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Rating: 
Summary: Gifted scientist, explorer, popularizer all in one
Review: I have known and admired Bob Ballard since his early years at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution - and for good reason. Too many professional ocean scientists tut tut Ballard as a showman (the same was done more cuttingly to Capt. Jacques Yves Cousteau by French scientists). But Ballard's scientific achievements alone put him among the scientific elite had he never taken a step as a popularizer. Thank God he left the ivory tower and used his incredible gifts to utilize and innovate with ocean technology. Without him finding the Titanic, Bismarck, and PT 109 would have been unlikely for reasons of both cost and extreme logistic difficulty. The recognition that no-oxygen, hydrogen sulfide deeps of the Black sea preserved many important ancient wrecks and hold untold insights for future study of the past opens up breathtaking future vistas. Ballard is an optimist and an idealist. His Jason project, bringing tens or even hundreds of thousands of school kids into ocean exploration is an island of healthy excitement into an otherwise discouraging educational world in the U.S. Ballard can be interesting talking about rigging or paint cans. I don't know how he does it. He's an inspiration and role model, and deserves the Nation's highest civilian honor. I hope he achieves it while still vigorously at work creating more excitement and knowledge of our ocean realm!
Rating:
Summary: Gifted scientist, explorer, popularizer all in one
Review: I have known and admired Bob Ballard since his early years at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution - and for good reason. Too many professional ocean scientists tut tut Ballard as a showman (the same was done more cuttingly to Capt. Jacques Yves Cousteau by French scientists). But Ballard's scientific achievements alone put him among the scientific elite had he never taken a step as a popularizer. Thank God he left the ivory tower and used his incredible gifts to utilize and innovate with ocean technology. Without him finding the Titanic, Bismarck, and PT 109 would have been unlikely for reasons of both cost and extreme logistic difficulty. The recognition that no-oxygen, hydrogen sulfide deeps of the Black sea preserved many important ancient wrecks and hold untold insights for future study of the past opens up breathtaking future vistas. Ballard is an optimist and an idealist. His Jason project, bringing tens or even hundreds of thousands of school kids into ocean exploration is an island of healthy excitement into an otherwise discouraging educational world in the U.S. Ballard can be interesting talking about rigging or paint cans. I don't know how he does it. He's an inspiration and role model, and deserves the Nation's highest civilian honor. I hope he achieves it while still vigorously at work creating more excitement and knowledge of our ocean realm!
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