By Tim:

The group rose bright-and-early to say goodbye to Tom and Toffee the Dog, then boarded the van for the ferry ride and 1.5 hour drive to the University of Washington’s flagship campus in Seattle.

Straight out of the van, we were treated to a tour of the collection of preserved fish maintained by the Burke Museum in cooperation with the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. Participants stood rapt as collection Curator Katherine Maslenikov explained the value of the 8 million specimen collection to research in taxonomy and population biology and then brought us in to see the collection. She showed off small sharks, a sunfish and even a deep sea angler fish!

After a picnic lunch at SAFS, we sat down with School of Marine and Environmental Affairs graduate student Raz Barnea for a discussion on “Wicked Problems.” Raz explained that wicked problems are ones without simple answers; problems that require attention from stake holders, scientists, resource managers, lawyers, legislators and others in order to be solved. The group talked about some of the wicked problems facing the region and the globe and then discussed marine-related careers outside of science.

Following our meeting, we all checked in to Haggett Hall (our dormitory for the evening) and got a taste of college life. The swipe cards that gave access to the dorm elevator were quite popular with participants, as were the desserts in the dining hall.

With dinner behind us, we loaded into the vans to visit Pike Place Market and the Seattle waterfront. To cap off the evening, Caroline surprised everyone by treating us all to a ride on the new ferris wheel!

Back at the dorm, everyone settled in to the lounge for one last evening together and, exhausted, drifted off to bed one by one.