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SPEAKER_01: Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan, and this is Womanica. This month we're talking about adventurers, women who refuse to be confined. They push the boundaries of where a woman could go and how she could get there. Today we're talking about a woman who traveled farther than light could reach, all the way to the bottom of the ocean. Let's talk about Cindy Lee Van Dover. Cindy Lee Van Dover was born in 1954. She grew up in Eatontown, New Jersey, just five miles away from the Atlantic Ocean. She spent her summers on the beach, observing all kinds of crazy, strange sea life on the shore. Those days on the beach sparked her love for invertebrates. At the same time, she was reading books about ocean explorers and oceanography. Her reading taught her about Alvin, one of the world's first deep ocean submersibles. Three researchers would squeeze into the vessel. It carried them to the bottom of the ocean where they could see the ocean floor and collect samples with Alvin's robot arms. From a young age, Cindy dreamed of getting the chance to dive in Alvin. But she figured that dream was about as far-fetched as becoming an astronaut. In 1972, Cindy went to Rutgers University, becoming a member of the college's first co-ed class. She majored in environmental science and spent time studying the biology of clams and oysters. After graduation, she worked as a technician in a variety of labs and spent a lot of time reading marine ecology papers. One of those papers detailed a brand new discovery scientists had made at the bottom of the ocean, deep sea hydrothermal vents. These vents are so deep underwater, no sunlight reaches them. The water pressure is crushing. The water around the vents is acidic, hot, and full of toxic chemicals. And yet, these vents are often teeming with diverse life. Studying these vents can help scientists understand more about how species can thrive in extreme environments. And some think that deep sea vents might hold the key to answering questions about how life on Earth began. Cindy was so interested in these deep sea vents that she sent a letter to a biologist who'd written one of the papers she read. The biologist wrote her back and sent her some samples to study on her own. Cindy's research on those samples became her first publication. She quickly found a home in the hydrothermal vent community. She went to conferences, on research trips, and eventually, she enrolled at UCLA to get her master's in ecology. After receiving her master's, Cindy traveled out into the Pacific Ocean as part of a research trip. Out on the sea, Cindy learned she was about to take her first trip to the bottom of the ocean on the Alvin's submersible. She stayed up all night looking at the ocean, dreaming of what it would be like on the sea floor. The next morning, she didn't have to dream about it anymore. She was there at the bottom of the ocean. Her work on that research trip landed her a job at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, or HUI. She studied plankton samples collected by hydrothermal vents. HUI had a joint PhD program with MIT, and one of Cindy's mentors recommended she apply. Cindy had applied to the program already, twice actually, and was rejected both times. But she didn't let that stop her, and as it turned out, the third time was the charm. She was accepted into the PhD program and completed it in just three years. After receiving her doctorate, Cindy went back out to the sea for her research. She participated in more sea floor dives on the Alvin, and on one of those dives, realized that the submersible's pilots had the best view of the ocean floor. So, she decided to become a pilot. Nine months and several grueling exams later, Cindy was certified. Her days as an Alvin pilot followed a pretty standard routine. She woke up at seven and ate a breakfast that usually included tropical fruit native to the region she found herself in. Then, she prepared for launch, climbing a ladder to the bridge connecting the boat to the Alvin, taking her shoes off, and then climbing down into Alvin itself. Then, the descent began. For an hour and a half, Cindy watched the colors of the ocean change. Sometimes, she took a nap. Then, finally, Alvin made it to the ocean floor, and the real work began. Cindy and the scientists on board collect samples of living organisms, and take notes about what they were seeing in the water. A couple hours later, it was back to the top. The ride back up doubled as Cindy's lunchtime. For a brief period in her life, Cindy considered Alvin her only home. She dove in the submersible over 100 times, and piloted 48 of those dives. But eventually, she returned to dry land to continue her research at Hui. Over the span of her career, she's published more than 80 articles on her research. In 1966, she published The Octopus's Garden, a book about hydrothermal vents that she wrote specifically for non-scientists. And in 2008, she became the Harvey W. Smith Distinguished Professor of Biological Oceanography at Duke University. Cindy is still alive, and to date, she remains the only female Alvin pilot. All month, we're highlighting adventurers. For more information, check us out on Facebook and Instagram, at Wamanica Podcast. Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator. Talk to you tomorrow.
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