I want to live ten days under the ocean in Aquarius because I want the opportunity to dive down deep, explore the reef, see some fish, and about it dish. In other words, if I could spend ten days in Aquarius, my time would be used exploring the depth of the ocean, aiding scientists as they attempt to find pharmaceutical uses for reef organisms, and broadcasting my experience to the rest of the world. If I were bestowed the honor of spending ten days in the underwater habitat Aquarius, I would spend my first three days exploring the ocean habitat around me. After all, it’s not everyday you get to live sixty–three feet underwater in the middle of a marine sanctuary. These first three days would be all fun, no work! Like a sightseer in New York City, I would try to see every site and cover all areas of Conch Reef making sure I don’t miss anything. Hours would be spent swimming in and among the magnificent fish. The delicate intricacy of the coral formations would leave my eyes mesmerized. I would be amazed by the way the fish, urchins, plants, and other sea life live together in harmony all dependent on each other to survive in a vast circle of life. Fortunately, because of Aquarius’s saturation diving technology, I would be able to view these creatures and their home, Conch reef, for six — nine hours a day rather than one hour. That experience would be amazing.
After my three days of fun, I would buckle down to get to work. After all, scientists constructed Aquarius to be used for observation and experimentation. While I am not yet a scientist, I would love to aid the other scientists in their work. I have read that Aquarius scientists are investigating reefs to see if they can be used for pharmaceutical purposes. They know that reef organisms like sponges and corals produce chemicals that keep them clean and protect them from being eaten by predators. In addition, I understand that some scientists believe these chemicals may also be useful in creating drugs to treat and prevent illnesses, so they are collecting extracts from the reefs to send to pharmaceutical companies for investigation. This is the experiment with which I would most like to help Aquarius scientists because I feel it is the best cause. I would have the rare opportunity to help people as well as nature. If a medicinal use is found for these chemicals, it would prove to be a convincing argument towards preservation of our coral reefs. In addition, governments would be more likely to give a protected status to all coral reefs. People would work harder to save these underwater treasures if they knew that reef derivatives might one day save their lives. I believe that ocean life, especially coral reefs, hold a plethora of medical uses waiting to be discovered. This is why, if I could spend ten days underwater in Aquarius, I would spend four of my days aiding scientists as they attempt to discover medical uses of coral reef organisms.
My last three days on Aquarius would be spent telling other people about my experience. I would use the Wave Wireless Networking to do this. Each day I would send two webcam broadcasts over the Internet including a tour of Aquarius’s facilities, pictures and video of sea creatures and coral, and an update of scientific discoveries and observations made during the ten days. Hopefully, at the conclusion of my stay at Aquarius, I would be able to appear on a television news show and tell more people about my experience and about ocean life in general. Educating the world about coral reefs is important to the survival of them. Although not all reef related problems are caused by humans, those that are can be avoided. For instance, there is a commercial and recreational overharvesting of fish, corals, live rock, and sponges, which damages the balance created by nature. Pollution from nearby shore areas, especially sewage, may be hurting our reef further. Coral reefs are home to an estimated twenty to forty percent of the 160,000 known marine species, by currently these habitats are threatened. Something must be done to minimize the damage caused by humans. The way to minimize this damage is education and awareness. This is what I would hope to do during my broadcast, educate people and make them aware of the concerns facing our coral reefs. The groundbreaking research done by Aquarius scientists on depleting reefs and possible pharmaceutical uses for reef organisms needs to be shared. If people are aware of these issues, the government may create more laws to protect coral reefs, and individual visitors and commercial businesses might be more careful in their treatment of reefs. Most importantly, environmental protection groups and the Aquarius habitat might receive more monetary support, which would allow them to continue to perform research on the ocean's organisms and coral reefs, as well as protect them. This is a lot to accomplish, needing years rather than days, but during my last three days, I would broadcast from Aquarius hoping to get the ball rolling.
I want to live ten days under the ocean in Aquarius because I want the chance live under the sea, with the fish swim free, give the scientists aid, and most importantly, make sure these treasures never fade. I would spend my first three days swimming among the plant and animal life, totally mesmerized by their beauty and vast array of color. The next four days I would help Aquarius scientists collect samples and explore for different pharmaceutical uses of reef organisms. My last three days I would spend broadcasting webcams about Aquarius and its discoveries in order to educate people about coral reefs. If I could spend ten days in Aquarius I would relish the experience. The question to me is not why I would want to spend ten days in Aquarius, the question is why wouldn’t I?
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