Over 15 years of ocean science and conservation online
Everyone knows that sandbar shark is #BestShark. But to help raise money for graduate student shark research, I asked professional wrestler Ryan “Hollywood Hunk” Nemeth to help me auction off the right for some other species to be guest #BestShark for a year– an honor that comes with a custom wrestling championship belt I commissioned … Read More “Bonnethead sharks are this year’s guest #BestShark” »
Yesterday, we published a rundown of all the ways in which Trump’s Project 2025 would impact ocean science and conservation. Trump’s Project 2025 is an agenda, a glimpse at what a future administration might do. Trump already served one term as president. We already know what the Trump Ocean Doctrine looks like, and it doesn’t … Read More “We already know what another Trump Presidency would mean for the ocean” »
Near the end of last year, the Heritage Foundation unveiled Project 2025, a sweeping, 900-page document that outlines their vision for a second Trump administration. Authored by key leaders of the former administration and Trump’s campaign team, this document lays the groundwork for Trump’s policy agenda, should he defeat Vice President Harris in the 2024 … Read More “How Trump’s Project 2025 would reshape America’s oceans” »
We have a problem. Collectively, we need to dramatically reduce our carbon emissions over the next few years to stave off the worst climate change outcomes. While this demands sweeping changes to energy policy at national and international levels, for individuals and organizations, electrification of the world’s automotive fleets offers the most direct change. Electric … Read More “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good: Plug-in Electric Hybrids are better than you think” »
Next week, delegates from 169 countries, NGOs representing civil society, and other experts will gather in Kingston, Jamaica to continue the work of developing a set of rules governing how the minerals of the deep sea, which fall beyond the borders of any nation, can be exploited, ostensibly for the Good of Humankind. In many … Read More “Deep-sea mining meeting convenes once again to negotiate the future of our oceans.” »
In a little over 2 week, the International Seabed Authority will once again convene in Kingston, Jamaica to continue the 30-year process of establishing a regulatory regime for mining the minerals of the deep sea beyond the borders of any nation. This deep-sea mining negotiation is the most important meeting for not only the future … Read More “Election of ISA Secretary-General mired by accusations of bribery and corruption” »
The adventures of the Cephalosquad continue on our weekly marine science-themed Dungeons and Dragons podcast, Dugongs and Seadragons. This month, the party attends an academic lecture on renewable energy which gets a little out of hand. We’ve got a Patreon (separate and completely unrelated to the Southern Fried Science Patreon), where you can get behind-the-scenes clips … Read More ““If you were eaten by an owlbear, would your skeleton come out the owl end or the bear end?” This month on Dugongs and Seadragons” »
June saw a major uptick in readers, and not necessarily for the articles you’d expect. The press release that me and David put out and David’s piece on the strange history of Trump and sharks both claimed top billing, but oddly, the short piece I wrote about all the chicken coops I’ve built struck a … Read More “Oddly enough, chicken coops: What you read on Southern Fried Science in June.” »
The former President’s recent bizarre rant about sharks has gone viral on social media, but this is just the latest in a long and weird saga. These tweets are real. Did you know their backstory? July 2007: Donald Trump meets with adult film star Stormy Daniels, inviting her to his hotel room. Upon arrival, he … Read More “Donald Trump and Sharks: An Annotated Timeline” »
The upcoming 2024 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists is in my hometown of Pittsburgh! I can’t wait to show yinz around dahntahn n’at! Don’t be a jagoff, learn a little about the city before you go aht and explore! What’s with the weird accent? Lots of cities have regional dialects, and we have Pittsburghese. … Read More “Stuff to do in Pittsburgh if you’re in town for JMIH 2024” »
