Recently, the State Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environmental Dynamics (hereinafter referred to as "SOED National Key Laboratory") invited Professor Chen Zhendong of Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan to teach "Advanced Ocean Chemistry" in the starfish open class series. This open class was taught offline. More than 20 young scholars from universities and scientific research institutions such as Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Hunan University, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Second Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources gathered in Hangzhou to participate in a 12-day course.
Figure 1 A group photo of teachers and students in the open course "Advanced Marine Chemistry"
Professor Chen Zhendong is an outstanding scientist in the field of marine carbon cycle and global change. He has made outstanding contributions to global marine scientific research. His research has spanned the three oceans and he has published numerous papers. During the lecture, Professor Chen Zhendong comprehensively explained the systematic knowledge of marine chemistry, from the physical and chemical properties of seawater to the distribution of chemical elements in seawater, emphasizing the importance of ocean circulation to the distribution of water masses and material exchange in the ocean; from nutrients, salt and carbonate systems to the decomposition and productivity of organic matter in seawater, the correlation of the four parameters of carbonate and the oxygen consumption process of organic matter decomposition are explained in detail. Professor Chen Zhendong attaches great importance to classroom communication, guides students to divergent thinking during lectures, encourages everyone to draw inferences from one example, and integrate analytical methods into different scientific problems.
Figure 2 Professor Chen Zhendong explaining ocean circulation
During the course, students not only learned the professional knowledge of marine chemistry, but also listened to a feast of marine science. The knowledge in the textbooks was turned into vivid and interesting scientific stories, which triggered the scientific students to deepen their understanding of scientific issues. Thinking is of great benefit to future scientific research.
SOED’s State Affairs Office conducts a series of “Starfish Open Classes” related to ocean and atmospheric sciences every year to encourage young students and scientific researchers to consolidate their theoretical foundation and create academic sparks through exchanges. Young scientific researchers are welcome to continue to pay attention to the official website of SOED and the WeChat public account notices, and actively participate in follow-up courses.
