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Marine Biology: About the DVDs
Through extensive filming at The Maritime Aquarium at
Norwalk (TMA) and on board their Research Vessel Oceanic (RVO), a series
of DVDs has been produced and provided to students taking this course. Through
these DVDs, you will be aboard the Oceanic on Long Island Sound
and be able to go inside the aquarium. Along the way, you will
take a field trip, observe the sampling of marine organisms,
participate in the testing of water quality, and learn about the
taxonomy, anatomy, physiology, ecology, and behaviors of marine
organisms. You will observe and record data on water quality and
become familiar and conversant with units of scientific
measurement. You will keep a checklist of marine organisms and
record their scientific names, quantity, and size for the
biodiversity census. In addition, you will learn to compose and
compare narrative and graphic presentations of numeric data. You
will explore online scientific databases, analyze past results,
and compare them with your own.
The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk (TMA) building
Through the DVDs, you will be in the TMA laboratory
facilities and walk among the aquarium displays, getting a
unique perspective on marine organism husbandry from behind the
scenes. You will also observe and have the opportunity to
participate in a dissection of a marine organism. The aquarium
videos further illustrate the dynamic nature of marine biology
through presentations of living, moving, feeding organisms to
supplement the rigor of the biological principles and provide
you with a virtual aquarium experience and virtual field study.
Previously, online science courses have had one important
drawback when compared to those taken in a traditional college
setting: students were not able to participate in laboratory and
field studies and were prevented from experiencing science in
action with its practical considerations and breathtaking
immediacy. With development of this course and its achievement
of an innovative partnership - all that is changing.
Science is a human activity: a mode of inquiry and learning.
It is based on observations of the natural world, the
measurement of physical parameters, and the compilation and
analysis of data. For example, chemical tests reveal vital
information about seawater composition; dissections can reveal
inner beauty, awesome complexity, and different solutions to
life's challenges. Observing the interaction of structure and
function can open our eyes to hidden similarities and
relationships among all living organisms.
Reasearch Vessel Oceanic
Careful observations of living
animals in their habitat and in the laboratory reveal valuable
insight and information about such wide-ranging topics as
methods of movement, effective defensive strategies, and keen
sensory perception. In addition, as you wander behind the scenes
of the aquarium, you will be able to observe the work of caring
professionals as they nurture different life stages of jellies
with careful husbandry. The aquarists work to provide the
delicate balance of nutrients, temperature, light, and space
that must be maintained for healthy specimens.
As a human activity, science can have its pitfalls,
pratfalls, and problems. Did your feet get wet when the wave
sloshed over the deck? Did you overfill the test tube when
testing for nitrogen levels? Did you spill the reagent or lose
count in your titration of the water sample; did the frantic
lobster from the otter trawl nip you? How tiring is it to haul
up the loaded and heavy mud grab? Were you able to focus the
microscope before the amphipod swam out of view? Most of the
time, information in scientific papers leaves out the process,
challenges, and frustrations of actually "doing" science. The
experience of fieldwork and laboratory activities through these
DVDs can give a new perspective and appreciation for science as
an "action adventure".
Through online discussions of research studies, you will
examine competing hypotheses and frame new questions. Critical
thinking will be emphasized as well as the development and
demonstration of the ability to read, discuss, and reason
through scientific and technical studies. Now, with an added
taste of the practical side of experiments and field studies,
scientific papers may seem more meaningful when placed in the
context of the process involved.
If you can travel to The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk and be
part of one of their biodiversity cruises, you will experience
the beauty and biology of Long Island Sound while listening to
their topnotch marine educators. Now, you also have the
opportunity to sit back and enjoy these amazing videos and
experience the cruise, the aquarium, and their educators as an
integral part of our course. You can delight in the sight of
sponges, horseshoe crabs, flounder, and amphipods up close!
Get ready! The sky is blue, the water is slate gray and the
only thing missing is the pungent sharp smell of salty sea air
and the cold wind whipping your hair. We take a field trip in
this course and then spend time in the lab and behind the scenes
at the aquarium. We watch the sampling devices being lowered
into the water and see strained muscles tugging on the pulley's
rope. We are there getting a first look at what is caught in the
nets. We see the living organisms pulled up from the waters of
Long Island Sound and observe their anatomy, adaptations,
behaviors and interactions. Some of the laboratory procedures
call for you to observe and take notes; some will invite
participation in record keeping, data analysis, and graphing.
Welcome aboard our course!
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