Light Bulbs in the Sea?

Introduction

October 13, 1940

It is during World War II.  I was in a submarine this morning and I saw some faint flashing lights deep in the sea.  I warned the admiral, and he said it was probably a beacon or another submarine.  Whatever it was, it was not ours.  He gave me orders to go down and research these mysterious lights.  What or who are they?  How are they glowing?

The Task

On your mission, you will need to find out:

1. What or who the light is coming from?
2. How it is glowing?
3. Why it is glowing?

October 20, 1940

I have been in the sea for one week now.  The lights are actually fish. Thank goodness! We were thinking it could be spies.  The admiral still wants me to find out more about the fish.  I have a lot of work to do so I need to get to work.

Process

1. Get out a sheet of paper and a pencil.
2. Research bioluminescence on the websites listed below and try to answer the three questions in the task.
3. Take the quiz to test your knowledge.
4. Get your grade from the evaluation table below.
5. Bask in the glory of your new knowledge!

Links

• Lights Alive
• Dinoflagellates and Red Tides
• Bioluminescence Web Page
• HBOI Bioluminescence
• Bioluminescence Video
• Bioluminescence Photo Gallery
• Deep Sea Bioluminescence

Evaluation

Conclusion

Congratulations!  You found out all the information the admiral asked!  You also got a promotion to seaman first class!  Good work!  Now for some fun: solve the word search at the Lights Alive web site.

Credits

USA.gov

Pics4Learning

Animation Library