The Ocean’s Invisible Majority: The Microbes That Secretly Run the Planet

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When people imagine ocean life, they

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picture whales and sharks and coral reefs

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and giant kelp forests.

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But the vast majority of life in the

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ocean is actually invisible.

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In a single teaspoon of water, there can

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be millions of microbial cells, including

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bacteria, archaea, and

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microscopic phytoplankton.

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These organisms are too small for most

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people to even think about them.

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But collectively, they control the

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chemistry of the ocean and much of the

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Earth's climate system.

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Without them, the ocean

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ecosystem will collapse.

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Ocean microbes quietly power the systems

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that make life on Earth possible.

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They regulate oxygen production, recycle

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nutrients, and influence how carbon moves

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between the ocean and the atmosphere.

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In fact, many scientists now argue that

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microbes are the true

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engineers of ocean ecosystems.

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Yet despite their importance, they are

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rarely discussed in conservation policy.

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If microbes run the ocean, why do we

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almost never talk about them

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when we talk about conservation?

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So here is the problem. Microbes are

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invisible to ocean policy

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and not just the naked eye.

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Marine conservation often focuses on the

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big animals and the

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habitats that we can see.

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Sometimes it could be ranged from marine

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mammals and all the way down to small

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invertebrates and fish.

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But even then, the

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invertebrates kind of get ignored.

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These are important species and

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ecosystems, but they represent only a

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small portion of ocean life.

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In fact, it's actually funny when I was

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an undergraduate at the University of

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Guelph in the marine

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biology and freshwater program,

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one of my marine biology professors came

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out and said like and to be I was pissed

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off the class and he said,

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"Hey, look, a lot of you are here for

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because you want to study whales and

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sharks and other like

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and then and of course

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marine mammals, manatees and dolphins and

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all that kind of stuff

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because those are not important.

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I hate to say it, but you're wasting your

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time." He was obviously

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focused more on zooplankton.

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He goes, "It's the

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plankton that run the ocean."

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And he goes, "I know a lot of you aren't

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going to like me for this,

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but the fact is that I'm right."

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This is him talking and he's like, "You

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have to understand the

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foundations of the ocean, the animals

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and the cells that actually run the

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planet before you even learn about the

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marine mammals and the

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big and the whale sharks and all that

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kind of fun stuff and the fish and

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everything that goes with it."

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Because if you don't know the foundation,

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you don't know what runs

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the ocean, you're never really

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going to be a true marine biologist. Now,

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obviously that really kind of pissed off

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a lot of people in the class.

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And they took a lot of it sparked, let's

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just say, a heated

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debate or a lively debate.

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But it was it was true. If you really

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look at things, the fact is

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that we just don't understand.

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A lot of people just don't know. And when

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I tell them that every second breath is

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pretty much due to the ocean,

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the oxygen is coming out of the ocean.

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And so we need to understand

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the focus, the focus on these

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microbes and how important they can be.

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Microbes, plankton, whatever

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you want to categorize them

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and obviously different categories, but

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the unseen organisms, especially

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microbes, we're going to focus

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this week on microbes. I got a great

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interview on Friday for you guys to check

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out as well and to see

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the applications of those microbes. So

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microbial organisms

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dominate ocean ecosystems, both in

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abundance and metabolic activity. In

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fact, microbial life accounts for the

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vast majority of

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living cells in the ocean.

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These organisms drive the biogeochemical

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cycles that regulate ocean chemistry.

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They control how elements

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like carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus move

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through the oceans. And if you don't know

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why this is so important,

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especially when it comes to nitrogen and

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phosphorus, obviously carbon is important

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for a number of different reasons.

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But nitrogen and phosphorus are the key

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indicators and depending on the levels

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that will drive nutrients and also algae.

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And if you get an overabundance of

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nitrogen and an overabundance of

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phosphorus or

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phosphorus at the right level,

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you will spark a huge algal bloom, which

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can cause a lot of problems for lakes and

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rivers and oceans alike.

