Article Review 3- Antarctic 'Treasure Trove' Found

Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6661987.stm

Summary of Article:

Research expeditions have recently been conducted as part of the Andeep (Antarctic benthic deep-sea biodiversity) project. As the name implies, it involved an international team of people diving at the Antarctic in an attempt to shine light on the dark realm of ignorance that has engulfed this region. The result of the research was astonishing: the area was teeming with life forms, with more than a thousand different species of marine life discovered, many of which were previously unknown. For years, scientists harboured the thought that Antarctic waters were too hostile and would contain little biodiversity; but these were shattered by this latest development.


Comment:

Firstly, I must mention that I was absolutely stunned when I first read this article. I, too, had believed that there was little, if any at all, chance of such diverse life being present in the seas of Antarctica. I am sure that many others will surely experience the same feelings when they read this article for the first time. Yet, it illustrates yet another misconception of mankind, and how much we really know about our world.

There is little doubt that man remains ignorant to much of the world around him. There is only so much we have learned so far about the Earth and the creatures that inhabit it. However, there is no denying that we have tried. This article is testimony to the fact that even though we still have much to learn, humans are still making a Herculean effort to brave the harsh conditions that can be imposed upon them to unlock, albeit slowly, the maze of eternal secrets that is the Earth.

Humans have managed to map the whole world, and have discovered millions of different species of life. This in itself is praiseworthy, tribute to the curiosity and desire for knowledge that are one with every human being. The momentum with which humans are making every new discovery, the speed with which they are increasing their knowledge, is simply amazing.

Key to this is the humans’ unique ability to use past experiences and discoveries to derive what could happen in the future. This skill could be either a blessing or our bane. The ability to foresee the future could certainly aid us in our journey for knowledge, for every discovery we make could lead to the formation of numerous theories about other things which would greatly simplify matters.

However, it could hinder humans as well. If any one part of our prior knowledge is flawed, it could lead to the creation of a thousand mistakes. Using this example, many people had always assumed that Antarctic waters would not provide a very hospitable environment for life. However, this has been proven wrong.

Thus, the world as we know it today may, in reality, not be true at all. For all we know about the earth is based on observation (induction) and derivation. We have no way of knowing that what happens today will happen tomorrow. In the same way, it would be impossible to tell if what was found yesterday could apply to the next day. So what of our knowledge is true? What are we taking for granted that may actually be false? These are questions that will haunt mankind for eternity.

Hence, humans are on a quest for truth. Nothing we see, nothing we know, may be true. Yet, undoubtedly, humans are on the right track, as this article shows. A long-lasting misconception of humans has just been corrected, and one could wonder how many misconceptions we already harbour that need to be rectified. Knowledge without truth is valueless. However, I believe that with the progress we are making, not only will our knowledge expand; we will also get a better idea of what around us is true and what is not.
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