In recent years, the Arctic Ocean has attained status as the single most studied ecosystem  in the world.  The reduction in Arctic sea ice and the ramifications from the seemingly  unavoidable retreat of ice from the Arctic has scientists scrambling to measure and determine  what the effects of this failure might be.   

It is accepted throughout the scientific community that the Arctic Ocean is the barometer  by which global warming will be monitored.  Modern science has not measured an event of this  type or magnitude before, so predictions about the future status of the Arctic Ocean are based on  hypothetical concepts, historical data, interpretation, and incorporation of current data.    The most commonly accepted ideas about global warming are those involving an extreme  negative, almost cataclysmic effect on the earth's biosphere. However, there do appear to be  some scenarios in which ecological changes brought on by global warming may bring about  positive effects on the Arctic Ocean ecosystem. It remains unknown whether some of these  effects will continue over time. We will discuss the effects of a shrinking Arctic ice pack on  productivity in the Arctic Ocean, and the subsequent effects the change in productivity may have  on the organisms that call the Arctic Ocean home. The...

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