Students will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using underwater robots in scientific explorations and be able to describe and contrast at least three types of underwater robots. Students will work collaboratively and conduct research to learn more about underwater robots and prepare and present a brief oral report of the capabilities of their assigned robot. As a culminating assessment activity, students will decide which robots would be best suited to a mission when read a description of the mission.

This multimedia resource, part of the NC Science Now series, outlines how the population of lionfish, an invasive species, has been spreading north since its introduction in the 1980s off Florida, collapsing the reef food webs and reducing the area of the coral reefs. Lionfish have no known predators and a rapid reproduction rate, which is why they are taking over and reducing the overall biodiversity of NC reef ecosystems. Components of this resource include a video, related text articles, and an interview with a NC marine ecologist. Links to these components are provided on the page under the heading "UNC-TV Media."

Students are introduced to "down-hole logging," a technology used to gather information about seafloor sediments and underwater rock layers. The student pages include sample data logs which students will read and analyze to answer questions about the data.

Students will work collaboratively to gather information about various groups of gelatinous zooplankton. They will be able to compare and contrast at least three different groups of zooplankton organisms and describe how gelatinous zooplankton fit into marine food webs. Groups will prepare a brief written report summarizing the information they have found and orally present to the rest of the class.

Students will understand the differences between saltwater and fresh water, and observe what happens when they come together in a delta or estuary.

In this video, students join naturalists who study the large animals found in the estuarine areas of the San Francisco Bay Research Reserve, with special emphasis on native birds.

Students will learn about deep-sea tubeworms. Students will work collaboratively to create a poster or three-dimensional model of a tubeworm. Each group will then prepare a written report describing the anatomy of tubeworms, how a tubeworm obtains food and the symbiotic relationship between the tubeworm and chemosynthetic bacteria, and the role that tubeworms play in the larger cold-seep food web.

Students research the ways that humans impact coral reef ecology and identify some of the organisms that live in coral reef habitats. They will write a narrative essay as if they are one of these organisms and discuss how they are affected by human activities such as over-fishing, habitat destruction, pollution, etc.

Students investigate different marine ecosystem types, identify examples of these ecosystems and their characteristics, and locate the ecosystems on a map of the world's oceans.

Students will form models of various underwater landform features and create and interpret bathymetric and topographic maps. This curriculum guide outlines three lesson plans that deal with exploration and mapping of the ocean floor.

Students explore major marine ecosystems by locating them on maps. Students use marine examples to learn about energy transfer through food chains and food webs. They discuss how food webs can illustrate the health and resilience of an ecosystem.

Students use marine organism cards and trophic level classifications to identify and describe food chains in several marine ecosystems.

Students investigate marine food webs and trophic levels, research one marine organism, this activity sand fit their organisms together in a class-created food web showing a balanced marine ecosystem.

Students compare and contrast two Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) by evaluating case studies. Then they learn how the MPA classification system works in the United States and apply that system to the MPA case studies.

This Science Update looks at the unexpected impact marine reserves have on their surroundings. The original update is an audio file, but a transcript of the update is also provided on the page. Supplemental resources, including a background essay and discussion questions, are also provided.

Students will investigate the possible connection between the Cambrian explosion, methane hydrates and global warming. Students will work in collaborative groups to research a organism whose fossil can be found in the Burgess Shale. They will then share information in a large-group session and discuss how methane hydrates might be involved with global warming. In an optional extension activity, students create a model of the specimen they researched.

This assessment is to be used in conjunction with the lesson "Maigrating Mangroves and Marshes." In this lesson, students will consider climate change's potential impact on mangrove habitats. Activities include researching animals that live in salt marshes and using maps and data sets to investigate habitats and make predictions on how climate change is likely to affect the environmentally diverse mangrove habitat.

In this lesson, students will consider climate change's potential impact on mangrove habitats. Activities include researching animals that live in salt marshes and using maps and data sets to investigate habitats and make predictions on how climate change is likely to affect the environmentally diverse mangrove habitat.

Students will be able to describe major features of cold seep communities; list at least five organisms typical of these communities; infer probable trophic relationships among organisms typical of cold-seep communities and the surrounding deep-sea environment; describe the process of chemosynthesis in general terms; contrast chemosynthesis and photosynthesis; and describe at least five deep-sea predator organisms. Students will work in collaborative groups to research the ecology of cold seep communities and orally present their findings to the rest of the class. The teacher will also lead an effort to create a food web showing the ecological relationships of these communities.

In this activity students will explore density (weight per unit volume or weight for the same amount) of several different salt solutions. The solutions demonstrate the changes in salinity that occur as freshwater streams enter the salty ocean.