Earlier this month, the good folks at the Schmidt Institute for Oceanography, unveiled the first video footage of a colossal squid. Colossal squid were first described 100 years ago, but have never been seen live. What little information we have comes from specimens that washed up on beaches or from hard parts found in the … Read More “First live video of a colossal squid highlights one of the most exciting knowledge gaps in deep ocean exploration” »
Last night, the President signed an Executive Order on Deep-sea Mining. The order directs primarily NOAA and DOI to develop an expedited permitting process for mining in both the US EEZ and, chaotically, the high seas beyond US jurisdiction. I provide a brief overview of the industry here: Understanding the Executive Order on Deep-sea Mining … Read More “Understanding the Executive Order on Deep-sea Mining and Critical Minerals: Part 2, what is in the Executive Order?” »
Late yesterday afternoon, the President signed and executive order on Unleashing America’s Offshore Critical Minerals and Resources. This order accelerates the US’s expansion into the nascent deep-sea mining industry, asserts its claims over minerals of the US outer continental shelf, and reasserts its claims over mineral deposits in the high seas, with some interesting caveats. … Read More “Understanding the Executive Order on Deep-sea Mining and Critical Minerals: Part 1, what are we talking about?” »
Nature recently shared a list of the most-cited papers of all time in any scientific field. That got me thinking: what are the most-cited papers in my field? And do they have any traits in common? Me at the New England Aquarium Methods: Simple! I performed a Web of Science database search for “shark,” and … Read More “These are the 10 most-cited shark science papers of all time” »
Donald Trump opened an area of about 250 million acres of protected American waters to industrial fishing fleets on Thursday. This sets a very dangerous precedent that our public lands and waters are for sale to the highest bidder. I know that we’re all exhausted from the onslaught of daily outrages by the Trump administration. … Read More “5 things you can do if you’re pissed off about the latest Trump EO” »
That’s me on the day the Pacific Remote Islands (Pacific Islands Heritage) marine national monument was designated in 2009. I’ve been working in communities on these protected areas for nearly 20 years.
Between the ramp up in deep-sea mining and the publication of my Jabberwock adventure, I did a lot of podcasts this quarter. Listen to some of my favorite interviews, below. Deep-sea mining keeps heating up. I joined Hopkins Public Health on Call to talk about the current state of deep-sea mining and what the future … Read More “Deep-sea mining, forest ecology, and Dungeons & Dragons: all the podcasts I’ve been on this quarter” »
Blogging never dies! For over 17 years, Southern Fried Science has been writing about the oceans from the perspective of working scientists and policy experts. Along the way, we’ve seen hundreds of great ocean blogs come and go, coalesce and expand, move and change and evolve. Some of you are now podcasters. Others are going … Read More “Ocean Science Blogger Roll Call!” »
Opening ceremony of Tiaki Moana in Tahiti, French Polynesia.
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 4, common issues and their solutions” »





