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To Be An Oceanographer

WHOI biologist Alfred Redfield (left) was among the first scientists to join WHOI in 1930. He wrote this about his first cruise aboard WHOI’s research vessel Atlantis: “There was a pretty good northwest breeze and the sea was pretty bobbely. I made my way aft and there I saw the ship’s carpenter in the scuppers, caulking the deck. As I watched, he laid down his caulking mallet, removed his dentures, put them in a safe place, leaned over the rail and put his breakfast. Then he came back, replaced the dentures, picked up the mallet and went right on with his job. I learned then the way an oceanographer behaves.”(Photo courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Archives)