How Life Thrives Under the Ocean’s Crushing Pressure
Like most deep-sea biologists, I have a large collection of decorated Styrofoam cups. A couple dozen line the bookshelf of my office, each displaying a…
Megalodon…phhh…most sharks are Microlodons.
A year ago, I jumped off the side of a perfectly good boat. Infinite water hides the land to the west and the ocean floor…
View More Megalodon…phhh…most sharks are Microlodons.
Why I Still Watch Shark Week
The other day I received a slightly disconcerting text message from my cousin regarding Shark Week. She has two young kids one age 6 and…
View More Why I Still Watch Shark WeekThe Real Shark Week: Diving in with oceanic whitetips
Discovery Channel’s Shark Week kicked off with a *fake* documentary about sharks, and under normal circumstances this would sink me into a big blue pit of bummer.…
View More The Real Shark Week: Diving in with oceanic whitetipsLike Shark Week, But with Actual Facts
Ed Yong inspires me. It’s Shark Week, and the Discovery Channel have already jumped the shark with a fake documentary, asking if a giant prehistoric…
View More Like Shark Week, But with Actual FactsReese’s Cups, Octopus Urine, Prehistoric Giant Marine Reptiles, and Parasite Sex
Scientists currently know of 112 species who’s preferred habitat is the renal sac of a cephalopod. Actually, each species prefers a different kind of cephalopod—Broadclub…
View More Reese’s Cups, Octopus Urine, Prehistoric Giant Marine Reptiles, and Parasite SexThe 60 foot long jet powered animal you’ve probably never heard of
I was living in Africa the first time I saw a pyrosome, and I nearly cried. I was doing research on plankton, which meant long…
View More The 60 foot long jet powered animal you’ve probably never heard ofBreaking Baleen: If Walter While was Willy the Whale
Ever since I first saw Breaking Bad, I’ve been kind of obsessed with Cancer and Crystal Meth. (Legal Disclaimer: only the chemistry of Crystal Meth,…
View More Breaking Baleen: If Walter While was Willy the WhaleMarine nematodes have a microbiome too (and it’s way cooler than yours)
By now you’re probably aware that your entire skin surface (and every orafice) is swarming with millions of microbes. The human microbiome is pretty sexy…
View More Marine nematodes have a microbiome too (and it’s way cooler than yours)Tides eat British Teenager’s Car
Every day, without fail, the tides go in and out. While some people fail to understand why they rise and fall, others just completely forget that…
View More Tides eat British Teenager’s CarCSI Deep Sea: Genomic Edition
This case is short but sweet. The fossil record is what we scientists have always used to reconstruct past conditions in the ocean. Like any…
View More CSI Deep Sea: Genomic Edition