Craig Cary is an Associate Professor with tenure at the University of Delaware. He joined the faculty in 1994 and has a research group that studies aspects of microbial ecology in a number of different environments. On this cruise, his group is examining how vent chemistry affects microbial community structure and composition. Craig received his B.S. from Florida Institute of Technology, his M.S. from San Diego State University, and his Ph.D. from Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1989. He is 45 years old years old, and he and his wife, Amy, have two children: Ky, who is 13 years old, and 4-year-old Robin.

What are your main responsibilities as Chief Scientist on this cruise?

My primary responsibility is to lead the scientific activities on board the ship so that we can all accomplish our scientific goals safely. I also like to make sure that the science operations are done efficiently. Ship-time and Alvin time are very expensive, so I feel a responsibility to use every minute of the ship-time we have been awarded. My other role is to be the interface between the science party, and the ship and Alvin operations and make sure that everyone knows what is going on. I spend a good deal of time communicating behind the scenes with the ship’s crew and the Alvin group so that all the scientific operations run smoothly.

When you go out to sea, do you take everyone who works in your lab with you?

I take everyone who is working in that particular field. In my lab, we are working on a number of projects, most of which are related to microorganisms. I have everyone out here who is working on vents; I have left a couple of people back in the lab. They are working on using molecular tools to detect and identify the diatom Pfiesteria, which is responsible for toxic algal blooms in Maryland and Delaware coastal waters.

As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up, and how did you become a marine scientist?

I moved to England when I was 10 years old, and so went to an English school. As a kid, I was always interested in nature, and had a microscope that I used to look at everything. When I was 13, we had a visiting science teacher from Australia who taught a class on marine biology — reefs, tropical oceans, etc. That gave me my first taste of the field I would eventually follow. I got a summer job at the aquarium in London’s Regent’s Park taking care of the fish and exhibits. I loved it and would work there every chance I got. In high school, I did a special project with a scientist at Cambridge University on the symbiosis between clownfish and sea anemones, and that’s when I really got hooked on marine biology!

Having decided you wanted to be a marine scientist, how did you go about it?

I decided I wanted to go back to the U.S. and get a degree in marine biology. This was in 1972 when there were not many places that offered such a program. However, I ended up going to the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida, which had a great program with lots of hands-on experience.

After I graduated from there, I spent a summer in Colorado doing terrestrial ecology field work, and then ended up getting a job as an Environmental Ecologist with Florida Power and Light at Turkey Point, Florida. This was a nuclear power plant that had built a 5-mile by 2.5-mile cooling system to cool the seawater that was used to cool the reactors before it was pumped back into the ocean. I was hired to monitor the marine organisms in the cooling system and had a helicopter and an airboat at my disposal. It was one of the greatest jobs I have had in my life!

I worked there for 18 months and then won an Our World Underwater Scholarship in 1978 that allowed me to travel and work in different marine institutes and research centers. [Note: the 1999 winner of this scholarship, Julie Barber, will be on the next cruise]. This was my first introduction to Scripps Institution of Oceanography, where I would later do my Ph.D. However, I first went to San Diego State University and graduated with an M.S. degree. I stayed on to continue my work for 18 months, before beginning my Ph.D. program in 1983. I had six wonderful years working on the biology of hydrothermal vents just when that field was in its infancy. After finishing, I spent several years at Oregon State University, first as a Post-Doc and then as a Research Assistant Professor, before joining the faculty at the University of Delaware in 1994.

What do you like about your job?

I like the creative freedom that I have as a scientist to recognize and pursue interesting problems. I like working with scientists from different fields. I think my broad background fits in well with multi-disciplinary work. I also really enjoy interacting with students, and I love teaching; I find those both very rewarding. Although I work in a graduate studies department, I volunteered to teach the undergraduate oceanography course for non-majors. It is fun to try to connect with students not interested in science and try to give them a greater appreciation of the ocean.

What do you see yourself doing in the future?

I am very happy doing what I do now. I see myself possibly getting more involved in science education and bringing science to the public. I consider this very important.

Where do you see your future research leading you?

Technology is very important to my science. Marine microbiologists are recognizing that technology from the biomedical arena can be taken and applied to their science. I would love to be part of a team that develops the methods and equipment to be able to examine a vent environment on the microorganism level in real time — right from the submersible, and then apply that to exploration of other planets.

What do you do in your spare time?

My passion is surfing! I also love tending my vegetable garden and spending time with my family.

If you could start all over again, would you have chosen the same career path?

I have been fortunate to have had a number of incredible opportunities during my life that I would not change if I had to do it again. I like going to sea, and I often think about how lucky I am to be doing what I do. I have one philosophy that I followed, and that I pass on to my students: do not go straight from one degree to another without taking some time off to recharge and experience something completely new. Between my Ph.D. and Post- Doc, I worked for nine months as a marine naturalist on a cruise ship in Indonesia. Those types of life experiences are invaluable as you develop your career.