That was available at the Woods Hole. Oceanographic. MICHAEL FOLLOWS So collaborations, within and across the institutions are really important in fertilizing new kinds of science and new kinds of breakthroughs., And they enable the students to do new kinds of work.
PARIS SMALLS. The reason I joined the program was because we cannot afford to wait to be able to address the climate crisis. To have these large institutions.
Tell you hey, I see what you want to do. And this is how we can support you as opposed to them saying no. You have to stick to this one thing and this one path.
And that’s what you’re stuck on., So the freedom to be able to execute on and have your interests come to. Life has been incredibly rewarding.. Kayla GARDENER, So, for me, fieldwork is one of the best parts of my job..
It is one of the coolest experiences you can have. And for me, fieldwork looks like going out to sea on research vessels for several weeks at a time.. It’S hard work for sure..
It can be an overwhelming experience., But for me personally, it’s overwhelming in the best sort of way to be able to be so hands on with this zone that no one is really getting to visit. And to be on the frontier of that science. Is such a unique opportunity.? I get to have this once in a lifetime experience that no one else I know who’s in my position is getting.
SAMANTHA CLEVENGER, So many people in the field, no matter where they are now went through WHOI in some way, whether that was sailing on WHOI ships Or being students here, scientists here postdocs here and who are some of the best people in the field. MICHAEL, FOLLOWS At Woods: Hole there’s about 1,000 people, scientists and technicians and engineers and researchers all working on every aspect of oceanography.. That makes it one of the most concentrated and biggest oceanographic institutions in the world.
SAMANTHA CLEVENGER And in terms of day-to-day research. Here, if you have a research problem, you can just think of the top five people in that particular niche of a topic. And they’re, either down the hallway or have some association with WHOI..
It’S a really incredible place in terms of connections and just having access to really anything. You need. MICHAEL FOLLOWS As a species in a society, we really want to understand the planet that we live on and our place in it., And what we need are people who understand the Earth system who understand how the climate system works, who understand how to interact With that system, in order to take care of it and be part of it. And the joint program uniquely produces people with the background, the knowledge, the experience and the skill sets to be an integral part of addressing those questions into the future.
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