Over 15 years of ocean science and conservation online
Well, it finally happened. Over the last two week, my usually well-curated feeds of videos from the deep sea have been overrun with AI slop masquerading as authentic images of strange and delightful creatures of the abyss. AI slop is permeating everything, but it’s particularly noxious when dealing with images from the deep. We generally … Read More “That’s not a blobfish: Deep Sea Social Media is Flooded by AI Slop” »
Long time friend of the blog, Dr. Jake Levenson, delivers a talk twenty years in the making, about how space technology and open data standards can help protect the ocean.
Sharks are some of the most threatened animals on Earth, and accordingly many scientists who study sharks want their research to be useful for conservation. However, most scientific training does not include a detailed explanation of the policymaking process, resulting in lots of shark research being positioned as relevant to conservation and policy when it … Read More “Shark scientists want their research to help save threatened species, but don’t know how. Our new paper can help.” »
I am extremely pleased to announce that a book I contributed to is now available for pre-order. Ocean: From Shore to Abyss, led by the legendary Dr. Asha de Vos, is a visual journey through the oceans, from sandy beaches to the deepest trenches. I, along with Tony Martin, Helen Scales, Peter Godfrey-Smith, and Rebecca … Read More “Ocean: From the Shore to the Abyss” »
For the last several years now, I’ve been running educational themed Dungeons & Dragons campaigns through my local library, as well as with student groups in a variety of settings. While you only need the core rulebooks to run a good campaign (and not even that if you use the free System Reference Documents) there … Read More “Teaching with D&D: My favorite source books for running a great Dungeons & Dragons campaign.” »
My colleague Dr. Julia Wester and I have a new paper out in the journal Integrative and Comparative Biology reporting on the results of a survey distributed to over 800 scientists, science educators, and science communicators. I presented these results at the 2025 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. Our study confirms a trend that’s … Read More ““Twitter sucks now and all the cool kids are moving to Bluesky:” Our new survey shows that scientists no longer find Twitter professionally useful or pleasant” »
The Friends of the Mariana Trench extend heartfelt congratulations to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and local leaders from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) on the momentous occasion of the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Mariana Trench visitor contact station. This important milestone marks a significant step towards enhancing public understanding … Read More “Friends of the Mariana Trench Congratulate U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Local CNMI Leaders on the Ribbon-Cutting of the Mariana Trench Visitor Contact Station” »
I have several upcoming public talks, panels, and workshops in May and June. Here they are all in one place! Public talk! Endangered Species in U.S. Waters: What threatens, them, and how can we save them? May 16th in Baltimore through the Natural History Society of Maryland. Get tickets here. Talk description: Over 100 marine … Read More “Sustainable Seafood, Endangered Species, and Jaws: Some upcoming talks and panels” »
Many environmental scientists understand that there is value in communicating about their work through the media, as publicity can help raise public awareness of a conservation threat and help build support for a policy solution. Most training material focuses on how to craft and deliver effective messages. However, this is only part of the skillset … Read More “Advice for talking to the media as a conservation scientist: Part 3, the press release” »
By David Shiffman and Brett Favaro. Many environmental scientists understand that there is value in communicating about their work through the media, as publicity can help raise public awareness of a conservation threat and help build support for a policy solution. Most training material focuses on how to craft and deliver effective messages. However, this is only … Read More “Advice for talking to the media as a conservation scientist: Part 2, mechanics of the interview” »
