Under the Ice: A Marine Biologist at Work

by Kathy Conlan

Imagine suiting up and slipping into water so cold that exposed skin can freeze in seconds and equipment can suddenly seize up. These are the dangers that Kathy Conlan faces when she goes to work. Kathy is a marine biologist who has scuba-dived in oceans off the Arctic and Antarctic — two of the most hostile environments on Earth. Under the Ice is a fascinating first-person account of a woman scientist at work. Highlights of Kathy's research on how pollution affects the fragile environments under the ice and stunning photographs of places few will ever visit make this a book readers will be eager to dive into.

56 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1753

About the author

Residence: Ottawa, Ontario

Family Members: A son and a daughter, both grown up.

Personality: Passionate, people-person.

Favorite Music: Jazz, blues, and classical

Other Interests: Diving and snorkeling.

Title: Research Scientist

Office: Canadian Museum of Nature

Degrees:

BSc (Honours) Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, 1972
MSc University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, 1977
PhD Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 1988

Awards:

US Department of the Navy and the National Science Foundation. Antarctic Service Medal (1992).
Nominated, YMCA-YWCA Women of Distinction Awards, Technology Category (1999 and 2001).
Winner of the 2002 Science in Society Children’s Book Award for “Under the Ice”.
R. W. Brock Award for best Canadian Museum of Nature research paper of 2003 (co-authored with Ed Hendrycks).

Mentor:

Rikk Kvitek invited her to work in Antarctica and excited a passion for the poles. Steve Blasco helped her explore the Arctic.

Reviews

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The photos of what it's like underneath Arctic ice were breathtaking.

[Melissa Pop · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was very very good because it showed the underwater and the pictures were amazing i loved seeing the animals she saw

[Rikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

nice story, but a glossary would have been helpful or better explanations of some of the terminology. Using this in a classroom will take a significant amount of connections to background knowledge.