Geophysicist Dr. Anna Lim has spent the past several years turning the invisible into the intelligible—designing and leading deep-ocean exploration campaigns that map and model what lies four kilometres beneath the sea surface.Formerly Manager & Discipline Lead for Marine Minerals and Deep-Ocean Space Exploration at Argeo, Anna joins Eric to unpack what “exploration” really means: how you plan a cruise, what counts as good data, and why trade-offs between coverage, resolution, and time define everything that follows.

The conversation moves from the technical to the philosophical—bias in discovery, uncertainty, and the quiet role of trust in every data pipeline. It’s a rare inside look at how the knowledge base is actually built.

Follow Anna on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/limannageo/?originalSubdomain=no

🧭 Topics Covered

* How exploration campaigns are planned and executed

* The difference between good data and misleading data

* Trade-offs: coverage vs. resolution, cost vs. information value

* Survivorship bias in scientific discovery (“we only find what we look for”)

* Data interpretation and the human element in modelling

* Why “trust” and transparency matter even at the technical level

Chapters

00:00 Intro03:23 Anna Lim’s Journey to Geophysics05:08 The Role of Multidisciplinarity in Research07:33 Research Focus on Hydrothermal Systems09:46 Exploration Campaigns: Planning and Execution12:31 Data Collection Techniques in Deep Sea Exploration15:30 Challenges in Identifying Mineral Deposits18:17 The Importance of Context in Geophysical Research20:41 Trade-offs in Data Collection23:22 The Data Pipeline: From Collection to Analysis26:06 Identifying Zones of Interest in Deep Sea Exploration36:35 Understanding Sampling Bias in Geological Surveys40:00 The Importance of Data Processing and Calibration44:44 Interpreting Data: The Role of Assumptions48:33 Navigating Time and Budget Constraints in Exploration55:14 Trade-offs in Decision Making for Deep Sea Exploration01:01:54 Post-Exploration: Reporting and Next Steps01:08:45 Technological Advancements in Deep Sea ExplorationTheme music: Tamarack by Jesse Matas

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