# Rapture of the Deep (sea)



## Stormcat (Mar 1, 2018)

I'd like to do more research into various aspects of oceanography, but I'm having a lot of trouble finding material at the "proper level". It seems like my only research options are "Baby's first book of fishies" or An oceanographic science journal which requires a bachelor's degree just to decipher the abstract.

Some of the topics I'm interested in are also a bit unpopular as far as amateur oceanography goes. Anyone can find pretty pictures of a tropical coral reef, but I'm more interested in these things:

-Oceanic flora (Not Coral, actual plant matter)
-The creepy creatures that live in the darkest depths of the oceans, around those volcanic vents
-what becomes of decaying matter in the oceans, if It's not eaten
-extremely cold ocean environments, such as off the shores of Canada
-general information about worms and other sea cucumber-like creatures

I'm writing a story that takes place in a nation that started off by fishing but found ways to go deeper and exploit resources miles under the surface of the ocean. At least one additional atmosphere of pressure, they found ways to go that far down.


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## Jay Greenstein (Mar 1, 2018)

> At least one additional atmosphere of pressure, they found ways to go that far down.


Two atmospheres of pressure is only ten meters. Most people can free dive that far.


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## QuirkyasCrow (Mar 3, 2018)

Actually a trip to the local book store or library might server you better than the internet. 

However National Geographic or Discover/Animal planet usually have some pretty good shows or articles. 

Googling stuff like this you need to get pretty specific or start using the thesaurus to change up the google searches to get the hits you want.


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## LMWriting (Mar 6, 2018)

I studied Marine Biology for a few years and my close friend works as a Marine Biologist. I will start by saying that I love ocean worms and slugs. So, let's see if I can be of help.

Many species of animals live in the frozen north of our oceans. However they look very different then what you would find elsewhere in the world. Bright colors do not help when the only thing around is rocks and ice. Most creatures in this environment are white, black, or a charcoal gray. Most creatures will also be fatter (a beluga whale is very chubby). There is a type of shark (I forget its name) that can only be found in the northern ocean and is completely blind. The icy waters are also where orcas live and originate from, orcas are also self-aware meaning they understand they are alive and can recognize themselves in the mirror. Fish in the artic tend to be larger. Artic waters are also part of many whales migration patterns. Seals, penguins, and polar bears are your semi-aquatic animals that often make homes out of the labyrinth of ice caves. Human civilizations living off the ocean where it is cold enjoy very fatty food. 

Decaying matter is always eaten, there's is always some kind of hungry critter, possibly microscopic, that is willing to eat the dead and dying. The only exception being man made objects which are usually used as homes or are dissolved by the salt in the water. 

Ocean flora varies as widely (if not more so) as terrestrial flora, you will have to look up specific locations to see what grows there. For example, coastal waters offer coral, but entire forests of kelp can be found in other waters, and kelp comes in hundreds of different forms and shapes. 

We have not fully explored the deepest depths of the ocean and therefore I can only tell you some information about the creatures there. The worms that live by hydrothermalvents are called Giant Tube Worms (I'm assuming you mean the red ones) they have a bright red tongue, which is shaped like a human tongue when we curl them, this tongue is how they breath and eat, they have a large tube made of the same material as crab shells that they live in. Various crab and squid also enjoy living by these vents. 

And now for the worms and slugs of the ocean. Sea slugs are actually very beautiful. They can come in various bright colors and many species are both sexes and have intense mating rituals. My favorite sea slug is the blue glaucus, look it up it's really cute. There are more ocean worms then land worms and most of them are terrifying. However, sea worms are what eat all the decaying matter we mentioned earlier.

I hope I was able to help in some small way. I never finished my marine biology education so this is the most I can give, and even then most marine biologist will specialize in one thing.


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## Stormcat (Mar 6, 2018)

Thanks for all of that, LMWriting, but I know that in the future, I'm going to have far more questions about the ocean and all that dwell within it. I was really looking for more of educational resources. It seems the only types of informative books on the oceans I can find are either aimed at little kids or Phd holders. As I am neither of those things, I need to find some sort of happy medium I can explore freely.


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## LMWriting (Mar 6, 2018)

Have you tried online college textbooks? There should be some old ones available as a pdf and then you can get something higher than for children but meant for an audience that hasn't gotten a degree yet.


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## Ralph Rotten (Mar 6, 2018)

I had to read Stephen Hawking's *A Brief History of Time* as research for a book (among other sources).  
I say suck it up and read those PHD books.


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## Stormcat (Mar 6, 2018)

LMWriting said:


> Have you tried online college textbooks? There should be some old ones available as a pdf and then you can get something higher than for children but meant for an audience that hasn't gotten a degree yet.



This is probably what I'll end up doing. I haven't been in college for years, but I still remember how to study.


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