Quite honestly, I would have never imagined, I would become one of those people that hang around after a lecture to ask questions or discuss the subject of the lecture. But in Jeff’s class that was me. But, in reality, lecturers are more than happy for you to discuss the subject further and after my first semester at RMIT, I knew I had to find out more about one of my lecturers in particular. Jeff is a senior lecturer in the School of Applied Sciences at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, he specializes in Biological Sciences and runs courses in Australian Ecology, Marine Biology, and Animal Diversity. His story most certainly did not disappoint.
The story begins in the USA, where he studied at a small university which offered immense support from academic staff, not too dissimilar from Bangor. As a liberal arts college, opportunities were plentiful and he had the ability to dip in and out of different disciplines, for a while, English literature took priority over science but thankfully, his affinity for animals gave him a shove back in the right direction. However, not unlike many students in the biological field, thought of pursuing Medicine crept into his mind and for a moment Med-School seemed like a real option. I too must admit that I am guilty of such thoughts and can still often be found on the UCAS website searching for Medical Schools that will take me.
These thoughts were short-lived and after one small opportunity, Marine Sciences took precedence. Being from a land-locked university the idea of attending a field trip to the coast was an opportunity he could not refuse. This field trip presented him with skills that he still frequently uses such as diving. Although in hindsight, he admits that 30 non-diving students to one instructor were a health and safety nightmare. Since this trip, diving did not only become part of his career it became a hobby and would dive at any opportunity from night dives to diving with various marine animals. He's dived all over the world from Coral Reefs to Muddy habitats with poor visibility, he was hooked from the get-go. As a citizen of Australia, the Great Barrier is essentially Jeff's back garden and now frequently visits the reef with students from RMIT. His interests of the ocean as a system influenced his decision to specialize in Oceanography and pursued through to Ph.D. level. From here this opened opportunities into Government research facilities or to work within consultancy firms but he decided to stick with the academic research route which then led to his career as a professor. Jeff stressed that on paper this may seem like an easy route to take but it was far from easy. Unfortunately, there is no longer an abundance of jobs within the academic setting.
Throughout, his years in the Oceanography field, he was lucky enough to be invited to board the DSV Alvin Submarine, which was involved in the original exploration of the RMS Titanic. Whilst on board the DSV Alvin he dived to Hydrothermal Vents documenting the Chemosynthetic Bacteria and Biodiversity of other bizarre organisms. He also dived to a sediment basin where a rotting carcass of a Blue Whale was discovered. From this discovery, they were able to document the microorganisms that were present on the carcass and surprisingly there were parallels between the carcass of the Blue Whale and the previously surveyed Hydrothermal Vents. A professor at Jeffs university wanted to research this further and try and recreate the conditions of the previous Blue Whale in easily accessible and controlled conditions, in order to watch the degradation step by step. With task in hand a team of research graduates, including Jeff, headed out onto a research vessel with high hopes and a dead whale. This whale had been previously found along the coast beached and very dead. Fair warning, before you think this is animal cruelty and morbid, consider that beached whales are often given to research institutes to contribute to scientific research and the university had no influence on the whale's death.
The intention was to sink the whale and revisit the site to monitor degradation, sounds easy right? well no, not at all. The whale proved unsinkable. Numerous barrels of cement were chained to the whale but this did nothing. When an organism dies, it bloats and fills with gas. Being America one member of the crew was carrying a pistol and in a last-ditch attempt to sink the whale, holes were shot. Success, the whale sank. This is one of the most disgusting experiences of his career and is extremely confident a project would not occur in this manner in modern times. Unfortunately, after the whale was sunk, the project lost funding and all research was pulled. So somewhere in a bay in Seattle lays the bones of the unsinkable whale.
The gratitude that Jeff shows can be attributed to his love for teaching other, he enjoys seeing students learn how to think critically and communicate in a scientific manner. The advice he passes on to prospective or current Biology students is to read and write scientific literature often, in order to constantly expand your knowledge and skills. This is essential in developing your natural curiosity. He urges that you question everything in order to develop the mindset of a scientist. Continuously broaden your academic portfolio and accept every opportunity as it may shape your future career.
Do not be afraid to reach out to your professors, creating a presence within your university will help you excel in the science field. Jeff was an incredible mentor to have during my year in Australia and I am truly grateful to have attended his lectures, lab sessions, and field trips.