Category: Popular Culture

Shark shooter identified, but has he broken any laws?

Posted on By David Shiffman 18 Comments on Shark shooter identified, but has he broken any laws?
Conservation, Popular Culture, Science

Earlier this month, a video of fishermen shooting a rifle at sharks appeared on YouTube and caused quite a stir. The video has since been removed, but not before shark conservation activists  made copies (warning: the videos are extremely graphic and have inappropriate language). Apparently some computers can access the site with the videos and others can’t, if you can’t access the site and want a copy of the videos just let me know. All images in this post are screenshots from the video.

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Severely injured great white shark found, are scientists responsible?

Posted on By David Shiffman 125 Comments on Severely injured great white shark found, are scientists responsible?
Conservation, Popular Culture, Science

[Editor’s Notice – Comments have been suspended on this post. Please visit “Full video of injured shark shows numerous natural injuries” for an update on this controversy]

Last summer, I reviewed National Geographic’s “Expedition Great White” and interviewed the lead scientist. Several researchers and conservationists were concerned about the methods that Dr. Michael Domeier uses to study great white sharks, particularly after one shark was “foul hooked” through the gills. These methods (removing captured great white sharks from the water to study them using a forklift-like structure) make for excellent television, but may be harmful to the sharks.  As I reported last year:

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Science Fails in Pop Music Songs

Posted on By David Shiffman 17 Comments on Science Fails in Pop Music Songs
Popular Culture, Science

I’ve found that I enjoy certain types of music more when I don’t listen to the words too closely. However, a mild addiction to karaoke and a lifelong inability to “just let it go” has made it impossible for me to avoid knowing the lyrics.

We’ve been known to criticize how science is portrayed in movies and television shows here on Southern Fried Science. Pop music is far from innocent when it comes to scientific misunderstandings, and it seems only fair that I criticize that genre as well. Here are some recent examples that have been driving me crazy.

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Japan temporarily suspends Antarctic whale hunt

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 8 Comments on Japan temporarily suspends Antarctic whale hunt
Conservation, Popular Culture

From the Guardian: Japan has temporarily suspended its annual whale hunt in the Antarctic after anti-whaling activists obstructed its fleet’s mother ship. Officials in Tokyo have conceded that this year’s mission, which had again been the target of international criticism, had not gone as well as hoped and the fleet may be called home early, … Read More “Japan temporarily suspends Antarctic whale hunt” »

The Snicker’s great white commerical: Harmless humor or dangerous anti-shark stereotypes?

Posted on By David Shiffman 17 Comments on The Snicker’s great white commerical: Harmless humor or dangerous anti-shark stereotypes?
Popular Culture

Last year, I was extremely critical of a Nicorette commercial that featured a man so distracted by thoughts of cigarettes that he didn’t realize a shark was chewing on his arm. This led to a spirited discussion about where sharks fit in to our popular culture, and resulted in more than a few people calling me overly sensitive.  One person called me a member of the “apocalyptic legion of killjoys who battle against fun and innocent symbolism all over the world” (one of my standard comebacks is “I’ve been called worse” but I’m not sure if that’s true in this case).

Snickers recently unveiled a new commercial featuring sharks:

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Submit to the Beneath the Waves Film Festival

Posted on By David Shiffman 5 Comments on Submit to the Beneath the Waves Film Festival
Popular Culture

I am excited to announce that I am now a part of the planning team for the 2nd Annual Beneath the Waves Film Festival!

This festival, which is associated with the Benthic Ecology conference, provides a unique opportunity for scientists and filmmakers to interact. Since the festival is part of a scientific conference, filmmakers will be able to get feedback from scientists, and even plan collaborations for the future. Scientists who make movies for fun will be able to ask professional filmmakers for tips.

Unlike many other film festivals, Beneath the Waves is free to enter, which makes it an ideal showcase for films by students, amateur naturalists, and starting filmmakers.

The focus is on marine/coastal/freshwater science and conservation issues. They must be shorter than 30 minutes, and we request that they be shorter than 20 minutes if at all possible. The submission deadline is January 15th, 2011.

Whether you’re a seasoned professional, a young filmmaker just getting started, or a scientist who has taken some cool video, the Beneath the Waves Festival is for you.

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Great Migrations of the Ocean

Posted on By David Shiffman 3 Comments on Great Migrations of the Ocean
Popular Culture, Science

National Geographic’s Great Migrations, a seven part series which premieres November 7th, calls itself a collection of “the most moving stories on Earth”. It focuses on some amazing animals from around the world and the incredible journeys they take to survive. This series was a massive undertaking, with the National Geographic crew spending 2 years traveling more than 420,000 miles over 20 countries. The end result is visually spectacular,  full of fascinating science and rich in never-before-told stories of animal behavior. The series itself is an great educational resource, and the website has plenty to offer teachers (particularly the Science page and the Teacher Resources page).

While many of the best-known migrations involve land animals or birds, some marine migrations are also pretty darn great.

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