Given the growing demand for deep sea metals created by electronic and green technologies, scientists are faced with decisions about whether to engage in baseline and impacts research that enables development of a new extraction industry, and whether to contribute expertise to the development of environmental protections and guidelines. Lisa A. Levin, distinguished professor of biological oceanography at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, addresses the ethical and societal challenges of exploitation in a relatively unknown realm. (#32160)