As usual, the MIT scientists have come up with the first ocean model reflecting the vast diversity of the invisible forests that live in our oceans. The model is so realistic that the virtual forests with diverse microscopic plants, the scientists "sowed" have amazingly grown in population patterns precisely mimicking their real-world counterparts!
The invisible produced, reveals tiny, single-celled green plants that eventually dominate the ocean. These are the forests that produce half the oxygen we breathe on the planet.
It was really surprising to find that the model forests do their job exactly the way, in consistent with the real-world ecosystems' evolution process following the principles of 'natural selection'.
The new model is the brainchild of oceanographer Mick Follows. T has been tested against the real-world patterns of a particular phytoplankton species - prochlorococcus -- dominating the plant life of some regions of the ocean.
This model will definitely help scientists in understanding the biological and chemical cycles of oceans and their role in atmospheric carbon dioxide regulation better -- carbon dioxide being an important greenhouse gas.
Photo: Donna Coveney
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