fea I >. • - Desert Magazine of the Southwest

Lance checks the water level in the observation room as
water is added.
which we have established a miniature
marine ecosystem composed of more
than two dozen different salt water
species. It goes with us to such places as
Cub Scout Pack Meetings and stays for
extended periods at elementary schools
with accelerated science programs. For
children in Junior High School, our
pond serves as a resource for science fair
projects. The older Boy Scouts use it
as a field site for conducting studies required
for the Environmental Science
and Oceanography Merit Badges.
I am conducting studies of a basic
scientific nature with the pond. Since I
was trained as a physicist, the first
aspect I have chosen to investigate is
that of its thermal characteristics. Every
morning, just after sunrise, when it is
coolest; and again every afternoon when
I come home from work, when temperatures
are the warmest, I measure a variety
of water surface and bottom temperatures.
I also measure air temperature,
humidity, the temperature of the solar
panels and the temperature of some adjacent
dry sand. Down in the observation
chamber, I am able to measure the
water level accurately and calculate the
amount of evaporation for each 24-hour
period. This allows me to do a complete
energy balance analysis of the system.
Unlike flow-through systems connected
to the ocean, which vary in temperature
by only tenths of a degree each
day, temperatures in the pond go
through a diurnal cycle of 10 to 15
degrees. In the summer it gets very,
very hot. Even at water temperatures
approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit, I
have observed no signs of stress in any
of the pond's inhabitants. Perhaps we
are breaking some new ground here that
may have wide-ranging ramifications.
I guess the most exciting aspect of the
whole project, however, is the frame-
work for adventure and cooperation it
provides for our family. As our involvement
with it has grown, we have formed
our own research corporation to serve as
an umbrella for our activities. Christened
the Institute for Biospheric Research,
Inc., it has four separate divisions; each
of our four sons is the Associate Director
of the division in which he is most
interested. The work of the pond comes
Keith and a friend work a 20-foot net to capture a school of
grunion near Puerto Penasco, Mexico.
I guess the most exciting
aspect of the whole project,
however, is the framework
for adventure and
cooperation it provides for
our family.
under our Marine Biology Division
headed by 12-year-old Keith. Although
he hasn't brought in any large government
grants to ease the financial burden
of operating expenses, he has produced
some good stories for children's magazines
and is gaining knowledge and
skills that could lead him to a career in
some phase of oceanography.
We see in our marine oasis a most interesting
phenomenon. It is a welldefined
community in its own right,
nested within the larger community of
our family corporation, which exists
within the community of our neighborhood,
and reaches out to the scientific
community of the world. We are all a
part of the grand design of nature,
where the concept of community plays a
most essential role.
Well, time for supper. Keith, go catch
us a couple flounders. And watch out
for sharks!! @
A little landscaping adds the final touch.
Sherwood B. Idso is
a research physicist
with the USDA's
Agricultural Research
Service at the
United States
Water Conservation
Laboratory in
Phoenix, Arizona.
He also holds adjunct professorships in the
Departments of Geology and Geography
at Arizona State University and is
founder and President of the Institute for
Biospheric Research, Inc. of Tempe,
Arizona. He has conduced basic research
in a wide variety of environmental areas
and has published over 200 articles in professional
science journals. Dr. Idso was
honored in 1977 to receive the United
States' Arthur S. Flemming Award as one
of five outstanding scientists under age 40
in the Federal Service.
Desert 21