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So this means that microbes determine how

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nutrients are recycled, how oxygen is

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produced and how carbon

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is stored in the deep sea. Yet when

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marine protected areas are designed,

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microbial ecosystems are almost never

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considered explicitly.

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A lot of times when you hear MPAs being

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designated, you hear, "Oh, we designated

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an MPA to protect sharks" or "We

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designated an MPA to protect fish."

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And a lot of the times when you would

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expect that everything below that, so

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anything below this

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these umbrella species,

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would be protected as well. So that

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includes the microbes and everything else

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that goes along with it.

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And the genetics of all the organisms

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that fall within that habitat, but

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they're never really the focus.

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Most conservation planning focuses on

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populations or habitat protection rather

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than microbial community health.

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But environmental stress can rapidly

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change microbial communities.

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Ocean warming, pollution and

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acidification can shift microbial

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populations in ways that

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destabilize marine ecosystems.

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The key point is simple. If microbial

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systems collapse, the

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rest of the ocean can follow.

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Now let's get into talking a little bit

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about the science of it all.

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Our understanding of ocean microbes has

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grown dramatically

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over the past 20 years.

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One of the most important projects

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studying this was the Terra oceans

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expeditions, which sampled microbial life

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across the world's oceans. So researchers

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collected thousands of samples and used

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DNA sequencing to map global marine

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microbial diversity.

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The results were actually staggering.

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Scientists identified more than 40

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million previously unknown microbial

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genes in the ocean alone.

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The expedition also revealed that

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microbial communities vary depending on

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ocean temperature, nutrient availability,

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and water circulation.

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Scientists also discovered how microbes

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drive the marine carbon pump, a process

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that moves carbon from

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surface waters to the deep ocean.

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Microscopic phytoplankton absorb carbon

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dioxide naturally during photosynthesis.

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When these organisms die or are consumed,

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some of the carbon sinks into the deeper

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waters where it can

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remain stored for centuries.

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Another major discovery

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relates to oxygen production.

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So microscopic phytoplankton produce

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roughly half of the oxygen of the Earth's

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atmosphere, just as I mentioned earlier.

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One ocean organism in particular is

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remarkable. The cyanobacterium

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prokolococcus is considered the most

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abundant

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photosynthetic organism on Earth.

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It thrives in warm ocean waters and

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contributes significantly

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to global ocean production.

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Other microbes can play

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equally critical roles.

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Nitrogen fixing bacteria, the

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trichodesmium, converts atmospheric

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nitrogen into nutrients that

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phytoplankton can use.

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Without these microbes, large regions of

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the oceans would be nutrient limited and

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far less productive.

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Hetotrophic bacteria then recycle organic

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material from dead organisms and waste,

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keeping nutrients

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circulating through the food web.

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Together, these microbes are the

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foundation of marine ecosystems.

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Fish populations, marine mammals and

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entire fisheries ultimately depend on

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microbial productivity.

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Why are microbes so powerful? They

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perform several essential ecosystem

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services. Firstly, they produce oxygen

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through photosynthesis.

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Second, they capture carbon dioxide from

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the atmosphere and

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convert it to organic matter.

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Third, they regulate nitrogen

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availability in the ocean, which

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determine how productive

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marine ecosystems can be.

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And fourth, they break down organic waste

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and dead organisms, recycling nutrients

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back into the ecosystems.

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Without microbial recycling, nutrients

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would quickly become locked

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away in dead organic material.

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Scientists often describe microbes as the

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biochemical engines of the ocean.

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They regulate the chemical balance that

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keeps marine ecosystems functioning.

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If microbes are so important, why are

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they not considered in conservation? Why

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is there a conservation

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blind spot with these microbes?

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Despite their importance, microbial

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ecosystems can be highly sensitive to

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environmental change.

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And because microbes reproduce quickly,

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even small changes in environmental

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conditions can rapidly shift communities.

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These shifts can have major ecological

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consequences. Let's look at a few

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examples. Let's talk about marine

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heatwaves, for instance.

