Over 15 years of ocean science and conservation online
Tons of Shark Week shows are full of obvious pseudoscientific nonsense, and yet feature real scientists. Why would these people agree to do that? In my capacity as “Shark Week’s Biggeset Critic,” I’m asked this question a lot, and while I can’t speak for others and their decision-making processes, based on what colleagues have told … Read More “Why would a serious scientist agree to participate in a nonsense Shark Week show?” »
Following the success of “Why Sharks Matter,” lots of colleagues have asked me if I think they should write a popular science book, or how to approach it. I’ve shared various of this advice in various social media posts over the years, but several people asked me to write it up as a blog post … Read More “Considering writing a popular science book? Here’s my advice” »
Netflix has a new (sarcastic air quotes) “documentary” out about Ocean Ramsey, who longtime readers and followers know is a serial wildlife harasser who also coordinates massive online harassment campaigns against scientists and conservationists who criticize her. In 15 years on social media, I’ve never gotten more (or nastier) harassment then when I criticized her … Read More “What Ocean Ramsey does is not shark science or conservation: some brief thoughts on “the Shark Whisperer” documentary” »
Jaws turned 50 this week, and I spoke with a lot of journalists about it. I wrote about what’s happened to sharks in the 50 years since Jaws came out- some of the worst years in these animals 450 million year history- for the Revelator. Jaws at 50: Was the Terrifying Movie Really to Blame … Read More “A roundup of my media outreach for Jaws’ 50th anniversary” »
The new David Attenborough documentary “Ocean” is now streaming on Hulu and Disney+. On Thursday, June 26th, watch it with me and a panel of ocean science and conservation experts! Here’s how to participate in our live chat on Bluesky! Sign up for a Bluesky account,. And then follow me. And then follow our panel. … Read More “David Attenborough’s Ocean is on Hulu and Disney+. Let’s watch together and discuss it!” »
You asked us questions about marine biology careers, and our panel of experts answered them! In April, I solicited your questions about careers in marine biology, and we received nearly 100 questions! In this post, I’ve answered as many of them as I can, along with a panel of experts. Some questions have been rephrased … Read More “Marine Biology Career Advice” »
Social media is, despite it’s challenges and limitations, an incredibly powerful (and widely used) professional tool for scientists. One common use of social media is to share one’s research with colleagues, or to find papers shared by others to read. And yet, despite the idea that sharing links to research online is not exactly new, … Read More “It’s 2025. Why do so many scientific journal articles still display weird when shared on social media?” »
I have several upcoming public talks, panels, and workshops in May and June. Here they are all in one place! Public talk! Endangered Species in U.S. Waters: What threatens, them, and how can we save them? May 16th in Baltimore through the Natural History Society of Maryland. Get tickets here. Talk description: Over 100 marine … Read More “Sustainable Seafood, Endangered Species, and Jaws: Some upcoming talks and panels” »
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” »
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” »
