Speakers Robert Ballard: Oceanographer
On more than 120 deep-sea expeditions, Robert Ballard has made many major natural discoveries, such as the deep-sea vents. Oh, and he found the Titanic.
Why you should listen to him:
From an early age, Robert Ballard was intrigued by the deep. He's perhaps best-known for his work in underwater archaeology; in addition to Titanic, he has found the wrecks of the Bismarck, the USS Yorktown, the nuclear sub Thresher (on a top-secret mission for the Navy -- for which the Titanic was his cover story) and John F. Kennedy's PT-109.
His contributions to our scientific knowledge of the ocean is just as awe-inspiring. He was in the first team of humans to view the deep-sea vents, and to understand how life can not only survive but thrive in these deep black waters, under extreme pressure and at extreme temperature.
He's also a powerful storyteller and a passionate scientific educator. He founded the Institute for Exploration and has pioneered distance learning in classrooms around the world. Through his JASON Project, 1.7 million students a year join scientists virtually as they experience the thrill of exploration and discovery.
"Mr. Ballard has long been blessed with the special luck of a successful explorer as well as the special knowledge of a leading scientist."New York Times
Quotes by Robert Ballard
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“Everything I’m going to present to you was not in my textbooks when I went to school … not even in my college textbooks. I’m a geophysicist, and [in] all my Earth science books when I was a student — I had to give the wrong answer to get an A.”
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“I would not let an adult drive my robot. You don’t have enough gaming experience. But I will let a kid with no license take control of my vehicle system.”
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Robert Ballard on exploring the oceans
- 18:19 Posted: May 2008
Robert Ballard on the Web
Related Speakers
Conferences
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- TED2008