This course will use the whale as a vehicle to examine many of the great themes of modern science. To do so, we will employ a combination of live discussions, literature readings, molecular biology experiments, and several field trips to watch whales in the wild.
Questions we’ll consider include:
Blue whales are the largest animal that has ever lived. What are the physiological implications of such incredible body size?
To find their prey, whales dive to the blackest depths of the ocean and embark on some of the longest migrations of any animal. How do they survive and navigate such extreme environments?
If baleen whales lack teeth, then why does their DNA nevertheless encode the genes responsible for producing enamel?
Do whales have belly buttons? Why or why not?
Baleen whales engulf gigantic volumes of seawater with every feeding lunge they take — perhaps a third of their total body size! How do the biomechanics of their jaws make this possible, and what are the optimal feeding strategies they might use?
Commercial whaling killed ~3 million whales in the 20th century, and drove many species to the brink of extinction. How has this removal of whale biomass — and whale poop! — changed the global ocean?
How does the size and speed of a whale relate to the amplitude and frequency of its motion while swimming — and how does this compare to fish?
We meet once per week for one hour of discussion and reading, plus additional field trips and lab sessions. There are no problem sets, but we will usually assign a reading ahead of each class. Attendance is absolutely mandatory. If that’s not your style, or if you anticipate having a recurring scheduling conflict, please drop the class to make room for someone else.