Jade Lin

Cecelia Musselman
ENGW 3307
2/6/18
Word Count: 1439

More Than Just a Bunch of Fish

Oceanography -​a science that deals with the oceans and includes the delimitation of their extent and
depth, the physics and chemistry of their waters, marine biology, and the exploitation of their resources
-- Definition from Merriam Webster Online Dictionary

I came to Northeastern looking toward the oceans. In some ways, it feels inevitable that I would

make my way to marine science, from how I grew up with my dad raising a saltwater aquarium, to how

my older sister went across the country to study marine biology, to how my younger sister’s name is

actually Coral. In other ways, it seems like a wonderful coincidence that I would stumble upon a subject

that provoked my curiosity.

My older sister went to UC San Diego for college to take advantage of classes at Scripps, the

affiliated and famed marine institution there. I remember feeling confused. What was so interesting about

a bunch of fish? I didn’t quite see the appeal, but I joined the National Ocean Sciences Bowl team in ninth

grade so that we could maintain our sisterly relationship by talking about a common interest. That was

when I was hooked. Buzzing in a fun quiz-bowl style competition introduced me to and piqued my

interest in oceanography. I learned that there is more appeal to the oceans than just the life inside of it. I

wanted to know how currents worked and what lies on the seabed and what happens when cliffs get

eroded by the waves. I learned more and more about the oceans through self-studying for this competition

and by senior year, you could say I was obsessed. When it came time to choose a college, it was almost a

no-brainer; I decided on Northeastern for its Urban Coastal Sustainability Initiative and the affiliated

Northeastern Marine Science Center.

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 One of my pet peeves is when I introduce myself as a marine science or oceanography student,

and the other person automatically thinks: ocean science = fish = marine biology. I know that this line of

thinking is similar to how I thought of marine science before learning about it; however, both marine

science and environmental science are much more than just biology. At its core, oceanography is a

interconnected system of elements from many different science disciplines, including marine biology, but

not solely marine biology.

One of the first and best examples of the interdisciplinary nature of oceanography is the

Challenger Expedition in 1872. The voyage of the HMS Challenger was the first global expedition for the

research of the oceans and the life within it. Aboard the ship were different types of scientists including

head scientist and naturalist Charles Wyville Thomas, naturalist John Murray, chemist and physicist John

Buchanan, as well as an official artist, J.J. Wild, to record the likenesses of the creatures they discovered

(The Challenger Society for Marine Science). Crammed together in the confines of a ship and keeping

each other company while sailing the world in a four year long voyage, the scientists had to communicate

and cooperate with each other to complete their exploration. Together, they were able to make discoveries

and hint at patterns and connections spanning their collective fields. One such pattern was how the oceans

changed with depth. They discovered that the ocean bottom had ridges and valleys, that the seawater had

different chemistry different depths, and that life could be sustained even in the deepest parts of the ocean

(University of Washington, The Challenger Society for Marine Science).​ ​The raw data from this

expedition was extensive, and took many years to publish and later analyze. As the first oceanographic

voyage, the combination of different fields of science used in the Challenger Expedition become the

framework of later explorations and education, and firmly established oceanography as a science that

needed additional research. The existence of some of the first oceanographic institutions may then be in

part attributed to researchers needing the people and tools to analyze the data from the Challenger

Expedition (Brown, 2014).

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 Like those scientists on the Challenger, scientists today have to cooperate and have knowledge of

many different fields in order to have an adequate understanding of the oceans. Oceanography, then, is a

field that uses systems thinking. Systems thinking is a analytical skill set that is used to study and modify

systems. It involves identifying and studying the elements of a system and the interactions between them.

(Arnold 2015). Systems thinking has become very important in environmental science as scientists learn

about the cascade of effects human actions have caused on the environment and how these effects come

back to bite us.

