This course provides students with a general background for a working knowledge of investigative techniques that are used to study the physical, biological, geological, and chemical parameters of the marine environment. Students learn to appreciate the scope of field studies through active participation in group projects and individual research efforts; those projects include planning and execution, analysis and interpretation of data, and presentation (written and verbal) of the results. This course is periodically offered at Wallops Island, Va., only during a summer session