Oceanography is a young science and in the modern meaning of the term includes not only the study of the physics and chemistry of the sea water itself but the animals and plants that live in it , the sediments which have settled out of i t together with conditions governing their transportation and deposition, and the topography and geologic structures of the various basins which contain it . Inclusiveness, however, is not solely the result of youth, for by its very nature the different branches will always be closely interwoven. For instance, the problems of the chemist also concern the biologist studying the ecology of animals in the sea, and they will also be of importance to the geologist if an adequate attack is ever to be started on the diagenesis of sediments. The forces governing the different types of currents are of interest to physicist and geologist alike, and i t has recently been demonstrated that some of the principles of oceanic circulation are equally applicable to the atmosphere.

The different divisions are further tied together by the purely practical necessities which the study of the ocean imposes. A seagoing vessel is expensive to acquire and to maintain, and in addition there is the cost of the special equipment which a research ship must have. An investigator whose field work is carried out by such costly and time-consuming methods has little choice but to work in conjunction with others whose data likewise must be gathered by the same means.