What is Marine Biology?

In short terms, marine biology is the study of the study of life in oceans and other saltwater areas. But the more broad definition is the study of marine ecosystems, marine organisms, and how humans interact with these environments and species.

The main study that people know is that of animals, which makes sense. Most things that live in the ocean are either animals or plants. Animals especially make up a large part of the ocean. Even things we don't think are animals actually are. Coral, for instance, is considered an animal, not a plant.

However, marine biology covers a wide-scope of things. Herpetology, or the study of amphibians and reptiles, ichthyology, or the study of fish, invertebrate zoology, or the study of organisms without a backbone, and phycology, the study of algae, are just a few examples.

Like most fields of science, most studies in marine biology follows the scientific method. This means that they start with an observation, question, and background research (ex: "Do magnets attract? I have noticed and been told that magnets will connect with each other."). Through this, they can form a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a theory about what is being researched. For our example, "Two sides of a magnet will always attract" is a good hypothesis.

After this, they design, and then conduct, an experiment to test out their hypothesis. Before conducting, marine biologists record what they expect to happen if their hypothesis is correct. An experiment should include a variety of variables and a large sample size to ensure accuracy. Using our magnet example, an experiment could be grabbing two magnets and trying to connect them at the ends (first with one side north and one south, then with two north, then with two south). For a good sample size, you could grab many magnets and try it with different combinations and put the magnets under different environments.

After this, marine biologists will compare their results with the expected results (ex: "While I was right that magnets connect, this is only true for opposite sides of two magnets."). Through there, marine biologists will report their findings and research.

I know it seems like I just talked about something completely unrelated to marine biology, but I didn't. The scientific method makes up all different fields of science, and marine biology is no exception. The scientific method is the backbone to the field and is important to acknowledge as a necessary part to the career.