Well, I found out that taking a samples demands much cooperation with my wife! She took about 15 pictures because she was trying to get the right position out of the sun. The samples were taken from her uncle's pond in Samsula which is next to several farms off of route 44. It is a natural spring pond. The land has belong to her family for over a hundred years. I have to admit I had everything planned out but I forgot to label my bottles before sampling! I put the bottles on ice and it was difficult to write on the tape afterwards. I think someone warned me about that ! Under the circumstances it turned out excellent ! I first rinsed gently, then waited and reached over to opposite side of dock. I personally felt it was better to get away from the shoreline, however whatever way you decide to approach the sampling, it is best to document when in doubt.
This week I learned that being a scientist does not make you immune to have bad things happen to you. I was rear ended by a construction vehicle and trailer. Being a scientist demands that you learn to overcome and keep trying. My personal project "Artificial Reefs" did not progress much accept that I made a decision to pursue the study of how do species inhabit the artificial reefs? I have a referral from Mr. Nolin who is the Volusia Country Manager of Artificial Reefs to contact "Spruce Creek Divers" or "Sea Dogs" and do a ride along with them on a boat. There is also a reef research team sponsored by the County of Volusia.(www.volusiareefs.org) that meets once a month in Daytona. I would eventually like to learn how to scuba dive. Chad from the Marine Science Center also returned my phone call and said he would be happy to get together and discuss what he is already doing and what is planned for the future. Another technique I was reminded about, is always find out how the other person likes to be contacted, some people may not check there email, so make it easy on them and they seem to be more than willing to help you. I was not happy about the outcome of my graphing project. I spent the majority of my time working on it this week. I'm working with 2013 version and there alot of changes. I did meet Dawn Building 200 room 417 who was helpful. The biggest problem is when I transferred the graphs to Word 2013 it did not allow enough room for all of the content.
Wow, a personal pond fed by spring water, how cool is that! I think if I had one of those I'd like FL a little better. :) On TV this morning they had a special on an underwater lab somewhere in South FL (http://aquarius.fiu.edu/), not sure if they were studying real or artificial reefs (or reefs at all since I was technically studying at the time) but maybe worth looking into and possible interviewing someone.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on trying to get a water sample away from shoreline. I got my sample in the middle of Alexander Springs while scuba diving. I noticed you mentioned wanting to learn how to scuba dive. If you have any questions or concerns feel free to ask. It's a blast! I can't wait to hear more about your project. I think diving would go hand and hand with your project.
ReplyDeleteHaha! Yes--once the sample bottle is wet it's rather hard to write on it...we all have experienced learning the hard way :-)
ReplyDeleteYou are not alone in your wet tape dilemma! I realized right after I had dipped them in the water that I had forgot to label them. It was quite a pain to do so afterwards.
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