MEDIA, Pa. — Many scientific textbooks succeed in explaining how the world works, but few describe the journey to understanding it.
Inspired by this theme in modern scientific resources and an undergraduate project at Penn State Brandywine by student researchers Cortez Catalano and Niles Williams, the students’ mentor, Laura Guertin, published “Scientific Ocean Drilling: Exploration and Discovery through Time.”
Written by Guertin, a distinguished professor of Earth sciences and 2019 Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) Impact Award winner, in collaboration with geology and marine science experts Elizabeth Doyle and Tessa Peixoto, the open educational resource (OER) builds on the students’ findings on how historic oceanographic research vessels are represented in scientific textbooks. The openly available online publication received support from the U.S. National Science Foundation.
While the phrase may be easily misunderstood, scientific ocean drilling (SciOD) has nothing to do with oil or gas. Instead, it is a research process that helps scientists understand Earth’s history. By drilling through layers of ocean sediment and rock and bringing samples to the surface, researchers can learn more about paleoclimates, past tsunamis and earthquakes, and how the Earth was formed. These discoveries reveal information about the past to help prepare humanity for future natural disasters and events, according to the researchers.
Despite the pivotal role that drilling plays in research, Guertin said she felt that this process is often missing from modern science education. She saw a void in the scientific community for the history and process of scientific ocean drilling and worked with colleagues Doyle and Peixoto to close this gap.
“In recent scientific textbooks, there are more facts than explanations,” Guertin said, noting that ships and research vessels are rarely mentioned, even though they played a key role in proving phenomena like plate tectonics. “We should be asking, ‘How do we know what we know?’”
Rather than representing scientific ocean drilling through isolated facts, the OER flows between discussing scientific concepts and examining the historical and technological foundations of the process. Chapters follow the evolution of drilling programs and research vessels, as well as ship operations and drilling techniques.
The OER also includes detailed case studies of major scientific ocean drilling expeditions and the discoveries that emerged from them. Guertin said these sections intend to humanize facts that students read in classic science textbooks and promote a deeper, more personal understanding of geology and oceanography. They connect drilling efforts to landmark findings, like insights into Earth’s changing climate and active tectonic zones.
Guertin, lead author of the publication, holds an undergraduate degree in geology and a doctoral degree in marine geology and geophysics and has had personal experiences with scientific ocean drilling. Doyle is an instructor of geology at Northern Virginia Community College and Marymount University, and Peixoto is a marine biologist and science communicator. All three authors have served separately as International Ocean Discovery Program Onboard Outreach Officers who sailed on the research vessel JOIDES Resolution.
Guertin sailed for two months in the South Atlantic Ocean. During the expedition, she led live virtual ship tours for classrooms and shared the work being done at sea through blogs and social media.
Similarly, the online resource places a strong emphasis on revealing the people behind the scenes. Throughout the textbook, there are many “SciOD Spotlights” that highlight the wide range of individuals and teams that contribute to the successes of scientific ocean drilling. These sections are shown in a combination of text, audio and video to help readers make authentic connections to the text in different ways.
“Science happens through the people that contribute to it,” Guertin said.
These spotlights feature everyone from publications specialists who work on the ships as communicators to sedimentologists who analyze ocean materials without ever setting foot on a ship. By showcasing these roles, Guertin said, the resource works beyond simplified textbook summaries and captures the human-centered nature and many moving parts behind scientific discoveries.
Guertin, Doyle and Peixoto said they hope that the textbook will be useful not only to students and professionals in geology and oceanography, but also those interested in engineering, history, technology and related subjects.
Ultimately, their goal with this OER is to break down the invisible barriers between scientific processes and communities across academic and professional sectors, making science more transparent, accessible and inspiring.
The OER textbook is available for free, unlimited viewing on the Penn State Pressbooks website.
For more information on open education, including adopting OER or creating open pedagogy assignments for a course, at Penn State, visit oer.psu.edu.