Paying Attention to Our Planet’s Vital Signs | Paula Bontempi, Ph.D | TEDxCapeMay

Earth's health is assessed much like a patient's: scientists take regular check-ups of the planet's vital signs and report what the measurements show. In this TEDxCapeMay talk, oceanographer Paula Bontempi compares this work to medical care and argues that the results call for public attention and action, not just concern. Bontempi is a professor of oceanography at the University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography and previously served at NASA Headquarters, including as NASA Program Scientist for missions such as SeaWiFS, Suomi NPP and PACE.

• Scientists monitor Earth's vital signs through regular check-ups, similar to medical care
• Speaker: Paula Bontempi, oceanography professor and former NASA program scientist
• Argues that monitoring results call for attention and action
• Recorded at an independently organized TEDx event

When someone we love has changing vital signs, we don't look away—we pay attention, we show up, we learn, and we take action. Our planet deserves the same kind of care. Join Paula Bontempi as she shares how scientists are like doctors - doing regular check-ups on Earth's vital signs—and why the results demand our presence, not just our concern. Paula Bontempi is a Professor of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography and served at NASA Headquarters as acting deputy director of the Earth Science Division and as a physical scientist and program manager in ocean biology and biogeochemistry. She served as NASA Program Scientist for instrument and mission science, including the Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS), Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP), and the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission. She holds a Ph.D. in Oceanography from URI-GSO, an M.S. in Oceanography from Texas A&M University, and a B.S. in Biology from Boston College. She was a co-Chair of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) study on Future Directions for Southern Ocean and Antarctic Nearshore and Coastal Research, and the NASEM Committee for Assessing NASA Science Activation 2.0: Progress, Achievements, and Strategic Recommendations. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx