跨学科能力与应对挑战是成长的底色

2021年4月，郝马克作为助理教授加入南方科技大学，同年12月获聘为副教授。至今，他已累计参与9次科考航次，在斯瓦尔巴群岛、格陵兰及南极地区累计开展极地科考逾10个月。目前，其研究团队在中国科学院大亚湾海洋生物综合实验站（大亚湾站）开展大规模（10万升）实验，探索海洋碱度增强等负排放技术在安全储存更多二氧化碳方面的潜力。

从极地冰海到大亚湾实验站，郝马克越来越确信：海洋科研从来不是单一学科能够完成的任务。在冰雪覆盖的水域，他和团队成员采集水柱、大气和岩心样本。其间，他们经历了北极熊靠近科考船、改道救援搁浅船只等突发情况。博士生黄昕深有感触：“这次科考让我深刻体会到科研工作者的创造性与应变能力。其中，跨学科交流和国际合作极大地丰富了我的科研视野。”

为何跨学科交流与国际合作如此重要？郝马克说：“我们可以用遥感技术来观测海洋，但那只能告诉你海洋表层的情况。而海洋中发生的很多事情，都发生在表层以下很深的地方。”这意味着，理解海洋不仅需要海洋科学，还需要工程技术、数据方法、化学、生态学以及国际团队之间的协作。也正因如此，郝马克十分看重培养学生应对挑战的能力。他常引用一句话：“没有坏天气，只有不好的衣服。”当他询问企业想要什么样的毕业生时，企业的回答是需要有更多工作经验，以及能从容应对意外挑战的学生。因此，当他带学生去航海、野外考察时，目的不只是测量数据，更是教他们如何处理问题、如何沟通，如何在不舒适的条件下工作。

AI工具越强大，人的判断力就越重要

如果说海上风浪训练的是人的韧性，那么AI时代的到来，考验的则是人的判断力。

“以前要在图书馆熬一整晚才能写完的论文，现在用AI只要两分钟。”郝马克说。效率的提升令人惊叹，但他随即抛出两个问题。

第一个问题很现实：如果AI能做你能做的一切，谁会雇你来做任何事？没有人会付你全职薪水，让你整天在AI里输入问题。所以，大家必须学会如何利用AI提高效率，然后把省下来的时间用来学习其他技能。第二个问题更隐蔽，也更危险：AI用得越多，人们的技能退化得就越厉害。“如果你想学习写论文，你就要练习写论文，就像骑自行车一样。你想学骑自行车，但不会让AI实地教学。”郝马克认为，这是教育者和整个社会需要共同思考的问题——如何在日常生活中使用AI？

“没有人写过一本书讲我们应该如何在教育中使用AI，因为这是新事物。一切都在摸索中。”郝马克说，“AI不会质疑你的既定前提，会沿着人类给的指令往下走。工具越强大，使用者的判断力就越重要。”郝马克认为，很多人一上来先去依赖AI，然后再专注传统科学，这个顺序搞反了。“你得先理解问题是什么，再让工具去解决问题。”

“屠呦呦是一位非常有才华的科学家。她从问题本身出发去解决问题。”郝马克说，在科学中，回归本源至关重要。拥有精密的仪器、AI、计算资源和超级计算机固然好，但如果不真正理解基础，就非常容易浪费数年的研究时间，走在错误的道路上。

“没有被定义”的地方最吸引人

判断力从何而来？郝马克的答案，藏在一种不被既定框架束缚的自由里。走进他的办公室，先扑面而来的是绿意。窗台、书架、桌角，一盆盆绿植错落摆放。墙上、门上贴着对联和新年吉祥话，一整片世界地图上标注的文字全是中文。一个外国科学家，在深圳的办公室里，用中文看世界。

“深圳的一切都是新的，这意味着有很多可能性，也意味着很多事情没有先例。”郝马克说，“没有人告诉我们‘在这里该如何做事’。”这句话里没有抱怨，反而带着一种难得的兴奋。对高水平研究者而言，这种“还没有被定义”的状态，是最有吸引力的地方。一座以速度和便利著称的城市，拥有诞生新想法、建立新实验室、搭建新大学的土壤。但真正让他感到惊讶的，是南科大对科学的包容。他刚入职时问过一个问题：“我是一名海洋科学领域的海洋化学家，是不是必须研究某个特定的东西？”学校的回答让他意外：“不用，你想研究什么都行。”

