June 7, 2011, Greencastle, Ind. — "The connection between the ocean
and the brain 'is poorly studied and a tricky territory of discussion
among scientists,' said Wallace J. Nichols, a noted sea turtle
biologist and research associate at the California Academy of Sciences
who organized the Bluemind Summit," notes a story in California's Santa Cruz Sentinel. Nichols, a 1989 graduate of DePauw University, is interviewed in connection with a recent conference.
"Among the connections considered were the similarity in chemical composition of the brain, body water and seawater, and the physical similarity of the flat expansive sea and the flat grasslands," writes Suzanne Bohan. "Considering the worldwide appeal of the ocean throughout the ages, it confounds Nichols that it has taken so long to take a serious scientific look at its neurological effects."
"The neuroscientists haven't thought about the ocean, remarkably," Dr. Nichols tells the newspaper. "Considering the ocean is three-quarters of the planet, it's kind of a big miss."
Bohan writes, "(Nichols) and other scientists described how the ocean instills a sense of safety, with its flat horizon that allows humans to spot any oncoming threats such as lions or warriors, and unlimited supply of water that's so essential to life. 'To the evolving mind, it's the cleanest savanna ever experienced,' said Nichols."
You can access the complete article at the newspaper's website.
Nichols, who goes by his middle initial, is responsible for pioneering research on the migration of sea turtles. His work has been featured in National Geographic, Scientific American, TIME and Newsweek, and he was seen in Leonardo DiCaprio's documentary, The 11th Hour. He returned to DePauw last spring to deliver the principal address to the University's Class of 2010, "You Are Lovers and Fighters."