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Defender of the deep: The oil's not gone

CNN -- Athens, Georgia (CNN) -- Samantha Joye's office is littered with otherworldly artifacts from the deep ocean: a mussel the size of a football; a vase filled with tube worms, which look like grissini breadsticks; a photo of the world's biggest bacteria.

Above her cabinets, the University of Georgia oceanographer has posted two images of lunar landscapes. They're bizarrely similar, she says, to the topography on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, the body of water that has captivated her attention for 15 years.

Joye doesn't just work in the Gulf. She lives for it. She stays up at night thinking about what makes it tick. And, like a close friend, she's become fiercely protective of it.

Four months after the BP oil spill, the wiry 45-year-old -- who looks like the librarian version of Angelina

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Submitted Aug 25, 2010 By: PDQBlues

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jcurley Champion Author California Posts:5,656 Points:1,326,370 Joined:Dec 2007	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:48:39 AM Ignore jcurley Report Abuse We have many people like this in the world, but they rarely get their 15 minutes of fame. If you're doing something you love, it's hard to call it work.
Quick68 Champion Author Columbus Posts:4,864 Points:762,800 Joined:Dec 2009	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:30:49 AM Ignore Quick68 Report Abuse Their is oil still in the ocean every where that their was an oil spill. It will never go away.
Jeff1944 Champion Author South Dakota Posts:3,109 Points:681,790 Joined:Jan 2010	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:24:45 AM Ignore Jeff1944 Report Abuse I hope Samantha keeps the faith!
LoneGuy Champion Author Lansing Posts:6,168 Points:1,860,680 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:21:17 AM Ignore LoneGuy Report Abuse She sounds like she bases her observations on facts and not a particular agenda. We could use more like her.
rxman1 Champion Author Toledo Posts:7,025 Points:1,401,170 Joined:Nov 2007	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:21:14 AM Ignore rxman1 Report Abuse You have got to wonder if that big boat appears to have been never used would pick up oil would find any oil if went out to suck up some gulf water.
SBlouch Champion Author San Antonio Posts:6,907 Points:1,474,780 Joined:Apr 2007	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:17:01 AM Ignore SBlouch Report Abuse Interesting article and it must be a terrible blow to Samatha Joye to see how her 15 years of work go down the tubes in the aftermath of the BP spill.
Blue_Cruzer Champion Author Lexington Posts:5,172 Points:1,206,625 Joined:Mar 2007	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:15:58 AM Ignore Blue_Cruzer Report Abuse I tend to side with her report over the official govt. report.
Bruno44 Champion Author Texas Posts:4,861 Points:1,326,775 Joined:Sep 2007	Message Posted: Aug 26, 2010 12:15:26 AM Ignore Bruno44 Report Abuse Agree with POLELANE.
POLELANE Champion Author Ohio Posts:7,148 Points:828,370 Joined:Mar 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:40:38 PM Ignore POLELANE Report Abuse get al gore a dive suit and let's get going
Aserdaten Champion Author Florida Posts:2,217 Points:1,612,270 Joined:Apr 2006	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:13:23 PM Ignore Aserdaten Report Abuse Somehow, after reading that full article (and it was a really long one), I must say that I hold more stock in what a person with this commitment to the environment has to say. Government agencies and individuals tend to look on the rosy side of the situation -- perhaps wishful thinking and possibly something else better left unsaid. .
Dennisjk Champion Author Detroit Posts:4,587 Points:1,497,920 Joined:Apr 2006	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:03:04 PM Ignore Dennisjk Report Abuse She has a lot of questions and very little answers.
fire@53 Champion Author Philadelphia Posts:9,617 Points:2,331,425 Joined:May 2003	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:02:25 PM Ignore fire@53 Report Abuse More deception by our leaders in the white house!
