15 July, 1997

Aloha!

Today I just talked to various researchers around the labs to better understand the processes they were following and what they hoped to accomplish. Their curiosity and interest in each topic was so evident in the shine in their eyes and the animation with which they explained their research. Most scientists are not going to gain "break-through" knowledge. But each new piece that goes into making a whole slowly molds new ideas and ways of approaching a problem.

It seems that science leaps ahead so rapidly that we forget how many thousands of data sets go into producing a new theory. Even then, it is challenged over and over again and tested in different ways. After new ideas gain the respect of peers, it still takes even longer for those ideas to get into the educational system. The result is that any "new" information that we have in our textbooks is usually 10-15 years old. It would be nice to watch the process of ideas evolve and that is part of my mission here -- to see what is new in some aspects of marine science and how this information is different form what is available to general classrooms.

What is the newest scientific discovery that you have read about?

Aloha!

Besse Dawson