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Over 70% of our planet is ocean, and life itself evolved in the sea so come and join us on this tour of Planet Ocean! Have you ever wondered about the diversity of marine biota in our oceans? Do you know what a nudibranch is? Or how a kelp forest functions? Did you realise that the ocean ‘pumps’ carbon? Are you interested in how marine systems; from coral reefs to Antarctic ecosystems are managed? This course will introduce you to the fascinating world of our oceans. You will learn about marine life and key features of the ocean system. You will also explore some of the stressors on marine systems caused by human activity. Finally, this course will cover how society might sensibly approach managing those threats into the future.
What will you learn?
- How life has evolved in the sea
- How marine food webs are structured
- How some particularly interesting ecosystems function such as kelp forests, the Antarctic ocean, and the deep sea
- What oceanographers do and some of the technologies they use
- What drives plant growth and thus ecosystem productivity in the oceans
- The role of the ocean in shaping and regulating our climate
- How plate tectonics shape the ocean basins and influence current patterns
- Consequences of climate change for ocean processes and marine biota
- How fishing and other human pressures affect ocean systems
- How seafood is likely to be an important food source in the future
- How we monitor and manage marine ecosystems