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Hi Steve & All, Jan 23, 2015
I fear self-promotion is increasingly necessary in the Scientific world;
hype comes before investigation (the dictionary says so).
I noticed that the chamber was 850 km from the nearest open ocean and
the drill hole was 740 M long. This implies a mechanical advantage when the
tide moves from low to high of about 1000. So there should be some upward
movement of the shelf and exchange of water in and out about twice a day; a
supply of oxygen and zooplankton perhaps.
Yt, Dave Webster, Kentville
----- Original Message -----
From: "Stephen Shaw" <srshaw@Dal.Ca>
To: <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca>
Sent: Friday, January 23, 2015 2:58 PM
Subject: RE: [NatureNS] "Discovery of Fish Beneath Antarctica" (from
Scientific American)
> An interesting article, but the fish and shrimp were swimming in a
> supposedly isolated wedge of seawater, not in fresh water (i.e. melt water
> from the glacier). While the massive ice sheet is grounded on the rocky
> bottom, the 'wedge' apparently is not hermetically sealed off. It is hard
> to see how anyone could have ruled out the existence of direct small
> seawater channels from the open ocean running under it, through to the
> newly visualized 'wedge'. The few animals found there could be open
> ocean species that had gained access through such channels, perhaps by
> accident or even for shelter. Blind translucent fish are well known in
> the deep ocean below the level where significant light penetrates, as are
> species with blood antifreeze.
> The fact that such an obvious explanation is not excluded or even
> mentioned in the article (when the authors must have thought of it) raises
> suspicions that this is a media-savvy advertizing exercise for an
> expensive study, to draw attention to unexpected new findings but which in
> reality might have a simpler and much more mundane explanation.
> Scientists are not immune from sins of self-promotion.
> Steve (Hfx)
>
> ________________________________________
> From: naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca [naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca] on
> behalf of Dusan Soudek [soudekd@ns.sympatico.ca]
> Sent: Friday, January 23, 2015 12:29 PM
> To: Nature Ns
> Subject: [NatureNS] "Discovery of Fish Beneath Antarctica" (from
> Scientific American)
>
> This item has nothing to do with nature Nova Scotia, but it intrigued me
> following the discussion on NatureNS of the recent mackerel dieoff in
> Bras d'Or Lake, allegedly due to hypothermia. The newly discovered
> Antarctic fish live in a 10 m sliver of seawater below the Ross Ice Shelf,
> in permanent darkness under some 740 m of ice and 850 km from the open
> ocean...
> Dusan Soudek
> http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/discovery-fish-live-beneath-antarctica1/?WT.mc_id=SA_WR_20150121
>
>
> -----
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