The laboratory's spinoffs earn it a reputation as the center for a thriving industry in oceanographic research and equipment
WOODS HOLE, Mass. -- A Japanese oceanographer spending six months at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution a few years ago decided to track down the inventors of a half-dozen key oceanographic instruments to learn what new projects they were working on. He sought help from his WHOM colleagues in planning a cross-country journey to meet them. But, to his surprise, he found that four of them were right here in Woods Hole.

Albert Williams, chairman of applied ocean physics and engineering at Woods Hole, tells that story when he is asked about his institute's contributions to oceanographic research. Then and now, southeastern Massachusetts leads the country in developing new tools for ocean research. And WHOI, founded in 1930 and home to more than 100 scientists and 700 support staff, is the spawning...

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