MAC48 All-Star Author Dallas Posts:728 Points:499,925 Joined:Dec 2006	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:00:44 PM Ignore MAC48 Report Abuse Oil & gas have been escaping the earth's crust for millions of years. Mother Nature has always taken care of the leaks whether they are on land (La Brea Tar Pits for example) or in the ocean. There is no question that Mother Nature will take care of BP's Gulf oil spill. The only question is how long will it take.
Hugo40 Champion Author Kentucky Posts:5,300 Points:1,155,675 Joined:Aug 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:00:10 PM Ignore Hugo40 Report Abuse Time will tell how the mico-organisms do in the clean up.
oahugasit All-Star Author Hawaii Posts:556 Points:608,115 Joined:Jul 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:00:07 PM Ignore oahugasit Report Abuse Passion .... Wow!
gasforus Champion Author Michigan Posts:6,794 Points:1,730,540 Joined:Dec 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:58:43 PM Ignore gasforus Report Abuse ok
OHMS Champion Author Orange County Posts:10,815 Points:1,253,445 Joined:May 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:56:53 PM Ignore OHMS Report Abuse what is her plan? her proposal ? She could join GreenPiece; but the other side gets more whale meat.
Bleeder Champion Author Virginia Posts:6,153 Points:1,273,380 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:54:23 PM Ignore Bleeder Report Abuse Very interesting.
byoftDad Champion Author Columbus Posts:3,949 Points:1,135,725 Joined:Apr 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:44:51 PM Ignore byoftDad Report Abuse If the government is going to allow offshore drilling it has to be prepared to protect the environment when a disaster like that of the Deepwater Horizon. Accidents are bound to happen and taking action after the fact is too slow. The offshore drilling rigs also make a huge target for terrorist attacks and must be protected.
INDY51 Champion Author North Carolina Posts:4,102 Points:825,875 Joined:Jun 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:44:29 PM Ignore INDY51 Report Abuse WE NEED MORE PEOPLE LIKE HER!
jjjleblanc Champion Author Rochester Posts:4,361 Points:1,103,465 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:44:18 PM Ignore jjjleblanc Report Abuse Out of sight out of mind won't work in this case.
Cakes77 Champion Author Harrisburg Posts:3,000 Points:1,234,990 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 1:22:03 PM Ignore Cakes77 Report Abuse Thanks for posting this nice article. Thanks for keeping us informed.
TripleHs Champion Author Austin Posts:1,320 Points:496,480 Joined:Oct 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 1:02:58 PM Ignore TripleHs Report Abuse hat to her for sticking with what she truly believes and for finding the truth, and for her scientific approaches
teafortwo Champion Author Washington Posts:15,401 Points:926,405 Joined:Feb 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 11:43:09 AM Ignore teafortwo Report Abuse At least the REAL science is starting to come out on this mess. I have had my fill of the "political science" spin. When it comes to the health of our food chain and the planet? Give me facts, not hype. Thanks for sharing PDQBlues. Excellent catch, pun intended ... ;0) FROM THE ARTICLE: Joye won't return from the ocean until late September. On the voyage, she and a team of researchers are looking for answers to what Joye sees as a number of lingering questions about the oil's effects. Among the greatest unknowns, she says: -- What happened to the methane? It wasn't just oil that spewed out of a pipe at the bottom of the Gulf after a BP-leased oil rig exploded and sank in April. As much as 30 to 40 percent of the fossil fuels released in the disaster were gases, Joye says, but they've largely been ignored in the accounting so far. Joye is interested in what liquid methane is doing to the deep ocean. -- How fast is the oil being degraded? Joye says scientists have not reported the rate at which the oil is being chewed up by micro-organisms. Without that key number, it's difficult to say how much oil has left the system for sure, she said. -- what's happening to the oxygen? Ocean microbes have emerged as heroes of the oil spill because they chew up and digest the oil. That's a good thing, but they also use oxygen in the process, and that element is vital to life in the sea. Joye said not enough is known about how much oxygen has been depleted from the Gulf, particularly in the deep water, where it can take years or decades for the water to replenish its oxygen supply naturally. Overall, Joye says federal officials have been too quick to jump to conclusions about what an unprecedented amount of oil will do to an ocean environment. And they haven't done enough to learn about what's actually happening to the environment, she said.