This principle of systems thinking has had implications in my life, both inside the classroom and

out. From my observation, systems thinking has become a theme in more and more science classes. I like

this trend because it provides context for phenomena that may seem pointless to learn when viewed on its

own. For example, studying chemistry has been hard for me because it is so small-scale that it seems

irrelevant. I found that chemistry became easier to learn when put into the context of the molecule’s

physical or biological effects. One can see just how Northeastern encourages interdisciplinary systems

thinking in its Marine and Environmental Science students by looking at the required classes they must

take in order to graduate. So far, I have taken biology, physics, chemistry, and geology. I have also taken

a sustainable business class and geographic information systems (a mapping software class), as

major-related electives. In the future, I plan to also take statistics and either a policy or communications

class. Studying all of these different disciplines has been hard, but not without merit. I find it fun to draw

connections and find similarities between all of my classes. One of my favorite courses this semester is

my marine biomechanics course, which combines what I have learned in both biology and mechanical

physics. I love that I can say, Oh! I’ve learned this before! So that’s why it’s important to learn

Bernoulli’s equation. It can be used to explain what is happening in the tunnel of a burrowing marine

organism as water moves over the opening.

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 Outside of the classroom, systems thinking has also helped me to understand the actions of other

scientists when I was doing fieldwork. This past summer, I interned in one of the labs at the Marine

Science Center and helped The Nature Conservancy restore oyster reefs in a Rhode Island estuary. Oyster

reefs are large masses of oysters growing atop one another in wall-like structures. To have the most

success in restoring the oyster reefs, the Nature Conservancy and the lab had to research not just the

biology of oysters, but also how the oysters would interact with the local environment. They had to

consider biological factors such as which surfaces would the oyster larvae would best attach to, chemical

factors such as the concentration of water pollutants in certain locations, and physical factors such as the

force of the tides going in and out. There was also more than just scientific factors to consider; the social

sciences played a large part in the motivation of this project as well as in obtaining support and funding.

There were several private homeowners who opposed the decision to restore the oyster reefs because they

would look ugly during low tide, or would hinder the navigation of private boats. However, many other

people supported the restoration, because oyster reefs act as natural barriers to storm surge and coastal

erosion, thereby benefiting coastal property owners.

My role in the project was just as another pair of hands to help move the crates of shells. But I do

not feel as though being unable to participate in the calculations or monitoring detracted from the

experience. For one, I was happy to help for the sake of environmental restoration. But more importantly,

I was able to enjoy learning about and discussing these issues with the field scientists and the other interns

because I had the academic background to do so. I was only able to understand the reasons for which we

were restoring the oyster reefs in the way that we had by assembling what I had learned in biology,

chemistry, physics, and the social sciences.

After researching how the Challenger Expedition has impacted the study of oceanography, I am

grateful to the expedition for setting a precedent in how oceanography should be a collaborative science

that spans across the boundaries of the traditional disciplines. When I look to the oceans, I am reminded

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of all the experiences from all the different fields that have brought me to where I am today. It feels odd

to think of the me before I discovered the wonders of ocean systems, but I can say this: I am so so glad

that the oceans are more than just a bunch of fish.

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Acknowledgements

Thank you to my peer reviewers Vasco De Sa Nunes Correia Diogo and John Wise for their insightful
comments. I would also like to extend my thanks to Jennifer Garland for the inspiration for my title, as
well as to my instructor Cecelia Musselman for her notes and for generously granting me an extension.

References

(Citation style following the Oceanography journal style guide:

http://tos.org/oceanography/assets/images/content/style_guide.pdf​)

Arnold R., J. Wade. 2015. ​A Definition of Systems Thinking.​ Science Direct.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877050915002860​ .
Brown S., J. Goodman. 2014. ​The Challenger Expedition​. Historical Association.
https://www.history.org.uk/historian/categories/561/module/7382/podcast-series-the-history-of-sc
ience/7390/the-challenger-expedition
Merriam-Webster. 2017. ​Oceanography.​ ​https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oceanography​ .
The Challenger Society of Marine Science. ​History of the Challenger Expedition.
http://www.challenger-society.org.uk/History_of_the_Challenger_Expedition​. Date Accessed 13
Jan 2018.
University of Washington. ​The Voyage of the HMS Challenger.
http://www.interactiveoceans.washington.edu/story/HMS_Challenger​. Date Accessed 13 Jan
2018.