Mahanaj, Dennis, Rashad


Keyword: Saturation

         A coral reefs life is dependent on its level of saturation in algae. This algae gives it the very diverse and rich coloring so needless to say its very important to the reefs. As the ocean absorbs more and more Co2,the water temperature rises. this in turn causes coral reefs to excrete  algae which in turn make the corals themselves appear white. This lowers the saturation levels in the coral reef, and causes 'bleaching'. The saturation levels are determines by a complex formula scientist developed. It involves multiplying the calcium and carbonate ion concentrations and dividing it by stoichiometric solubility. While this is all informative and enlightening, how do we know for a fact that these figures and formulas are even real? Who's to say these terms hold any relativity to coral reefs saturation or the expulsion of algae. What if there's a another reason why the algae is being released other then the heating of sea water, which isn't affected by Co2. Even Elizabeth Kolbert mentions that "no one is quite sure" (390).