New Programs
Page 2
Although these new SEA SEMESTERS place emphasis on different disciplinary areas, they offer the same benefits for which SEA SEMESTER is known: demanding academics on shore followed by practical application at sea, an interdisciplinary approach that combines the sciences, social sciences, humanities and public policy, the opportunity to plan and conduct an original research paper, leadership development and personal growth and the adventure of a lifetime.
SEA Semester: Documenting Change in the Caribbean
Dr. Mary Malloy, a member of the Maritime Studies faculty for the past fifteen years, led the development of a Fall 2006 course that will concentrate on the enormous changes during the last five centuries in the islands of the Caribbean Sea. Malloy’s course will explore the impact of devastating diseases that decimated the native population, the transportation of five million Africans into the islands to work plantations of newly introduced crops and the demand on its limited resources by the tourist industry. During this semester, students will explore how to document these changes using maps and charts, colonial documents, commercial records, voyage accounts, harbor pilots, species surveys, ocean sampling and the literature of Caribbean people from both the Colonial and post-Colonial periods.
L-R: Drs. Matthew McKenzie and Mary Malloy.
During the shore component, students will start with the maritime landscape of winds, currents, islands and harbors exploring how the physical nature of the region has influenced patterns of settlement and development. They will also trace the role of ships and sailors as agents of environmental, social and economic change. Using both scientific and historical evidence to develop a timeline of ecological change, they will look at the marine resources that drove European expansion in the Caribbean and at the impact of introduced species, human development and pollution on the ecosystems of the islands and coastal areas.
Onboard the SSV Corwith Cramer, students will conduct sampling surveys of the Caribbean and learn to operate and navigate the vessel. Three or four port stops are currently planned including a visit to a field research station studying endangered species in Jamaica and a circumnavigation of Montserrat comparing current conditions to those documented in a 1673 manuscript chart of the island.
Fall 2006 Courses: Documenting Change in the Caribbean
Maritime History and Culture (4 credits) This course explores the political, cultural, social and demographic changes in the Caribbean. Starting from the maritime landscape of winds, currents, islands and harbors, it demonstrates how the physical nature of the region has influenced patterns of settlement and development from the time of the Arawaks and Caribs to the modern commodification of the Caribbean as a tourist destination.
Marine Environmental History (4 credits) In this course, students trace the role of ships and sailors as the agents of environmental – as well as social and economic – change. Using both scientific and historical evidence to develop a timeline of ecological change, students examine the marine resources that drove European expansion in the Caribbean and the impact of introduced species, human development and pollution on the ecosystems of coastal areas. They also look at efforts to mitigate the damaging effects of human activity on the environment and at the effectiveness of regional and international management schemes.
Nautical Science (3 credits) Nautical science teaches the practical skills and theoretical background necessary to safely operate a tall ship in high seas. In lectures, lab sessions, field trips and student projects, SEA’s captains introduce the principles fundamental to sailing-vessel operations. Students learn and apply essential concepts in general physics, astronomy and meteorology.
Oceanography (3 credits) This oceanography course provides students with the scientific foundation needed to use scientific equipment and instruments onboard the ship to investigate the planet’s oceans. Students acquire a basic understanding of global ocean processes and more detailed knowledge of the waters through which they will sail. As they learn about modern ocean studies and technological advances in instrumentation, students develop proposals for original research projects to be carried out at sea. As part of this process, students have opportunities to discuss current research with scientists working at the cutting edge of marine science.
Practical Oceanographic Research (3 credits) Students conduct sampling surveys of the Caribbean using state-of-the-art equipment and laboratory facilities onboard the ship. Students collaborate on group projects in the oceanography of the cruise track, using the full scientific capabilities of the research vessel.
SEA Semester: Marine Environmental History
Taking the eastern equatorial Pacific as a regional case study, this 2007 course will explore the linkages between human activities, environmental concerns and changing understandings of nature. Dr. Matthew McKenzie of the Maritime Studies faculty, developed this SEA Semester. This course will explore the deep historical roots of the critical state of our marine environment for students interested in environmental studies as well as the humanities and social sciences. As evidenced by ocean commission reports from the Pew Charitable Trust and the US Ocean Commission, scientists and government have realized that the world’s oceans are threatened now as never before by human activities. They have also come to see that such changes are not just recent developments. Further complicating such concerns as climate change, over fishing, invasive species and nuclear testing are the ambiguous roles that sciences have played in both revealing and reinforcing human influences upon their environment. This course will include study of human societies and their attendant social, cultural, economic and scientific practices as impacting this environmental crisis.
Students will then join the SSV Robert C. Seamans to continue their work at sea, sailing from Tahiti to the Marquesas, and then to Hawaii. While aboard they will learn to operate the vessel, conduct oceanographic sampling and go ashore to make observations of current environmental conditions. By combining research onshore with the experience of working and research at sea, they will develop better understandings of how humans have related to and changed their marine environment.
2007 Courses: Marine Environmental History
Maritime History and Culture (4 credits) Linked to the eastern equatorial Pacific cruise track, this course sets the foundation for deeper understanding of marine resources use in the region. Drawing on current research in maritime history, Polynesian ethnography and archaeology, environmental history and the history of science, students compare the reasons for Polynesian and European expansion overseas; how these peoples accomplished such expansions; the social, cultural, economic, and ecological impacts; and the role of science in exploration and in the region today.
Oceanography (3 credits) This oceanography course provides students with the scientific foundation needed to use scientific equipment and instruments onboard the ship to investigate the planet’s oceans. It introduces them to the scientific study of the ocean and prepares them for the course in practical oceanography offered during the sea component. Students acquire a basic understanding of global ocean processes and more detailed knowledge of the waters through which they will sail. As they learn about modern ocean studies and technological advances in instrumentation, students develop proposals for original research projects to be carried out at sea. As part of this process, they have opportunities to discuss current research with scientists working at the cutting edge of marine science.
Nautical Science (3 credits) Nautical science teaches the practical and theoretical skills necessary to safely operate a tall ship in high seas. In lectures, lab sessions, field trips and student projects, SEA’s captains introduce the principles fundamental to sailingvessel operations. Students learn and apply essential concepts in general physics, astronomy and meteorology.
Marine Environmental History (4 credits) Conducted during the cruise, this course is the research extension of “Maritime History and Culture.” Students work from prospectuses designed and defended on shore, integrating findings from assembled research materials with experiences gained from standing deck watches and working in the research vessel’s oceanography lab. They present their findings to the ship’s company and develop final papers.
Practical Oceanographic Research (3 credits) Students conduct sampling surveys along the cruise track using state-of-the-art equipment and laboratory facilities onboard the ship. They complete original group research projects in oceanography under the guidance of the chief scientist on board the vessel.