Latest oceanbites
Attacking Alzheimer’s: Medicinal marine microbes
Alzheimer’s disease is a serious brain condition that affects many elderly people. It is important to find new ways to treat and cure the disease. The ocean, particularly extreme environments, is one of the best places to look for medicinal compounds made by microbes.
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Alzheimer’s disease is a serious brain condition that affects many elderly people. It is important to find new ways to treat and cure the disease. The ocean, particularly extreme environments, is one of the best places to look for medicinal compounds made by microbes.
Sharks: an animal we love to fear. Sharks are an essential part of the environment; unfortunately, these animals are facing the most danger in the entirety of their 450 million year old existence. What can we do to protect these amazing elasmobranchs? The first step is reconnecting with sharks.
When scientists find new applications for old ideas, they can open up a world of possibilities. A group of researches from around the USA teamed up to design a catch-and-release sampling device inspired by origami that will help them explore the diversity across mid-ocean depths.
Why aren’t Arctic phytoplankton as productive as they used to be? Is it a lazy millennial thing, or something more complex and systematic? Researchers use observations to learn more about this generation of phytoplankton, and what it could mean for Gen Z and beyond…
Evolution is riddled with trade-offs. One of the classic examples is how to spread maternal resources – is it better for an individual to have a lot of babies or invest more into only one or two? Researchers examined how this trade-off plays out in the marine world by comparing the competing reproductive strategies of […]
Invasive species are a persistent threat to marine ecosystems. In this post, authors explore the historical context of marine invasive species and point toward the need for the public to be engaged in preventing the spread of invasive species.
Kelp has had a few rough decades that have led to the decline that threatens not only kelp but the other species that use the algae for habitat. Researchers at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia set out to determine if kelp can make a comeback from seas filled with turf algae. What they found is […]
A recent study from researchers at the University of Tasmania investigates the relationship between ocean eddies and phytoplankton growth in the Southern Ocean using satellite data. The results can help us understand and predict how the ocean’s ability to regulate climate might change in the future.
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Where did baby Megalodon sharks hang out? In nurseries of course! Read on to learn more about how scientists identified a Megalodon shark nursery area using the fossil record!
Starting 8,000 years ago, a modest but unusual rise in atmospheric CO2 has kept our planet livable and paved the way for ancient human innovations. Why atmospheric CO2 rose is still unclear, but geochemist Anja Studer and her colleagues provide new evidence suggesting that the ocean might be responsible.
What is a WireWalker? You might initially picture someone walking along a tightrope across some crazy abyss. From an observational oceanographer perspective, Wirewalkers are a type of marine robot we use to collect data in the ocean. Instead of walking horizontally, the Wirewalker traverses up and down a wire from the surface to the deep […]
For most people, sea turtles evoke visions of white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, and boozy fruity drinks, the embodiment of a tropical vacation. They don’t usually bring to mind the rocky coasts of Cape Breton or the cold waters of the North Atlantic. In the fishing grounds of Atlantic Canada, June to October […]
People have been catching this shark for years and have been mistaking it for its identical relative. But, scientists have now discovered that this is an entirely new species hiding in the shadow of its look-a-like.
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The goal of oceanbites is to make cutting edge research in the ocean sciences accessible to all. oceanbites will also highlight classic, seminal research papers, and feature op eds about current issues in research.
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Outreach- Ship to Shore STEM education
Delivering field work directly from the field to the classroom has become an important part of science communication and engagement. This post introduces a great learning tool called Adopt a Microbe- a fun and engaging project and website designed to bring microbes and marine science inside the classroom.
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