Research found at:
https://aeon.co/essays/why-it-s-time-to-put-an-end-to-the-cult-of-the-aquarium
https://www.aquarium.co.za/blog/entry/why_do_people_visit_aquariums_and_zoos
FACTS ABOUT AQUARIUMS
According to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “Zoos and aquariums worldwide receive more than 700-million visitors annually … This corresponds to 11% of the global human population, indicating that about one in 10 people experience human–animal interactions at zoos and aquariums each year.”
The earliest known aquarists were the Sumerians, who kept fishes in artificial ponds at least 4,500 years ago; records of fish keeping also date from ancient Egypt and Assyria. The Chinese, who raised carp for food as early as 1000 bce, were probably the first to breed fish with any degree of success.
https://aeon.co/essays/why-it-s-time-to-put-an-end-to-the-cult-of-the-aquarium
https://www.aquarium.co.za/blog/entry/why_do_people_visit_aquariums_and_zoos
FACTS ABOUT AQUARIUMS
According to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “Zoos and aquariums worldwide receive more than 700-million visitors annually … This corresponds to 11% of the global human population, indicating that about one in 10 people experience human–animal interactions at zoos and aquariums each year.”
The earliest known aquarists were the Sumerians, who kept fishes in artificial ponds at least 4,500 years ago; records of fish keeping also date from ancient Egypt and Assyria. The Chinese, who raised carp for food as early as 1000 bce, were probably the first to breed fish with any degree of success.
But it was Gosse who gave the invention a catchy title, and inspired an extraordinary wave of popular interest for his four-sided glass rectangle. ‘Let the word AQUARIUM,’ he wrote, ‘be the one selected to indicate these interesting collections of aquatic animals and plants, distinguishing it as a freshwater Aquarium, if the contents be fluviatile, or a Marine Aquarium if it be such as I have made the subject of the present volume.’ The enthusiasm he had for his ‘collection’, which he saw as an extension of the countryside, is palpable on every page of his still-captivating book The Aquarium: An Unveiling of the Wonders of the Deep Sea (1854), which includes a beautiful set of colour lithographs.
Gosse’s son Edmund, a poet and writer, wrote in his memoir Father and Son (1907):
The ring of living beauty drawn about our shores was a very thin and fragile one. It had existed all those centuries solely in consequence of the indifference, the blissful ignorance of man. These rock-basins, fringed by corallines, filled with still water almost as pellucid as the upper air itself, thronged with beautiful sensitive forms of life – they exist no longer, they are all profaned, and emptied, and vulgarised. An army of ‘collectors’ has passed over them, and ravaged every corner of them. The fairy paradise has been violated, the exquisite product of centuries of natural selection has been crushed under the rough paw of well-meaning, idle-minded curiosity. That my father, himself so reverent, so conservative, had by the popularity of his books acquired the direct responsibility for a calamity that he had never anticipated, became clear enough to himself before many years had passed, and cost him great chagrin.
During the century that has passed since Edmund Gosse wrote this lament, the aquarium craze has developed into a global business. It is difficult, if not impossible, to get the whole picture. Current estimates say that 25-30 million animals from more than 2,000 species are traded each year. Nearly all the wildlife kept in marine aquariums is captured from coral reefs that evolved over millennia. There are fish imports from the Philippines, Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Australia, Fiji, the Maldives and Palau.
THE ISSUE WITH AQUARIUMS
Of every 10 fish that are caught for aquariums trade, only 1 survives long enough to end up in a hobby tank.
It still seems to be standard practice in many places to use sodium cyanide to numb the fish, making them easier to capture. This is about as good for the environment as it sounds, killing invertebrates and corals, and spoiling their habitat.
Many saltwater aquarium fish are herbivores that feed on the algae which grows on coral reefs. Raw lettuce and spinach are commonly used as substitutes, but as these are not marine crops they lack the salts and minerals that saltwater fish need.
The collectors who do the really dangerous work – the ones who are actually handling the chemicals –receive only a pittance. Additionally, the fishermen face the risk of decompression illness or of being exposed to the nerve toxins used to paralyse the fish.
The workings of the ocean are simply too complex, too intelligent, to imitate in a living-room setting.
Of every 10 fish that are caught for aquariums trade, only 1 survives long enough to end up in a hobby tank.
It still seems to be standard practice in many places to use sodium cyanide to numb the fish, making them easier to capture. This is about as good for the environment as it sounds, killing invertebrates and corals, and spoiling their habitat.
Many saltwater aquarium fish are herbivores that feed on the algae which grows on coral reefs. Raw lettuce and spinach are commonly used as substitutes, but as these are not marine crops they lack the salts and minerals that saltwater fish need.
The collectors who do the really dangerous work – the ones who are actually handling the chemicals –receive only a pittance. Additionally, the fishermen face the risk of decompression illness or of being exposed to the nerve toxins used to paralyse the fish.
The workings of the ocean are simply too complex, too intelligent, to imitate in a living-room setting.
WHY DO PEOPLE ENJOY AQUARIUMS?
It's the same reason many doctors and dentist offices have fish tanks, to reduce patient anxiety.
"Humans are curious by nature and have an inherent desire to explore the unknown and discover environments foreign to our own. An aquarium is an intimate experience with life forms of the underwater world."
