Science Communication
Communication Woes: Are we speaking the same language?
Scientists know communicating the significance of their findings is a huge part of their job. But what happens when the words we use mean different things to different people? When references and metaphors are only understood by certain generations, or by people from specific geographic regions? What hurdles come after the experiments are done and […]
Picture Perfect: Framing the Issues of Marine Conservation
This review article recommends some great SciComm tools for creating engagement surrounding marine conservation issues. Smile for the camera! Ashley MickensI recently graduated with a degree in Environmental Earth Science and Sustainability from Miami University of Ohio, and I’m currently working as a marine mammal observer in the Atlantic. While my undergraduate research focused on […]
Lights, Camera, Action! Photography as a tool for observing environmental change
Observing long-term trends in the environment can be a daunting task. Here, scientists used settlement panels to observe community compositional changes in San Francisco Bay (SF Bay). Over a 5-year period, they deployed 500 panels across ten sites in the SF Bay region. An exciting part about this project was the use of citizen scientists […]
SciComm Roundup: Interview with Megan Lubetkin, creator of the Synergist Volumes
Oceanbites caught up with URI-GSO student Megan Lubetkin, about her Fall 2018 work creating the Synergist Volumes event series. Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography in the Lohmann Lab. My current research interests include environmental chemistry, water quality, as well as coastal and […]
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. Anne M. HartwellHello, welcome to Oceanbites! My […]
Hey grad students! ComSciCon 2018 applications are open!
Want to be part of the best weekend of the year? ComSciCon 2018 is accepting applications for a weekend workshop that scicomm enthusiasts aren’t going to want to miss! Anna RobuckI am a third year PhD student at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography in the Lohmann Lab. My current research interests […]
January Theme Week Survey
Dear Readers, We’d like to cover a topic that interests you for one week during January! Let us know what you’d like to read about! If you have other suggestions for future themes, leave them in the comments! Thank you very much! The Oceanbites Team Create your own user feedback survey Rebecca FlynnI am […]
My Gratitude for Science is as Deep and Wide as the Oceans
Happy Thanksgiving! This year, I am grateful for more things than I can count, but two are the ocean and science. Read on and I will tell you why! Rebecca FlynnI am a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.S.) and the University of Rhode Island (M.S.). I now work in southwest Florida, contributing […]
Your worldview: how values influence support of renewable energy
There are a lot of moving parts to consider when developing renewable energy projects. Read more to learn how people’s perceptions and primary values influence their opinion (and voting stance) on environmental projects in their community. Victoria TreadawayI am a PhD candidate at the Graduate School of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island. I […]
Science Behind the Scenes: A Tour of the Exploration Vessel Nautilus
What is it really like to do research out at sea? Last month oceanbites writers Megan Chen and Ashley Marranzino participated in a research cruise aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus – watch a special behind the scenes video blog to see a tour of the ship! Ashley MarranzinoI received my Master’s degree from the University […]
Growing a Scientist: Undergraduate Research 2017
Each summer, the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography (GSO) hosts undergraduate students from all over the country to participate in oceanographic research. These Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURFOs) have not only been working with GSO scientists, but they have spent part of their time learning how to communicate this science to the […]
Why We Need Ocean Optimism
Social science has shown that too much doom and gloom about the ocean and other environmental issues is depressing. So how do we empower more people to take action? An appropriate dose of optimism! Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and am currently […]
Public Perceptions of Aquaculture Show Lack of Ocean Literacy
Article: Froehlich HE, Gentry RR, Rust MB, Grimm D, Halpern BS (2017) Public Perceptions of Aquaculture: Evaluating Spatiotemporal Patterns of Sentiment around the World. PLoS ONE 12(1): e0169281. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0169281 Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. A 2014 report by the UN-FAO estimated global freshwater and marine farming to constitute 44% of all […]
Keeping Up the Fight: Tips for Science Policy Engagement
Concerned for the future of science? I’ve highlighted a few things you can do to stay engaged in 15 minutes a day. Zoe GentesZoe has an M.S. in Oceanography and a B.S. in Geologic Oceanography from URI, with a minor in Writing and Rhetoric. She was recently a Knauss Marine Policy Fellow in the US […]
The Emergence of Science Twitter: 140 characters of facts and…fun?
It’s hard to argue that recent changes in the political landscape have brought science and scientists down from the Ivory Tower and out of the shadows. As a growing method of science communication, many scientists have taken to Twitter to promote their work, connect and engage with a broader audience, and to have a little […]
Apply for ComSciCon17 Now!
Applications are open for the Communicating Science 2017 (ComSciCon17) workshop, to be held in Cambridge, MA on June 8-10, 2017! The deadline for applying is March 1st. Carrie McDonoughI am the founder of oceanbites, and a postdoctoral fellow in the Higgins Lab at Colorado School of Mines, where I study poly- and perfluorinated chemicals. I […]
Diversity within Marine Science: We Can Do Better (Guest Post by Danielle Perry)
The lack of diversity within STEM, particularly marine science, is an apparent issue within the scientific community. What is discouraging minorities from pursuing these types of careers? I interviewed minority marine scientists at URI to shed light on what’s causing diversity deficiency within marine science. STEM diversity initiatives are instituted at many universities, but we […]
A scientist’s guide to addressing fake science
Do scientists have a responsibility to address fake science? If so, what should their role be? Megan ChenI graduated with a Masters of Coastal & Marine Management from the University of Akureyri in Iceland, and am currently working at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Ocean Education. I am interested in smart […]
Citizen Science in the New Year!
