Comments on: What does the ocean mean to me?

By: Angela Barrs

Angela Barrs — Wed, 29 Oct 2014 14:23:12 +0000

Do plastics get into marine snow?

By: Damien McGarrigle

Damien McGarrigle — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 20:52:05 +0000

I have had the pleasure of being a scuba diver for a number of years and I have always been fascinated by the ecosystems and the diversity of the creatures and how each has its own niche. The Angler Fish always reminds me of the stone fish I saw when diving in the red sea. A real ugly brute but so well camouflaged that he was almost impossible to see. It is also incredible to imagine the pressures that the creatures of the abyss have inflicted on them at 30 metres it is extremely exhausting on a human body. Will be interested to see the different ways that they thrive.

By: Sue Wells

Sue Wells — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 10:24:12 +0000

so much fascinating information already !
and I have enrolled on eol…it looks as if it could be very useful!

By: Paris Stefanoudis

Paris Stefanoudis — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 10:19:41 +0000

Hello Carol,

I appreciate your support to us, ocean scientists.

Many points you are raising regarding the relationship of humans and oceans and its current status quo today are going to be discussed in week 6.

Hope you will enjoy the course

By: Carol Horne

Carol Horne — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 10:14:08 +0000

Always fascinated by the sea as a child on our annual 2 week holiday to Bognor (of all places!). But scared too – the power of the waves and the undertow. I still don’t feel comfortable right at the interface between sea and air where I feel the 2 media get mixed up and confuse me – I’m not a flying nor a swimming organism. But, SCUBA diving opened an entire universe to me at the age of 60 when I passed my OD qualification. I knew then what it felt to cavort, and to fly. If I had one wish it is that I could have another lifetime and spend it studying the oceans. Additionally to the breathtaking aspect of diving and the privilege of witnessing the teeming life that so few people get to see and comprehend, I feel sad and scared that humans have maybe pushed the oceans to such an endangered place – from which they may never recover – where our very existence is threatened.

By: Paris Stefanoudis

Paris Stefanoudis — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 09:38:35 +0000

Hello Sue,

you are right about the Coccolithofores. But the test (wall that encloses the body) of Foraminifera can be made of many things: calcium carbonate, organic material, mineral grains, silica and so on. There are even other more strange-looking forams which are tube-like and contain small mineral grains and mud. Here is a link of one of these groups, called Komokiaceans:
http://eol.org/pages/2910683/media

By: Sue wells

Sue wells — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 08:26:27 +0000

I thought formins were silica and coccoliths were ‘chalk’
.?

By: Paris Stefanoudis

Paris Stefanoudis — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 16:37:28 +0000

Great site. I know people from the National Oceanography Centre that work on coccolithophores!

Many Foraminifera that I found in the Northeast Atlantic use coccoliths as part of their (body) wall. Never thought that they would inspire people for ceramic designs though! That is really interesting.

By: Sue wells

Sue wells — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 16:25:18 +0000

Hi…ah yes ..I have been fascinated by the amazing shapes of Foraminifera
And coccoliths…..and have used them as inspiration for ceramic designs….
And the ehux pages as a text exercise for a word processing test!

http://www.soes.soton.ac.uk/staff/tt/

Looking forward to learning more!

By: Paris Stefanoudis

Paris Stefanoudis — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 11:23:59 +0000

Hello John!
You can be sure that in the next weeks, especially week 3 and 6 of the course, we will be discussing facts about deep sea life and the fascinating animals that live there.