"Some are concerned about the impact of human behaviour on the environment and want to learn more about what they can do to conserve the rich diversity of life on this planet."
If this is the case it must be a shock for them when they go to the aquarium and see how bad they are looked after, and it is ironic that they choose to go to a manmade place in which they store the life forms out of their natural environments.
"As human beings, we need to have contact with nature in its wildest, most pristine state. We long for the solitude that such isolation provides. We need restorative places in which we can have restorative experiences. Places that permit us to transcend the stresses and strains of daily living and to find a sense of inner calm."
Although this makes sense, there is no way that aquariums are nature in its wildest, most pristine state. When visiting Tropical World I didn't feel this once due to the amount of people and children. I was stressed from the awful things I was seeing (kids scaring the animals, rubbish everywhere that the animals could get, animals trying to get out of their cages, dirty tanks, etc.) However I will agree that the aquarium section of Tropical was the most calming, but the dirty tanks and children tapping on the glass were still issues I worried over.
WHO CARES ABOUT FISH?
It is a myth that their memories are short; even the humble goldfish has displayed feats of recall spanning months and even years. Also, Fish do recognise their owners. Not only this but they develop a bond with their owners as well. obviously, this bond is not like a pet cat or a dog but it's definitely amusing how fish memorize its surroundings and their owner's face even when both live in a totally different habitat. Furthermore, fish may not have ears that we can see, but they do have ear parts inside their heads. They pick up sounds in the water through their bodies and in their internal ear, according to the National Wildlife Federation. ... For example, human ears, interestingly, evolved from fish gills.
SO WHAT IS THE ALTERNATIVE?
'There is no question that people should have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of reefs. But since the pioneering work of Jacques-Yves Cousteau there has been a much better alternative: film. The makers of underwater documentaries might disturb ocean wildlife to some extent, but at least do not put it at unnecessary risk. And the fish and corals can stay where they belong.'
WHAT ALREADY EXISTS?
There are many videos, films and apps that exist for people to access the benefits fo aquariums. One I use regularly and know other people that also use is Abyssrium: Tap Tap Fish, where you can build your own deep sea aquarium and view it in VR, allowing the user to be immersed into the aquarium without any harm to real life. This is a very simple game which allows you to create coral and fish by tapping. There is a soothing soundscape that is relaxing and calming as well as mesmerising 3D visuals. The game allows the user to incorporate unreal fishes that have been made for the game into their aquarium as part of 'events' that happen. This is an interesting aspect as it isn't something you can do with real life aquariums, giving the digital format an advantage.
Could virtual environments help an issue such as this?
Due to the researched reasons, I think 3D and VR is the most promising and successful in recreating the experience of an aquarium without harming any real life. However although this app and many videos are available and accessible, there is still a high percentage of people visiting aquariums. This will be because it does not fulfil our desire for the real life interactions of sea life.
Could I create an experience that is better than an aquarium?
Could I create an immersive experience through digital 3D and VR design that doesn't recreate an aquarium, but creates an otherworldly, beautiful and complex environment that is completely unseen and heard of. An environment that shocks and entertains the audience.
It is a myth that their memories are short; even the humble goldfish has displayed feats of recall spanning months and even years. Also, Fish do recognise their owners. Not only this but they develop a bond with their owners as well. obviously, this bond is not like a pet cat or a dog but it's definitely amusing how fish memorize its surroundings and their owner's face even when both live in a totally different habitat. Furthermore, fish may not have ears that we can see, but they do have ear parts inside their heads. They pick up sounds in the water through their bodies and in their internal ear, according to the National Wildlife Federation. ... For example, human ears, interestingly, evolved from fish gills.
SO WHAT IS THE ALTERNATIVE?
'There is no question that people should have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of reefs. But since the pioneering work of Jacques-Yves Cousteau there has been a much better alternative: film. The makers of underwater documentaries might disturb ocean wildlife to some extent, but at least do not put it at unnecessary risk. And the fish and corals can stay where they belong.'
WHAT ALREADY EXISTS?
There are many videos, films and apps that exist for people to access the benefits fo aquariums. One I use regularly and know other people that also use is Abyssrium: Tap Tap Fish, where you can build your own deep sea aquarium and view it in VR, allowing the user to be immersed into the aquarium without any harm to real life. This is a very simple game which allows you to create coral and fish by tapping. There is a soothing soundscape that is relaxing and calming as well as mesmerising 3D visuals. The game allows the user to incorporate unreal fishes that have been made for the game into their aquarium as part of 'events' that happen. This is an interesting aspect as it isn't something you can do with real life aquariums, giving the digital format an advantage.
Could virtual environments help an issue such as this?
Due to the researched reasons, I think 3D and VR is the most promising and successful in recreating the experience of an aquarium without harming any real life. However although this app and many videos are available and accessible, there is still a high percentage of people visiting aquariums. This will be because it does not fulfil our desire for the real life interactions of sea life.
Could I create an experience that is better than an aquarium?
Could I create an immersive experience through digital 3D and VR design that doesn't recreate an aquarium, but creates an otherworldly, beautiful and complex environment that is completely unseen and heard of. An environment that shocks and entertains the audience.
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