Drawing samples of water for chemical analysis.
In the spring quarter of the sophomore year students take Oceanography 220, a course designed not only to give them experience using field and laboratory equipment and instruments, but also to afford them a first opportunity to carry out and report on a field research project in Puget Sound. This is the culminating course in the year-long sophomore sequence, the first course being a general introduction/overview of oceanography, the second being a survey of large-scale ocean circulation, the distribution of properties, and methods of data analysis.
During spring break the Ocean 220 students and four faculty members gather in the idyllic setting of the Friday Harbor Laboratories in the San Juan Islands to prepare for the coming quarter. A three-day workshop begins with faculty overviews of the oceanography of Puget Sound, followed by a discussion of scientific writing with analysis of selected published papers, hands-on experience in field sampling methods and sample analysis (e.g., data acquisition with CTD and current meters, water sampling, plankton sampling, and analysis of chlorophyll a and dissolved oxygen), and a field trip to nearby beaches and muddy intertidal habitats.
During the past two years a representative from the Washington State Department of Ecology attended the workshop and presented scientific problems in Puget Sound that are of great interest to that agency. As the emphasis in this course is on team research, and the time available for research is very limited, a relatively small number of well-defined research projects are presented by faculty members to the students. The students then sort themselves into research teams and discussion and planning begins.
After returning from Friday Harbor, the students spend the first two weeks of spring quarter preparing for the field research and drafting the methods section of their research papers. The papers are to conform to the guidelines for publication in Limnology and Oceanography.
In the third week of the quarter the students participate in a two-day cruise to an area of Puget Sound. For example, in 1997 the 27 students carried out their research during four roughly 12-hr shifts on the 65-foot R.V.Clifford A. Barnes at a deep-water station in Possession Sound, north of Seattle, near the city of Everett. Eight research projects addressed biological, chemical/biochemical, geological, or physical oceanographic themes:
- Ocean 220 Research Projects in Possession Sound (April 1997)
- Temporal variability of phytoplankton abundance
- Factors affecting phytoplankton producion rate
- Vertical migration of zooplankton
- Spatial and temporal variability of suspended particulate matter
- Interpretations of net biological processes based on in situ measurements of dissolved oxygen
- Sedimentary environments
- Tidal influence on currents
- Temporal variability of temperature and salinity
- Factors affecting phytoplankton producion rate
The remaining seven weeks of the quarter are spent analyzing samples and data, and writing the research paper. Students receive extensive feedback from faculty on several drafts of their paper. Finally, during the last week of classes the students present an oral report of their research in a public symposium, and turn in their final research paper.