科学家希望能够跟随科学的指引走到任何地方，南科大满足了他的诉求。“很多伟大发现都来自意外。你去做某件事，它就是不奏效，然后你无意中注意到一些奇怪的、打破常规的东西。反而那些东西，才会带来了新发现。”郝马克说。

从墙上那幅中文世界地图，到“你想研究什么都行”的答复，郝马克的办公室像一扇小小的窗，透出的是深圳科研环境的底色：不设限，没有冗杂的规则，给足空间，让科学家自己去找答案。

Mark James Hopwood, associate professor in the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech)

Shenzhen’s boundary-pushing research culture nurtures interdisciplinary talent

At the 2026 convocation of the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) in early September, Mark James Hopwood had barely begun speaking when applause broke out. Speaking in Chinese, the British associate professor in the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering said: “I’m a foreigner, but I’m also a Shenzhener. I work in ocean science — the coolest department at SUSTech.”

The line drew a warm response, but Hopwood’s broader message was about the skills students need: working across disciplines and handling challenges.

Hopwood joined SUSTech as an assistant professor in April 2021 and became an associate professor that December. He has joined nine expeditions, logging over 10 months of fieldwork in Svalbard, Greenland and Antarctica. His team is now running a 100,000-liter experiment at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Daya Bay Marine Biology Research Station to test whether ocean alkalinity enhancement and other carbon-removal approaches can safely store more carbon dioxide.

The work has convinced him that ocean research cannot be confined to one discipline. In ice-covered waters, his team collects samples from the ocean, atmosphere and seafloor while dealing with hazards such as polar bears near the ship. During one expedition, the team also changed course to help a grounded vessel.

PhD student Huang Xin said the experience showed her how much creativity and adaptability research requires. Interdisciplinary exchange and international collaboration, she added, broadened her horizons.

Remote sensing can show what happens at the ocean’s surface, Hopwood said, but much of what happens in the ocean lies far below it. Understanding the ocean requires expertise in engineering, data analysis, chemistry and ecology — and collaboration across borders.

Hopwood takes students on voyages and field trips not just to collect data, but to learn how to solve problems, communicate and work in difficult conditions. He often quotes the saying, “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing.” Employers he has spoken with, he said, want graduates with more practical experience and the confidence to handle the unexpected.

If ocean storms test resilience, AI tests judgment.

“Papers that used to require an all-nighter in the library can now be written with AI in two minutes,” Hopwood said. That technology can save time, but it also raises questions about how students should use it.

If AI can do everything a student can, Hopwood asked, who will hire that student? Rather than simply entering prompts, students should use AI to work more efficiently and spend the time saved developing other skills.

Overreliance on AI can also weaken the skills students need to build. “If you want to learn to write a paper, you have to practice writing papers, just like riding a bike,” he said. “You wouldn’t let AI teach you to ride a bike while you stay on the ground.”

Educators and society are still working out how AI should be used, Hopwood said. “AI won’t question your assumptions; it follows the instructions humans give it. The more powerful the tool, the more important the user’s judgment.”

Students, he believes, should understand a problem before turning to AI for help. “You have to understand the problem first, then let the tool solve it.”

Hopwood cited Tu Youyou as a scientist who started with a problem and worked toward a solution. In science, he said, a firm grasp of the fundamentals matters as much as precision instruments, AI and computing power. Without it, researchers risk years on the wrong path.

For Hopwood, good judgment also requires freedom beyond established frameworks. His office is full of potted plants and books, with a wall map labeled entirely in Chinese.

“Everything in Shenzhen is new, which means there are many possibilities — and many things have no precedent,” he said. That newness, he added, gives researchers room for new ideas, new labs and new universities.

SUSTech also surprised him by letting researchers decide what to study. When he joined, Hopwood asked whether he had to study a particular topic . He was told to study whatever he wanted.

“Many great discoveries come from accidents,” he said. “You set out to do something, it doesn’t work, and then you notice something strange — something that breaks the rules. That can lead to new discoveries.”

For Hopwood, Shenzhen offers scientists the space and freedom to find their own answers.

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