Academics
Sounds of the Sea
FNS 192
(Fulfills 3 credits of the General Education Requirements in the Natural World)
Professor Gary Thomas, Marine Biology, Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science
Tues./Thurs., 3:30-4:45; Section S
Most of the marine environment is dark since sunlight does not penetrate deep into the ocean. Sound travels much faster and further in the water than in the air. In many ways, light is to terrestrial life as sound is to the inhabitants of the sea. Come and see some of the most fascinating uses of sound by marine animals, and man, and speculate on others for so much is unknown.
Take this course and introduce yourself to the fact that the ocean is rich in underwater “soundscapes.” Many things make sounds and the first is nature. The wind and the rain, the currents and the waves, lightening and ice, volcanoes and earthquakes can produce continuous, cyclic and enormous sound events in the oceans. Asteroids and comets, and their historical collisions with earth may be the largest of all sound sources.
Not all marine life can see but all underwater life can detect sounds. We will explore how the great whales communicate, and the porpoise and dolphins echolocate. Discover how marine fish can detect the sounds of approaching predators, and hear the communications of their own species. Observe how they can use sound to mask their presence and escape from being eaten by hungry predators. Listen to the sounds that swarms of shrimp make, and hear the defensive sounds made by crabs and lobsters. Compare the biological and the physical sounds that make up the natural soundscapes of the oceans.
Learn the many ways that man uses sound in the ocean, such as how to find and measure fish, plankton, and other denizens of the deep. See how humans use sound to detect objects on the bottom of the sea, such as sunken vessels, pipelines and natural and man-made features. Find out how the oil and gas industry uses sound to find resource deposits thousands of meters below the bottom of the sea. Calculate the loudness of underwater explosions, the intensity of sonars and the strength of airguns are that are used routinely by the military and the oil and gas exploration industry. Develop an appreciation for what sounds underwater animals can hear and how the sounds that man makes may mask or damage marine life.
In this interdisciplinary course, we will review many fascinating phenomena that play a role in the acoustic structure of the oceans. This course designed for science and non-science students with an interest in the oceans, marine life, the nature of sound, and the sounds of nature. My goal will be to stimulate critical thinking, develop writing and analytical skills, practice giving presentations and working in groups, debating issues around a complex but very interesting subject that no one knows a lot about. I anticipate two fieldtrips: one to visit the Miami Seaquarium (whales, dolphins, fish and other marine life), and one on a local charter boat to observe how fishers use echosounders and other technologies to increase their success of catching.
Gary L. Thomas (Ph.D., University of Washington, 1978) is one of the nation’s foremost authorities on sustainable fisheries. Dr. Thomas’ current research interests include acoustic and optical assessment of fish density, distribution and behavior, study of marine trophic structure and function, and empirical approaches to achieving sustainable fisheries.
