A good joint is built to last: archaeologists uncover evidence for the earliest structural use of wood. 

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Built to Last, Featured

Just how long should a woodworking joint last? Towards the middle of 2021, I started writing what could be generously described as a manifesto for environmentally conscientious woodworking. In Furniture as Revolution, I argue that: “In a present defined by levying a tax on future generations through manufactured frailty, making something designed to persist beyond … Read More “A good joint is built to last: archaeologists uncover evidence for the earliest structural use of wood. “ »

Conservation, Technology, and the Future of the Seafloor: My 2023 science year in review.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Academic life, Science

2023 felt like a year where I was just treading water. I barreled through it so fast that I barely registered everything that we accomplishes (and just how much is left to finish). This was a kludge year for me, with lots of small projects instead of one, big, overarching project. Onwards! Deep-sea Mining remains … Read More “Conservation, Technology, and the Future of the Seafloor: My 2023 science year in review.” »

Finding Megalodon at the bottom of the sea

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Science

Since the first Challenger Expedition, deep-sea explorers have recovered shark teeth from the bottom of the ocean. Sharks shed their teeth almost as much as Twitter sheds users after changing its name to the symbol synonymous with closing your browser. Shark teeth crop up in deepwater trawls, geologic samples, and even embedded in the core … Read More “Finding Megalodon at the bottom of the sea” »

The OpenCTD: Open-source Oceanography for Everyone

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured, Open Science

Below is a transcript and slides from the above talk, delivered at the October 19, 2023 GOSH Community Call. Good afternoon, good evening, and good morning, and thank you for inviting me. Access to the tools of science is rarely equitable, and nowhere is this inequality of access more pronounced than in the ocean sciences, … Read More “The OpenCTD: Open-source Oceanography for Everyone” »

“The Shark is Broken” is a Broadway-loving shark scientist’s dream come true

Posted on By David Shiffman 1 Comment on “The Shark is Broken” is a Broadway-loving shark scientist’s dream come true
Popular Culture, Reviews and Interviews

A new Broadway show based on the making of Jaws, co-written by and starring Robert Shaw’s son, is some of the most fun I’ve had at the theater in years. Wearing my finest elasmo-swag to the theater “Jaws” changed the world, with scientific, cultural, and political impacts that continue to this day. Jaws made the … Read More ““The Shark is Broken” is a Broadway-loving shark scientist’s dream come true” »

The Glomar Explorer: what we can confirm and deny about “vast government conspiracies” from Project Azorian. 

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Featured

The following is the transcript of a talk I gave at DC Nerd Nite on September 16, 2023. Enjoy! I need to begin with a disclaimer: It is impossible to talk about Project Azorian and the Glomar Explorer without sounding like you’ve gone deep into Dale Gribble territory. Azorian has everything a conspiracy theorist could … Read More “The Glomar Explorer: what we can confirm and deny about “vast government conspiracies” from Project Azorian. “ »

Oh Hell No: Ten Years of SharkNado

Posted on By David Shiffman
Featured, Popular Culture, Reviews and Interviews, Science

Summer 2023 marks an important cultural milestone. That’s right, it has now been ten years since the release of SharkNado, which became a full-blown franchise with six movies, tens of millions in ad revenue and merchandise sales, real-world references in the floor of Congress, and near-universal awareness- all things that are otherwise unheard of for … Read More “Oh Hell No: Ten Years of SharkNado” »

My comments on New York’s proposed new shark fishing regulations

Posted on By David Shiffman
Conservation, Featured, Science

Following a growing problem of mishandling of species of conservation concern, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation is proposing some new shark fishing regulations. Here is the text of the letter I sent them supporting some of those proposed regulations, and proposing additional regulations. A dead sand tiger shark washed up on a New York … Read More “My comments on New York’s proposed new shark fishing regulations” »

The research rundown: an abbreviated list of my current ocean science, policy, education, and conservation technology efforts.

Posted on By Andrew Thaler
Uncategorized

OpenCTD and Oceanography for Everyone Ten years ago, Kersey, Russell, and I set of on a quixotic quest to make the tools of ocean science more accessible to more knowledge seekers at a price the reflects the reality of research budgets. The OpenCTD, a low-cost, open-source, oceanographic instrument was born. Since that first ambitious announcement, … Read More “The research rundown: an abbreviated list of my current ocean science, policy, education, and conservation technology efforts.” »