When first approached about the possibility of a census to assess and explain the diversity, distribution, and abundance of the world’s marine life, I appreciated the value of such an effort for a variety of reasons, some personal and broader than the immediate issue of knowing more about the ocean’s biology. A term as Assistant Secretary General for Scientific Affairs at NATO in 1960-1962 first exposed me to the modern problems in taxonomy. Interest in the environment was growing and being organized into a more effective and technically oriented endeavor and technically oriented endeavor and more accepted on the political and diplomatic plane.

Nierenberg, W.A. 1999. The diversity of fishes: The known and unknown. Oceanography 12(3):6–7, https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.1999.01.

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