The presentation on January 3 were self-introductions by new College Rotary members Sven Gilkey and Erik Hulbert, and January 10 it was our member, Jeremy Mathis, discussing his work on researching ocean acidification.
 
Erik and Sven spoke about a great many parts of their lives, and how their desire to become part of Fairbanks has led them to become Rotarians. Both of them were born and raised here in Fairbanks, and intend to remain here for many years. Both of them have travelled to and lived in interesting places, but decided that Fairbanks is the place they truly call home.

We were pleased to see and catch up with Jeremy Mathis on January 10, as he has been very busy with his research. He stopped by to bring us an intriguing and valuable presentation on the acidification of the worlds oceans, which is the little-mentioned but critically important flip side of global climate change.

Just as carbon dioxide levels are increasing in the world's atmosphere, it is rising in the world's oceans, too. The atmosphere and the oceans are all part of the same global environment. They affect each other and are affected by what happens in the other.

A great deal of research has gone into not only trying to find out what is happening now, but also what happened in the past and what scenarios may occur in the future. Jeremy provided a great deal of data, which was very well organized as easy for the rest of us to follow. In essence, that which is released into the air will also be absorbed into the water.

When the most common types of pollution are put into the air, they are absorbed into the water and undergo a chemical reaction that increases the water's acidity. Even a relatively small statistical change in acidity can greatly harm or entirely wipe out critical components of ecosystems that other forms of life depend on, including humans.

His research is incredibly important, and all of us wish to sincerely thank Jeremy for taking the time to teach us more about this subject that the public needs to made aware of and discuss calmly and rationally. Jeremy's research is very important, and we wish him the best of luck, and funding, to learn and document as much as possible.