Official repository for the course on deep sea mining impact.
In this course, we want to provide students with direct research experience at the hydrothermal system of Milos (Greece). This hydrothermal system is a shallow analogue to deep sea vents, and an ideal place for students to be trained in systemic hydrothermal investigation. Students with background in marine geophysics, macrobiology, geomicrobiology and geochemistry will work together to achieve a global understanding of the system, allowing them to understand how minerals are formed and how to assess the potential ecological impact of exploiting these resources. They will be involved with actively contested questions, empirical observation, cutting-edge technologies, and the sense of excitement that comes from working to answer important questions. By the end of this course, students will have learned the process leading to thorough and rigorous scientific investigation, including result presentation and discussion.
The video of the online introduction meeting (15th of September 2023) can be found here. The link expires the 7th of October.
In order to retrieve samples and data, we will be freediving every day. The area studied will be less than 5 m deep, and while it is not needed to be able to go down (you can send your colleagues), it would still be more enjoyable to have some basics of freediving.
The main problem one will face when going down to 5 m is equalisation. Ideally you would like to learn to use Frenzel equalisation, which you can by looking at this video, or this one. There are also many more tutorials on the net. If you can't do it, no worries, we will work on it on Milos.
The second important thing is to try to stay longer under water. For this, it is important to learn to breath properly using your diaphragm. See this video. As well, you can learn to better tolerate the high amount of CO2 in your body. To do so, lie on your couch/bed, and after relaxing and taking a nice last big breath in, hold your breath until the first contraction comes. Take one breath, and start again. Repeat 8 times. You can also do the same thing while walking, but be a bit more tolerant: take maybe 5 breaths between each breathold. Don't walk too fast, and try to relax as much as possible.
REMEMBER: NEVER TRAIN IN THE WATER ALONE!
Here is a provisional time plan:
Go to the following links to get more info:
- Microbiology
- Macrobiology
- Geophysics
- Geochemistry