Tired of only reading articles about science and wishing you could get out there any join those research teams instead? Well, you don’t need a degree to help out—you can get involved in any number of citizen science initiatives! So, if you feel like chipping in and helping scientists gather data, click here to find […]
Polarized: What makes the North Pole the ideal location for Santa and his crew?
Location, location, location. He may not need to be in the best school district, or have an easy commute to work, but Santa still decided to live at the North Pole over the South. While it may seem that both locations are cold, barren, and isolated, there are some fundamental differences that may have affected […]
by oceanbites 3 days ago
Leveling up - did you know that crabs have a larval phase? These are both porcelain crabs, but the one on the right is the earlier stage. It’s massive spine makes it both difficult to eat and quite conspicuous in- by oceanbites 1 week ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on #Oceanbites we are featuring Cierra Braga. Cierra works ultraviolet c (UVC) to discover how this light can be used to combat biofouling, or the growth of living things, on the hulls of ships. Here, you - by oceanbites 2 weeks ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Elena Gadoutsis @haysailor These photos feature her “favorite marine research so far: From surveying tropical coral reefs, photographing dolphins and whales, and growing my own algae to expose it to different - by oceanbites 1 month ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on Oceanbites we are featuring Eliza Oldach. According to Ellie, “I study coastal communities, and try to understand the policies and decisions and interactions and adaptations that communities use to navigate an ever-changing world. Most of - by oceanbites 1 month ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Jiwoon Park with a little photographic help from Ryan Tabata at the University of Hawaii. When asked about her research, Jiwoon wrote “Just like we need vitamins and minerals to stay - by oceanbites 2 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday on #Oceanbites we are featuring @riley_henning According to Riley, ”I am interested in studying small things that make a big impact in the ocean. Right now for my master's research at the University of San Diego, - by oceanbites 2 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Gabby Stedman. Gabby is interested in interested in understanding how many species of small-bodied animals there are in the deep-sea and where they live so we can better protect them from - by oceanbites 2 months ago
This week for #WriterWednesday at #Oceanbites we are featuring Shawn Wang! Shawn is “an oceanographer that studies ocean conditions of the past. I use everything from microfossils to complex computer models to understand how climate has changed in the past - by oceanbites 2 months ago
Today we are highlighting some of our awesome new authors for #WriterWednesday Today we have Daniel Speer! He says, “I am driven to investigate the interface of biology, chemistry, and physics, asking questions about how organisms or biological systems respond - by oceanbites 3 months ago
Here at Oceanbites we love long-term datasets. So much happens in the ocean that sometimes it can be hard to tell if a trend is a part of a natural cycle or actually an anomaly, but as we gather more - by oceanbites 4 months ago
Have you ever seen a lobster molt? Because lobsters have exoskeletons, every time they grow they have to climb out of their old shell, leaving them soft and vulnerable for a few days until their new shell hardens. Young, small - by oceanbites 4 months ago
A lot of zooplankton are translucent, making it much easier to hide from predators. This juvenile mantis shrimp was almost impossible to spot floating in the water, but under a dissecting scope it’s features really come into view. See the - by oceanbites 4 months ago
This is a clump of Dead Man’s Fingers, scientific name Codium fragile. It’s native to the Pacific Ocean and is invasive where I found it on the east coast of the US. It’s a bit velvety, and the coolest thing - by oceanbites 5 months ago
You’ve probably heard of jellyfish, but have you heard of salps? These gelatinous sea creatures band together to form long chains, but they can also fall apart and will wash up onshore like tiny gemstones that squish. Have you seen - by oceanbites 6 months ago
Check out what’s happening on a cool summer research cruise! On the #neslter summer transect cruise, we deployed a tow sled called the In Situ Icthyoplankton Imaging System. This can take pictures of gelatinous zooplankton (like jellyfish) that would be - by oceanbites 6 months ago
Did you know horseshoe crabs have more than just two eyes? In these juveniles you can see another set in the middle of the shell. Check out our website to learn about some awesome horseshoe crab research. #oceanbites #plankton #horseshoecrabs - by oceanbites 7 months ago
Feeling a bit flattened by the week? So are these summer flounder larvae. Fun fact: flounder larvae start out with their eyes set like normal fish, but as they grow one of their eyes migrates to meet the other and - by oceanbites 7 months ago
Have you seen a remote working setup like this? This is a photo from one of our Oceanbites team members Anne Hartwell. “A view from inside the control can of an underwater robot we used to explore the deep parts - by oceanbites 8 months ago
Today is the day of #shutdownacademia and #shutdownstem and many of us at the Oceanbites team are taking the day to plan solid actions for how we can make our organization and the institutions we work at a better place - by oceanbites 8 months ago
Black lives matter. The recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd have once again brought to light the racism in our country. All of us at Oceanbites stand with our Black colleagues, friends, readers, and family. The
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