Online Lecture: Science of the Sea — Advancing Health & Ocean Research

Jason Robertshaw, the lecturer for this online presentation, is among other things a program manager at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium located in southwest Florida. He presented an impactful lecture on several of the 38 world class research programs now taking place at Mote. One of the programs discussed was the biomedical and technology program. In this section Jason Robertshaw discussed marine immunology. Some great takeaways from this area is that although sharks eat the sick and dying marine life in the ocean, they don't themselves get sick. Experts discovered that sharks have an organ called the epigonal that makes immune cells. In addition, other marine life such as sting rays and marine snails may in the future offer potential to ease pain. Last, I want to mention Jason Robertshaw’s discussion on the “Red Tide.” I had heard about the red algae bloom, as well as the algae bloom that affects our marine life here on the coast of California as well as Lake Tahoe. I was happy of the possibility that the chemical formula Clear that has been known to disburse red algae in the ocean without affecting the fish may in the future be an option for other types of algae. I really enjoyed this online lecture, and was able to learn about some fascinating programs at Mote.