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They're becoming more frequent and

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intense due to climate change. When ocean

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temperatures spike, microbial communities

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often shift dramatically.

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For example, during marine heatwaves in

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the Northeast Pacific between 2013 and

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2016, scientists observed large changes

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in microbial populations associated with

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harmful algal blooms.

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Warmer waters favored microbes to produce

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toxins, which then led to widespread

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algal blooms that contaminated shellfish

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along the US west coast.

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These blooms forced fisheries closures

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and disrupted coastal economies. In other

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cases, warming oceans can increase

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populations of disease, causing microbes

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that affect corals and marine animals.

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Let's talk nutrient pollution and harmful

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algal blooms. When excess nutrients from

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agriculture or wastewater enter coastal

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waters, microbial

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communities respond rapidly.

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These nutrients fuel the explosive growth

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of certain phytoplankton species. This

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process can trigger harmful algal blooms,

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sometimes called red tides.

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Some of these blooms produce toxins that

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can kill fish, contaminate shellfish, and

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cause illness in humans.

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One well-known example occurred in the

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Gulf of Mexico. Nutrient runoff from the

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Mississippi River stimulates massive

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microbial blooms, which eventually leads

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to oxygen depletion in the warmer waters.

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That creates seasonal dead zones in the

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summer when the wind is not mixing the

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water altogether. It just

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causes this stratification.

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In these dead zones, the fish and marine

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animals cannot survive. These

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microbial-driven events can affect

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thousands of square kilometers of ocean.

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One thing we don't talk a lot about in

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climate change is the role that microbes

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play in ocean acidification.

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As atmospheric carbon dioxide increases,

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more CO2 dissolves in the ocean. This

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causes ocean acidification. While we

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often hear about acidification that

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affects coral reefs and shell-forming

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organisms, it also affects microbes.

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Changes in the ocean chemistry can alter

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micro-metabolism and nutrient cycling.

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For example, some studies show that

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acidification can influence how microbes

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process nitrogen and carbon, which may

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alter productivity in marine ecosystems.

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These changes are subtle but potentially

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significant if microbial nutrient cycling

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shifts, entire food webs can be affected.

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So this matters because microbes respond

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quickly to environmental stress. That

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means they can act as early warning

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systems to ecosystem change.

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But it also means microbial shifts can

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cascade through marine

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ecosystems faster than we expect.

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This is why scientists increasingly argue

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that microbial health needs to be

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integrated into ocean monitoring systems.

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So what would this look like for success?

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Recognizing microbes in ocean

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conservation could

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involve several important steps.

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First, integrating microbial monitoring

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into global ocean

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observing systems would be key.

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DNA sequencing technology now allows

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scientists to monitor microbial

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communities in near real time. The

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technology is there.

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Second, including microbial ecosystem

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health and marine

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protected area research.

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So MPAs often protect habitats and fish

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populations, but scientists are now

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beginning to study how microbial

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communities respond to protection.

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The third way is expanding global ocean

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DNA sequencing programs

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like the TARA Oceans Project.

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And finally, funding long term microbial

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research programs that allow scientists

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to track changes over decades.

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Understanding microbial dynamics will be

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essential for predicting

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the future of the ocean.

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Now, if you want to hear more of this

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01:12:11,000 --> 01:12:13,500
science based breakdowns of ocean science

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01:12:13,500 --> 01:12:16,000
every single weekday, follow this show so

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01:12:16,000 --> 01:12:17,375
you don't miss what comes next.

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Let's look at the final thoughts. I just

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came from the World Ocean Summit in

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Montreal. This was

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put on by The Economist.

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It was a great summit. I got to meet a

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01:12:24,291 --> 01:12:25,791
lot of people, which I loved going to

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conferences for a lot of new people from

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all walks of professional life and from

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all parts of the world.

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It was really, really great for most

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parts of the world, I guess.

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One thing that was really talked about

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was the implementation of

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certain things and funding.

