We are last minute arrivals to the region of the Earth where life can be found and thrives: the biosphere. The 3.8 billion year history of the Earth shows to this day that life — particularly microbial — has been the consistent major contributor to building features of the biosphere, giving us rocky landscapes, myriad ecosystems, healthy soils, oxygenated air, and the cyclic flow of key elements. Ecologists Doug Zook and David Morimoto examine how the biosphere is the story of connections and reciprocating systems over extraordinary long distances. Doug will share examples from the science known as "global ecology" and David will moderate the discussion. Photo: Doug Zook ### Resources from our speakers National Geographic, [a definition of the biosphere](https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/biosphere/) NASA [Earth Observatory](https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/7279/bodele-depression-dust-feeds-amazon) Nature, [“African dust keeps Amazon blooming”](https://www.nature.com/news/2010/100809/full/news.2010.396.html) University of Maryland and Geophysical Research, [“Massive Amounts of Saharan Dust Fertilize the Amazon RainforestMassive Amounts of Saharan Dust Fertilize the Amazon Rainforest”](https://cmns.umd.edu/news-events/features/2822) US Geological Survey, [“Iron oxide minerals in dust-source sediments from the Bodélé Depression, Chad: Implications for radiative properties and Fe bioavailability of dust plumes from the Sahara”](https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70185032) Stetson University Geology Research Dept., [“Florida Formations: Shifting Sea and Sediment”](https://www.stetson.edu/other/gillespie-museum/media/Florida%20Formations%20EXHIBIT%20TEXT-FULL%20for%20website.pdf) Science Director: [Coccolithophore](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/coccolithophore)
