Episode Description: When a poetic message in a bottle leads Max and Molly back to 1835, they dive into an underwater mission to help Charles Darwin collect marine life for scientific study. Outfitted with SCUBA gear, they descend 99 feet into the ocean, facing rising pressure, nitrogen limits, and even a whale song or two. Along the way, they explore the invention of the aquarium and how light and sound behave underwater. The real treasure turns out to be a mysterious fossil—possibly linked to the POGs’ cryptic code.
Math Concepts: Volume of a rectangular prism (Length × Width × Height), atmospheric pressure increases per 33 feet of depth, calculating percentage change (SCUBA air pressure reduction), estimating time and depth limitations based on pressure/nitrogen absorption, basic division with decimals and scientific notation (e.g., .00735), concept of buoyancy and neutral buoyancy as a balance of forces
History/Geography Concepts: The Theory of Evolution & Charles Darwin’s 1835 voyage aboard the HMS BeagleGalapagos, marine iguanas and biodiversity, Invention of the aquarium by Jeanne Villepreux-Power (1832) Marine biology: coral, plankton, cephalopods, SCUBA mechanics, how light and sound waves behave differently in water vs. air Color absorption in deep water and its effect on perception, Early women scientists and scientific credit, Use of SCUBA gear: tank pressure, regulators, gauges, buoyancy vests