chemist74 Champion Author Cleveland Posts:12,398 Points:2,181,015 Joined:Apr 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 10:43:44 AM Ignore chemist74 Report Abuse "A post re oil eating bacteria may be a sign that Mother Nature is adapting to our lax ways. Hope it's enough to do what man hasn't!!!" Oil eating bacteria are the result of natural seeps of crude oil that occur naturally on the sea floor in the Gulf of Mexico and were there long before people. When there is a spill, the population of oil eating bacteria increase because of the increase in their food source.
coughlin Champion Author San Jose Posts:3,346 Points:757,850 Joined:Sep 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 10:23:19 AM Ignore coughlin Report Abuse I know that this is superficial but "he wiry 45-year-old -- who looks like the librarian version of Angelina Jolie -- " THAT IS GOING TO CREATE 'buzz'.
Luckylindy Champion Author Milwaukee Posts:2,171 Points:672,045 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 10:03:20 AM Ignore Luckylindy Report Abuse Martinman how do you know you can't eat microbes. I heard they taste like chicken. lol :-)
gs7101 Champion Author San Antonio Posts:3,223 Points:246,255 Joined:Jun 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 9:33:42 AM Ignore gs7101 Report Abuse Whatever happened to oil rising to the top? Oh wait, that's crude oil prices!
Nicoalbum Champion Author Ottawa Posts:3,596 Points:726,260 Joined:Jan 2010	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 9:15:55 AM Ignore Nicoalbum Report Abuse I can't understand why all oil is not on the surface, since it's lighter than water.
Martinman Champion Author Mississippi Posts:11,846 Points:1,662,420 Joined:Sep 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 7:53:00 AM Ignore Martinman Report Abuse afghaned from hamilton posted... "A post re oil eating bacteria may be a sign that Mother Nature is adapting to our lax ways. Hope it's enough to do what man hasn't!!!" . Brilliant! Problem is, trading a Gulf full of fish, oysters, and shellfish for one full of oil-eating microbes, doesn't fix the widescale damage that's already been done. You can't eat "microbes". [Edited by: Martinman at 8/25/2010 7:53:31 AM EST]
ggt49 All-Star Author Grand Rapids Posts:604 Points:384,695 Joined:Apr 2010	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 7:39:06 AM Ignore ggt49 Report Abuse Will humans ever change. Go with nature, not against it!
JimTee Champion Author Tampa Posts:2,322 Points:1,192,700 Joined:Apr 2006	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 7:38:16 AM Ignore JimTee Report Abuse The oil didn't just disappear. It's in the Gulf somewhere and it is probably having an adverse effect on it.
afghaned Champion Author Hamilton Posts:8,531 Points:825,150 Joined:May 2004	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 7:27:23 AM Ignore afghaned Report Abuse A post re oil eating bacteria may be a sign that Mother Nature is adapting to our lax ways. Hope it's enough to do what man hasn't!!! [Edited by: afghaned at 8/25/2010 7:27:38 AM EST]
BMW2014 Champion Author Toronto Posts:1,794 Points:364,300 Joined:Jun 2010	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 5:30:14 AM Ignore BMW2014 Report Abuse Oil might be heading toward the bottom of the ocean slowly.
mynt Champion Author Ottawa Posts:2,960 Points:610,205 Joined:May 2010	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 4:14:08 AM Ignore mynt Report Abuse Common sense tells us that oil can't vanish into thin air!
Amplion Champion Author Oregon Posts:4,262 Points:1,401,460 Joined:Sep 2005	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 3:34:47 AM Ignore Amplion Report Abuse WHEN IS BHO GOING TO DEAL WITH THIS ? WHEN IS BP GOING TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM ? THE DEMONCATS ARE IN POWER AND DOING NOTHING ! KICK DeFAZIO OUT! TEA PARTY TIME !
PDQBlues Champion Author San Diego Posts:4,726 Points:984,350 Joined:Jan 2009	Message Posted: Aug 25, 2010 2:17:13 AM Ignore PDQBlues Report Abuse We and our children will be living with this mess for a very long time. 'Hope you like your seafood well lubricated...