(1) This was the so-called ‘azoic’ (a = without, zoic = life) theory and the supposed lifeless region below 300 fathoms was the ‘ azoic zone,’ an abyss where no life could exist.(2) The Manx naturalist Edward Forbes coined the word ‘ azoic ’ to describe this self-evidently lifeless zone.(3) These ideas were largely a carry over from Edward Forbes in the late 1800's, who proposed the azoic hypothesis for the deep sea.(4) Within this mud belt, which ranges up to 20 meters deep, there are areas in which the oxygen levels are zero - ‘ azoic zones’ or ‘dead zones,’ Weeks explained.
