Peter Liss is a professor at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.  His research encompasses many aspects of environmental chemistry, with a particular interest in the biogeochemical interactions between the oceans and the atmosphere.

Who or what inspired you to become a scientist?

Like many people, I got into chemistry by being taught at school by some really interesting and dedicated teachers. They were a great inspiration and had real enthusiasm for the subject, which I think is the key.

Your work focuses on environmental chemistry and the world's oceans, what prompted you to study these?

While studying chemistry and physics at Durham University, I took a first year course in geology. The majority of this course and the text book that went with it were about the land surface and how that works; there was very little about the oceans. So, I thought this must be an area ripe for research as the oceans are much larger in extent than the land masses. 

What projects are you currently working on?

One topic that I have been working on for several years is how the oceans affect the atmosphere in terms of releasing trace gases made by marine planktonic organisms. For example, dimethylsulfide, made by plankton in the oceans, is volatile, and is oxidised in the atmosphere to produce sulphur dioxide and sulphate. In the natural system this sulphur dioxide is the source of acidity in the atmosphere and lowers the pH of rain. We have added to that acidity, particularly in the northern hemisphere, by burning fossil fuels, which put man-made sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere.

How has climate change affected the oceans?

In several ways! The interaction is a two way process: climate change is affecting the oceans and the oceans are affecting climate change.   An obvious example is that we are releasing more CO₂ into the atmosphere. A good fraction of that (30%) is taken up by the oceans, which means that it is not in the atmosphere.   Therefore the warming of the atmosphere we are experiencing would be more if the oceans weren't taking up this CO₂. An impact of this is that if the naturally alkaline sea water takes up more CO₂, the sea water becomes less alkaline and the pH of sea water is reduced. The pH of the oceans will continue to decrease throughout this century if we continue to emit CO₂ at the rate we are.   This will affect organisms such as corals, microorganisms and plankton, particularly where their shells are made of calcium carbonate.   We don't know what effect the higher CO₂ will have on other organisms such as diatoms, which are silicon based; it could be beneficial for them but this very uncertain territory.   

What is hot right now in ocean research?

One of the hot research areas is ocean acidification. Increasing CO₂ levels in the oceans makes them more acidic but only recently has this been studied seriously. It's an interesting problem of which little is known. The issue is what will be the effect on the organisms that are present in the oceans, such as the plankton that are at the bottom of the food chain and also the effect it will have on other organisms higher in the chain.   The best way of tackling climate change is to cut emissions; it is no good trying to engineer atmospheric temperature as it doesn't solve the pH problem in the oceans.  

You have been based at UEA for 40 years, what would you say has been the biggest change since you started?

Everything has become bigger, which is true of many universities. In addition, we are much more coherent these days particularly in the science faculty. Previously we had schools of science that were independent bodies. Now we have a faculty of science which has encouraged lots of co-working between the different science schools. We also have better links with the research institutes on the Norwich Research Park, which has made a much more coherent body of science at UEA.   This opens up all sorts of avenues which couldn't have been pursued previously. 

What do you enjoy about your job?

I'm sort of retired now so I'm doing more of the things that I enjoy doing and less of the things that I maybe didn't enjoy so much. I am currently running my research group and helping the university in several ventures such as courses to train engineers for employment in the East Anglia region with its burgeoning renewable and conventional energy industries.

Looking back, what do you consider as your most rewarding achievement?

Seeing my students grow and become senior researchers in industry and academia; generally being big success stories.

What do you enjoy most about your role on the JEM editorial board?

You feel like something happens. The board discuss things and because the staff at the RSC are very active, you do see some progression between board meetings, which makes the process fulfilling. The people on the board are very interesting and committed.   Members come from far afield to attend the meetings and if they cannot attend personally, they often do so via video link.    

What advice would you give to young scientists wishing to pursue an academic career?

A career in science is a tremendous thing and I would highly recommend it to anyone. There are lots of opportunities to meet people and to travel the globe.   However, academic careers are very tough and it can be quite competitive and somewhat aggressive. So you have to be very committed to doing it and also keen on teaching to pass knowledge to your students.   The big advantage to that is that you learn from your students and they can give you new ideas.

If you weren't a scientist, what would you be? 

I think I would have liked to have been an architect.   I find it fascinating that someone can sit with a piece of paper and draw an idea that can potentially turn into a functional structure. But I'm not sure if I would have been any good at it!