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New Fish
In reading this article, I was astonished to think that almost 95% of the biological ocean has yet to be discovered! At the beginning of the article I couldn’t figure out if the news that 2000-3000 new species of fish will be found in 3 years was to be expected in the research field, or was simply unbelievable! By the end of the article, however, when our general knowledge of the ocean was compared to what we knew about the moon’s surface when man landed there, I was not as surprised that we have so much more to discover. It would be surprising to most people to learn, however, that we know more about the moon’s surface than our own planets’ oceans.
With the combined efforts of 300 scientists from 53 countries to create this oceans census, with a common goal of “pinpointing endangered animals and suggesting how to protect them”, this “adventure” becomes all the more exciting. Wouldn’t Maury want to be in on this! I’m sure his records are included in the 15,304 species of fish already documented, but I can imagine him being thrilled to have the collaboration of experts to log all the findings.
Aside from the discovery of new fish species, a new species of sponge, “Rasta sponge”, was discovered, which is believed to contain specific “chemical compounds that may treat cancerous tumors”. Not only are we documenting this information for our greater knowledge, but it is, more importantly, for the greater good of the oceans’ aquatic life in that it will protect endangered species; and in the interests of human life in that findings may be important in testing for treatments for diseases such as cancer.
New Fish
In reading this article, I was astonished to think that almost 95% of the biological ocean has yet to be discovered! At the beginning of the article I couldn’t figure out if the news that 2000-3000 new species of fish will be found in 3 years was to be expected in the research field, or was simply unbelievable! By the end of the article, however, when our general knowledge of the ocean was compared to what we knew about the moon’s surface when man landed there, I was not as surprised that we have so much more to discover. It would be surprising to most people to learn, however, that we know more about the moon’s surface than our own planets’ oceans.
With the combined efforts of 300 scientists from 53 countries to create this oceans census, with a common goal of “pinpointing endangered animals and suggesting how to protect them”, this “adventure” becomes all the more exciting. Wouldn’t Maury want to be in on this! I’m sure his records are included in the 15,304 species of fish already documented, but I can imagine him being thrilled to have the collaboration of experts to log all the findings.
Aside from the discovery of new fish species, a new species of sponge, “Rasta sponge”, was discovered, which is believed to contain specific “chemical compounds that may treat cancerous tumors”. Not only are we documenting this information for our greater knowledge, but it is, more importantly, for the greater good of the oceans’ aquatic life in that it will protect endangered species; and in the interests of human life in that findings may be important in testing for treatments for diseases such as cancer.
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