[Script Info] Title: [Events] Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've been spending my summers Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Marine Biological Laboratory in \NWoods Hole, Massachusetts Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And there, what I've been doing is\Nessentially renting a boat. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What I would like to ask you to do Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is to come on a boat ride with me tonight. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So, we ride off from Eel Pond into\Nthe Vineyard South, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,right off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,equipped with a drone to\Nidentify potential spots Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from which to peer into the Atlantic. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Earlier I was going to say Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into the depths of the Atlantic, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but we don't have to go too deep\Nto reach the unknown. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Here, barely two miles away, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from what is arguably the greatest\Nmarine biology lab in the world, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we lower a simple plankton net\Ninto the water Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and bring up into the surface things\Nthat humanity rarely pays attention to Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and oftentimes, have never seen before. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Here is one of the organisms\Nthat we caught in our net, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this is a jellyfish. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But look closely, living inside this\Nanimal is another organism Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that is very likely entirely \Nnew to science. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A complete new species. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Or how about this other \Ntransparent beauty? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,With a beating heart, \Nasexually growing, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on top of its head, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,progeny that will move on to\Nreproduce sexually. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now let me say that again, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this animal is growing asexually, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on top of its head, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,progeny that is going to reproduce\Nsexually in the next generation. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A weird jellyfish, not quite, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this is an ascidian,\Nthis is a group of animals Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that now we know we share \Nextensive genomic ancestry with, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it is perhaps the closest \Ninvertebrate species to our own. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Meet your cousin,\NThalia democratica Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm pretty sure you didn't \Nsave a spot Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in your last family reunion for Thalia. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But, let me tell you, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,these animals are profoundly related to us Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in ways we are just \Nbeginning to understand. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Next time you hear anybody \Nderisively telling you Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that this type of research is a\Nsimple fishing expedition, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I hope that you remember\Nthe trip that we just took. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Today, many biological sciences\Nonly see value Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in studying deeper what we \Nalready know, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In mapping already discovered continents. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But some of us are much more \Ninterested in the unknown, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we want to discover completely \Nnew continents, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and gaze at magnificent vistas\Nof ignorance. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We crave the experience of being\Ncompletely baffled Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by something we have \Nnever seen before. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And yes, I agree that there's a lot of \Nego satisfaction in being able to say Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Hey, I was the first one \Nto discover that." Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is not a self-aggrandizing\Nenterprise Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because in this type of \Ndiscovery research, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if you don't feel like a complete \Nidiot most of the time, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you're just not science-ing\Nhard enough. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Every summer, I bring onto the deck\Nof this little boat of ours, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,more and more things that\Nwe know very little about. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Very, very, very little about. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I would like to tell you tonight, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a story about life that\Nrarely gets told Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in an environment like this. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,From the vantage point of\Nour 21st biological laboratories, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,our 21st century\Nbiological laboratories, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we have began to illuminate\N Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,many mysteries of life with knowledge. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We sensed that after centuries\Nof scientific research, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we're beginning to make significant\Ninroads into understanding Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,some of the most fundamental\Nprinciples of life. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Our collective optimism is reflected\N Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by the growth of biotechnology\Nacross the globe. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Striving to utilize scientific knowledge\Nto cure human diseases, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,things like cancer, aging,\Ndegeneretive diseases, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,these are but some of the \Nundesirables we wish to tame. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What I often wonder is, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Why is it that we are\Nhaving so much trouble Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,trying to solve the \Nproblem of cancer? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Is it that we're trying to solve\Nthe problem of cancer, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and not trying to\Nunderstand life?" Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Life on this planet \Nshares a common origin. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I can summarize 3.5 billion years\Nof the history of life on this planet Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in a single slide. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What you see represented here Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are all known species, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,representative of all \Nknown species of our planet. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in this immensity of life\Nand biodiversity Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we occupy a rather\Nunremarkable position. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Homo sapiens,\Nthe last of our kind. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And though I don't really\Nwant to disparage Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,all the accomplishments\Nof our species, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as much as we wish it to be so, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and often pretend that it is so, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we are not the measure of all things. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We are, however, the measurers\Nof many things. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We relentlessly quantify, \Nanalyze and compare, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and some of these are absolutely\Ninvaluable and indeed necessary, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but this emphasis today, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on forcing biological research\Nto specialize, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to produce practical outcomes, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is actually restricting our ability\Nto interrogate life, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to accept only narrow confines\Nand unsatisfying depths. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We are measuring an astonishingly\Nnarrow sliver of life, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and hoping that those numbers\Nwill save all of our lives. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How narrow, you ask? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well let me give you a number, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The National Oceanic and Atmospheric\NAdministration Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,recently estimated, that about 95% \Nof our oceans remain unexplored. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now let that sink in for a second. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,95% of our oceans \Nremain unexplored. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think it's very safe to say\Nthat we don't even know Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how much about life\Nwe do not know. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's no surprise that every \Nweek in my field Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we begin to see the addition\Nof more and more new species Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to this amazing tree of life. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This one for example, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,discovered earlier this summer,\N Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,new to science and now occupying\Nits lonely branch in a family tree. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What is even more tragic is that \Nwe know about Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a bunch of other species of \Nanimals out there, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but their biology remains\Nsorely understudied, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm sure some of you have heard\Nabout the fact that Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a starfish can actually regenerate\Nits arm after it's loss, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but some of you might not know Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that the arm itself can actually\Nregenerate a complete starfish. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are animals out there \Nthat do truly astounding things, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I'm almost willing to bet, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that many of you have never heard\Nof the flatworm Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Schmidtea mediterranea. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This little guy right here does things\Nthat essentially just blows my mind. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You can grab one of these animals\Nand cut them into 18 different fragments, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,each and every one of those fragments\N Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,will go on to regenerate a complete\Nanimal in under two weeks. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,18 heads, 18 bodies, 18 mysteries. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For the past decade and a half or so, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've been trying to figure out how\Nthese little dudes do what they do, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how they pull this body trick off? Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But like all good magicians, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they're not really releasing their\Nsecrets readily to me. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So here we are, after 20 years\Nof essentially studying these animals, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,genome mapping, chin scratching, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,thousands of amputations and \Nthousands of regenerations, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we still don't fully understand Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how these animals do\Nwhat they do. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Each planaria, an ocean\Nunto itself, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,full of unknowns. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, one of the common characteristics\Nof all these animals Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I have been talking to you about is that Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they did not appear to have \Nreceived the memo, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that they need to behave according\Nto the rules that we have derived Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from a handful of randomly selected\Nanimals that currently populate Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the vast majority of biomedical \Nlaboratories across the world. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Meet our Nobel Prize winners, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,7 species, essentially,\Nthat have produced for us Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the bulk of our understanding\Nof biological behavior today. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This little guy right here, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,3 Nobel Prizes in 12 years. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And yet, after all the attention\Nthey have garnered Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and all the noise they have generated\Nas well as the lion share of the funding, Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,here we are standing in front of the \Nsame litany of tractable problems Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and many new challenges. Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's because, unfortunately,