ENVS Research Talk: Weds. February 24 NOON WSQ 111: Dr. Kathryn Davis: Loving the Uglies: Why We Should Care About Creatures in Deep Ocean Environments
Emily Moffitt
PLEASE FORWARD, ANNOUNCE, AND POST:
The Department of Environmental Studies at San José State University is pleased to present a public research presentation
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Wednesday, February 24, 2016 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM WASHINGTON SQUARE HALL 111 |
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Kathryn Davis, Ph.D.
Chair Geography and Global Studies Department San Jose State University
Loving the Uglies: Why We Should Care About Creatures in Deep Ocean Environments |
“The sea is everything. It covers seven-tenths of the terrestrial globe. Its breath is pure and life- giving. . . Nature manifests herself in it, with her three kingdoms: mineral, vegetable, and animal. The ocean is the vast reservoir of Nature.” (Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea)
Ocean life has long provided food, jobs, economic revenue, and has increasingly been the source of drugs and biomedical models to improve human health. Even considering this, our understanding of marine life has barely tapped the surface of the world’s oceans. Over a little more than a decade, tens of thousands of organisms have been documented as part of the Census of Marine Life program – thousands of them new to science. We have no idea of the richness of sea life and how many creatures have yet to be discovered, even though most animals on the planet live in the ocean and most are invertebrates. They may not be as “attractive” as a panda or dolphin, nor as photogenic as a raptor in flight, but they may be as intelligent and they may have consciousness we are just beginning to understand. Did you know that Humboldt squid hunt in packs like dolphins? Or that cuttlefish communicate using a sophisticated code of flashing colors and skin patterns? Are you aware that octopuses build houses? (Yes, octopuses, not octopi.) This talk will explore some of the fascinating discoveries about ocean life and why we should care about protecting the creatures of the deep.
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LIGHT REFRESHMENTS PROVIDED. ALL ARE WELCOME. |