Science – Page 72 – Southern Fried Science

Philosophy of activism: comment “swarming”

July 21, 2010 David Shiffman 12 Comments

In my ongoing Philosophy of Activism series, I describe tactics used by various advocacy organizations and solicit feedback from our readers to determine if those tactics are effective or not. For the latest edition, I wanted to pick all of your brains about a tactic that I personally used this week.

Alien Invaders: coral pathogens

July 20, 2010July 20, 2010 Andrew Thaler

Science

The following is a repost from the old Southern Fried Science WordPress blog. The original can be found here.

It was a story that could very easily have been written as science fiction. Gorgonian (sea fan) corals of the Florida coast were turning black and dying. The infectious culprit was something no one working on the reefs had encountered before. It was totally alien. The black rot spread across the Caribbean, decimating coral populations. By the time the contagion had been deduced, more than 50% of total sea fan tissue had been eradicated in the Florida Keys. It was one of the worst coral epidemics in recent history.

The culprit was indeed an alien, though certainly not extra-terrestrial. In fact, it was very terrestrial. Aspergillus sydowii, a globally distributed saprophytic soil fungus was the nightmare creature. Aspergillus causes a variety of diseases in humans and birds, but had not previously been recognized as a marine pathogen.

Cosmic Quandaries with Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson

July 18, 2010 Andrew Thaler 1 Comment

Science

This panel discussion is definitely worth watching in it’s entirety, but if you can only watch one bit, this section where Neil deGrasse Tyson talks about UFO’s and the arguement from ignorance is marvelous. ~Southern Fried Scientist

Get ready for the Summer SharkTakular!

July 18, 2010July 18, 2010 David Shiffman

Science

Starting tomorrow, Oceans4Ever.com will be hosting the Summer SharkTakular, a week devoted to shark biology and conservation! The SharkTakular will include guest posts from experts from all corners of the shark world, including science, conservation, and filmmaking. It will also feature posts by yours truly! Be sure to follow along on Oceans4Ever all week. There … Read More “Get ready for the Summer SharkTakular!” »

Shark reporting fail in my hometown newspaper

July 16, 2010July 19, 2010 David Shiffman 7 Comments

Popular Culture, Science

I was excited to see that today’s Charleston Post and Courier has a shark on the front page. The content of the article, entitled “Sharks Swarming“, inspired entirely different emotions. Much of the information it contains is either exaggerated to make the situation appear scarier than it is or is simply wrong. Here are some examples:

Read More “Shark reporting fail in my hometown newspaper” »

Shark Week video contest

July 15, 2010July 15, 2010 David Shiffman 3 Comments

Conservation, Popular Culture, Science

The Discovery Channel needs your help! They are hosting an online contest to help promote Shark Week. Film yourself singing about sharks to the tune of their wildly successful “Boom de ya deh” ads , and you could find yourself on the air during Shark Week! Let’s get some conservation-friendly humiliating singing on there! I’ll … Read More “Shark Week video contest” »

Charlie and the Adventure: July 12, 2010

July 12, 2010July 2, 2010 David Shiffman 1 Comment

Science

At Alligator Adventure, Charlie visits the albino alligator exhibit. He and WhySharksMatter were pleasantly surprised by the volunteer’s accurate description of mutations and deleterious alleles.

Visiting Bonehenge

July 8, 2010June 16, 2010 Andrew Thaler 2 Comments

Science

The following is a repost from the old Southern Fried Science WordPress blog. The original can be found here.

bonehenge02 — Keith Rittmaster presenting spermaceti oil to my Southern Fried Students

I finally had the chance to visit the the legendary Bonehenge. For those of you who aren’t longtime followers of this blog, Bonehenge is Keith Rittmaster’s vision to rearticulate a Sperm Whale skeleton and put it on display at the North Carolina Maritime Museum. We blogged about Bonehenge last year, and raised $200 for the project this summer.

Wading Through a Sea of Eco-Certification

July 8, 2010December 20, 2011 Bluegrass Blue Crab

Science

With seafood season in full swing, I thought I’d repost this review of certification programs. I’ve learned lots since writing this article, most notably that the compiled data from the EDF study comes from a huge database of government sources. This gives me more confidence in their truth, but the areas tested are still light on estuaries. Everything else still stands. Please check back at the old site for comments.

Another thought process to add to the many considerations of food ethics: if you choose to eat seafood, which fisheries are sustainable and eco-friendly? For those of us who live on the coast, seafood confused fish represents local food that supports local businesses and helps make the connection between producer and consumer. So step one, deciding to eat seafood, has been taken. But then what? A number of nonprofits have taken on that burden and created seafood guides and certification to help you as an informed consumer. Only problem is, they sometimes differ in their listings based on what criteria they use and how they weight those criteria.

Swine Lagoons in NC

July 6, 2010July 5, 2010 Bluegrass Blue Crab 6 Comments

Conservation, Science

Just some food for thought – a picture really says 1000 words here. What you may not be able to see is the conservation areas completely covered up by the dots representing hog lagoons.