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And I just mentioned that funding is

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really important when we're talking about

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long term monitoring

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of microbial ecosystems.

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The funding is the key and the funding is

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where everything lies without funding.

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We can't do any of this. And I don't know

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the answers to funding. I'm not an

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economist. I'm not someone who goes out

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01:12:55,875 --> 01:12:56,625
and does fundraising.

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But I know one thing from just hearing

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from people talk this past week in

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Montreal at the summit is

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it's extremely difficult to get.

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And with the economy, the way it is, with

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the world, the way it is, everything's

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shifting, everything changing.

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This is a time where funding for marine

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protection from all scales is going to be

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extremely important.

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The world's largest ecosystem, not the

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01:13:18,750 --> 01:13:21,083
ecosystem that we see with marine mammals

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01:13:21,083 --> 01:13:24,583
and sharks and other, you know, amazing

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01:13:24,583 --> 01:13:26,666
ocean species, some of the most important

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01:13:26,666 --> 01:13:29,416
parts of the ocean is the is the largest

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01:13:29,416 --> 01:13:30,875
ecosystem is also invisible.

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Microbes shape the chemistry of the

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01:13:33,208 --> 01:13:35,083
water, influence the stability of the

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climate and support the

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01:13:36,708 --> 01:13:37,916
productivity of fisheries.

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Yet most people have

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01:13:39,208 --> 01:13:40,416
never even heard of them.

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Ocean conservation often focuses on the

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species that we can see, but the ocean

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01:13:45,208 --> 01:13:46,625
functions because of

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01:13:46,625 --> 01:13:47,583
the species we cannot.

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Protecting the ocean ultimately means

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protecting the microbial

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engines that keep it alive.

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And tomorrow we're going to look at the

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most important roles microbes play on

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Earth, regulating the planet's climate.

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So share this episode if you can, if you

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01:14:02,416 --> 01:14:04,000
find that there's somebody will benefit

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01:14:04,000 --> 01:14:05,083
from hearing that someone

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01:14:05,083 --> 01:14:06,208
who says, hey, you know what?

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01:14:06,250 --> 01:14:08,625
What's going on in the areas of the ocean

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01:14:08,625 --> 01:14:10,458
that we can see, especially from the

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01:14:10,458 --> 01:14:11,958
microbial level of scale?

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If you find someone that knows this,

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01:14:14,666 --> 01:14:16,083
share this episode with them. I would

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01:14:16,083 --> 01:14:16,666
love to hear your

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01:14:16,666 --> 01:14:17,833
feedback on this episode.

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01:14:18,166 --> 01:14:19,625
You can hit me up at speak up for blue

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01:14:19,625 --> 01:14:22,666
dot com forward slash feedback that speak

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01:14:22,666 --> 01:14:23,916
up for blue dot com

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01:14:23,916 --> 01:14:24,958
forward slash feedback.

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01:14:25,375 --> 01:14:27,166
You can leave a voicemail or you can type

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01:14:27,166 --> 01:14:28,208
what you want to say,

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01:14:28,500 --> 01:14:29,750
comment question or anything.

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01:14:30,000 --> 01:14:31,375
I want to hear from you because this is

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01:14:31,375 --> 01:14:32,708
where you know, the whole point of this

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01:14:32,708 --> 01:14:35,000
podcast is to start a conversation on the

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01:14:35,000 --> 01:14:36,250
ocean for you to continue it.

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01:14:36,250 --> 01:14:38,041
So let me hear that feedback. I'd love to

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01:14:38,041 --> 01:14:39,875
continue that conversation. And until

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01:14:39,875 --> 01:14:41,458
next time, thank you so much for joining

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01:14:41,458 --> 01:14:43,166
me on today's episode of the How to

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01:14:43,166 --> 01:14:44,041
Protect the Ocean podcast.

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01:14:44,250 --> 01:14:45,708
I'm your host, Andrew Lewin. We'll talk

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01:14:45,708 --> 01:14:47,250
to you tomorrow and happy conservation.