VIEW FROM THE BOTTOM UP

Perhaps you’ve been scuba diving for an hour or so but would you be prepared to live underwater for
weeks, or even months? Ocean explorer and conservationist Fabien Cousteau would love to. That’s
why he’s creating Proteus, the world’s largest ocean habitat, an underwater version of the
International Space Station. This beautiful, spiral-shaped structure will enable humans to live
underwater for months, exploring the ocean in ways never thought possible.

Fabien was born an aquanaut, an ocean explorer. His grandfather, Jacques Cousteau, did more for
ocean exploration than anyone else in the world, and Fabien is following in his footsteps. He learnt to
scuba dive at the age of four, and his happiest childhood memories are of joining his grandfather’s
expeditions on board his research ships. He has spent his life, as he says, “looking at the world from
the bottom up”.

Fabien’s project was inspired by his grandfather’s three underwater stations, all built during the 1960s.
Proteus, named after the Greek god of the sea, will be far larger and better equipped than these
previous stations. Placed about 18 metres under the surface in the Caribbean Sea, it will allow 12
aquanauts to live comfortably, with a social area, modern laboratories and a medical clinic. Hopefully,
Fabien will have finished building it within three years after mapping the site and, in the not-too-distant
future, the first aquanauts will be doing research there.

Living in the cold, dark world of the ocean floor, far from friends and family, won’t be easy. Issues like
personal privacy, adequate space and specialised lighting had to be dealt with in Proteus’ design.
Eating will be a challenge as well. Cooking in a pressurised environment is impossible, so aquanauts
will have to rely on dehydrated food. This unappetising menu, combined with burning three times
more calories than on land, can cause serious weight loss. That’s why Proteus will contain the world’s
first underwater greenhouse, where aquanauts will be able to grow their own fresh food.

The amazing opportunities offered by Proteus will make it all worthwhile. Marine scientists will be able
to spend up to 12 hours a day in the water, as opposed to a diver’s maximum of two. The luxury of
time will give them plenty of new insights into ocean health, as well as the effects of climate change
and pollution. They’ll be investigating the behaviour of sea creatures and looking for new species.
Pharmaceutical companies are especially interested in sending scientists to find coral, fish and other
marine organisms that could lead to new cures for human diseases.

Interestingly, the discoveries made by grandfather Jacques Cousteau weren’t his most important
accomplishments. He pioneered underwater film photography and created incredible documentaries
that raised awareness of the ocean’s wonders and their fragility. Fabien plans to carry on this tradition.
Using Proteus’ state-of-the-art production studio, he’ll be creating interesting videos, as well as
livestreaming with students in classrooms the world over.

With 90% of our planet’s ocean unmapped and unexplored, we know far less about it than we do
about the moon, hundreds of thousands of kilometres away. Fabien thinks it’s time to change all that.
Proteus will begin to solve the mysteries of the ocean’s depths, and hopefully inspire others to carry
on this quest.

1 Answer the following questions using your own words but taking into account the
information in the text. (1.25x2=2.5)
a) What does the title of the article mean?
The title "View from the Bottom Up" refers to Fabien's perspective on his life due to
the time he spent with his grandfather, accompanying him on his boat explorations.
 b) In what ways will Proteus contribute to ocean conservation?
Proteus will support ocean conservation by providing comfortability for the scientists
to make their researches that will allow for deeper investigations into ocean health,
the impacts of climate change, and pollution. Additionally, it will make it easy to
discover new marine species and allow medical advances to be made.

2 Are the following statements true (T) or false (F)? identify the part of the text that
supports your answer by copying the exact passage on the answer sheet. (0.5x4=2)
a) With Proteus, Fabien Cousteau is trying to make it possible for humans to live
permanently underwater. False. “Hopefully, Fabien will have finished building it within
three years after mapping the site and, in the not-too-distant future, the first
aquanauts will be doing research there.”
b) Jacques Cousteau’s underwater stations were in the Caribbean Sea. False. “Fabien’s
project was inspired by his grandfather’s three underwater stations, all built during
the 1960s.” (It doesn’t say the location)
c) The menu aquanauts enjoy nowadays is healthy and delicious. False. “Cooking in a
pressurised environment is impossible, so aquanauts will have to rely on dehydrated
food.”
d) Most of the ocean is unknown. True. “With 90% of our planet’s ocean unmapped and
unexplored, we know far less about it than we do about the moon.”

3 Find a synonym for each of the four words below from these six options. (0.25x4=1)
equipped placed issues diseases accomplishments carry on
a) provided: equipped
b) problems: issues
c) achievements: accomplishments
d) located: placed

4 Choose a, b or c in each question below. Only one choice is correct (0.5x3=1.5)

1 The station that Fabien is building will …
a) use equipment from previous stations.
b) be bigger than Jacques Cousteau’s stations.
c) be the world’s first underwater station.
d) take 12 years to build.

2 The greenhouse plants will be used for …

a) dehydrating.
b) cooking.
c) eating.
d) sending to land.

3 What will the goal of Fabien’s livestreaming be?

a) to display scientific discoveries made on the Proteus.
b) to follow in Jacques Cousteau’s footsteps.
c) to increase understanding about the importance of the ocean.
d) to improve underwater film photography.