Jacques Yves Cousteau:  was he a scientist?

 

By Ann Kabat

 

Jacques Cousteau was born in 1910. As a four-year old boy suffering from anemia he was sent to a French resort far north from his hometown of St.-Andre-de-Cubzac. There he learned to swim. By 1930 he entered the French naval academy and began his military training along with learning some basic knowledge about the sea. By the end of the WWII he started experimenting with snorkel hoses, portable breathing devices and other diving equipment. Relentlessly he pursued his vision of developing a self- contained underwater breathing apparatus (referred to as scuba) or Aqua-lung. With committed heart and mind he achieved his vision and along with it more than he himself could have envisioned at the time. His invention opened a whole new dimension in diving and exploration of the seas.

 

In 1943 he produced the first scuba with the help of an engineer Emile Gagnan. With this invention and an underwater camera encased in a lightweight housing Cousteau began his life-long discovery journey of the living oceans and seas. He was well on his way to becoming one of the most known and recognized figures in understanding ocean and its inhabitants. He became the representative of the seas like Dr. Carl Sagan was of the cosmos. Scientific magazines published Cousteau’s articles on the findings and discoveries made possible with his research vessel, the Calypso, but other scientists questioned his credibility. Academic oceanographers occasionally criticized his scientific methods and pointed out that he has no formal credentials. For example, other scientists pointed out that Cousteau’s study on radiation levels on Mururoa Atoll, the site to France’s nuclear testing research, did not include measures of radiation levels at great depth and in fish and crustaceans.

 

Despite his lack of scientific degree he understood the ways of the ocean and its ecology. Like he himself said, “I know more about the environment than anyone else alive.”1 Indeed, his vast knowledge of oceans, animal behavior, and ecology becomes evident through the numerous documentaries, movies, books, and projects that he has produced during his lifetime. Without any doubt, he reached into the hearts of kids and inspired many. As described by a biologist Alejandro Grajal, “Cousteau may not have been a scientist in the traditional sense of the word but he opened the doors of imagination with his pictures, and with his invention of scuba gear he opened the underwater world to many of us.”2

 

In any case, his expertise on ecological issues were respected and acknowledged. For instance, in 1993 the French president Francois Mitterrand nominated him as the chair of a “council of elders”. This council was to consider the long-term effects of the current democratic consumer system on global economy and ecology. However, he soon resigned from the post in protest of the resumption of French nuclear testing. Then in 1994 he was selected to receive the Common Wealth Award for his exemplary explorations of the underwater world.  

 

Furthermore, he was seriously involved in and dedicated to creating a worldwide network of educating programs within already established universities. Thus Cousteau Society joined UNESCO in pursuit of teaching the interdisciplinary approach which, in his firm belief, is the answer to solving our environmental problems. Moreover, he believed in the power of innovative ideas rather than experience. He said, “Experience kills imagination.”3    Naturally, to Jacques Cousteau, like to Dr. Albert Einstein, imagination was one of the crucial factors in being a scientist and an inventor.

                      -Jacques Yves Cousteau passed away in June of 1997.-

 

Questions:

1.      Why would many people think of J. Cousteau as a true scientist and or would assume he had a degree in marine biology or oceanography or in any related subject?

2.      To become a recognized scientist is it necessary to have any formal training in the field of science and/ or is it important to have a Ph.D.?

3.      Explain why J. Cousteau was or was not a scientist?   

 

 

 

 

 

References

General:

1.        Bengt, D. (1990). Cousteau out of His Depth? The Bulletin of the Atomic  

        Scientists Vol. 46, Mar,  p 25.

2.        The editors. (1994). Leland Hartwell Receives Common Wealth Award. American   

        Scientist, Vol. 82 July/Aug, p 400.

3.        The editors. (1997). Jacques – Yves Cousteau, 1910 – 1997. Scientific American,

        Sep 97, Vol. 277 Issue 3, p 24.

Cited:

1.       Dickey, C. (1997). One Fantastic Voyage. Newsweek, 07/07, Vol. 130    

       Issue 1, p 56.

2.      Grajal, A. (1998). Jacques Cousteau and His World’s Inspiring Beauty.

      Conservation Biology, Vol. 12 No. 2, April, p 487.

3.      Gardels, N. (1999). Consumer Society is the Enemy. New Perspectives Quarterly,

       Vol. 16 Issue 2, p 36.