Posts

April 29, 2013

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10:40 AM | climate-changing: infinity-imagined: Oceanic phytoplankton...

climate-changing: infinity-imagined: Oceanic phytoplankton blooms imaged from space by Envisat. Plankton blooms occur in regions of the ocean that have optimal temperature, sunlight, and nutrient supply for marine algae to grow exponentially. Most blooms are composed of coccolithophores, single celled organisms which grow disk-like exoskeletons of calcium carbonate. Trillions of these disks color the water white, showing the phytoplankton density and beautiful fluid dynamics of […]

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10:30 AM | Dolphin brains and the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis: a dubious link

Did dolphins evolve large brains because they ate seafood? This was a suggestion put forth by a proponent of the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis (AAH) in a recent article in the Guardian. The AAH attempts to explain the origins of unique human characteristics (e.g., hairlessness) by suggesting that we evolved in an aquatic environment. The recent [...]

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10:30 AM | Hi there! Good day! :) I just graduated Life Sciences specializing in Ecology and Systematics, and I'm now going to intern in Mauritius for Marine Conservation. My grades in college were average but I really want to take my masters in Marine Biology. I've wanted this ever since I can remember. I'm just really scared I might not get into the university I want. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get in despite my grades? :)

Experience. More experience. Prove your commitment. Prove your worth. Post-grad education is more...

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10:26 AM | Dear Samantha, this is a very inspiring blog of yours! But one thing is striking me when I look at your posts; humans are terrible creatures! Just look at how some people treat the nature. I am the kind of worried type, who thinks a lot about global warming, garbage etc. and I want to make a difference, but also in another way. I want to be a doctor, because of my interest. But I cannot help but feeling that I am a "bad" person, who wants to cure people the "bad guys". Does it make me "bad" too?

We’re not all bad surely? Some of us are worth saving. I think the value of human life is why...

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10:14 AM | Photo

No summary available for this post.

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9:59 AM | When the Levee Breaks

It's that time of the year again...people across the northern hemisphere are looking towards dark skies and thinking of rain.For many fish biologists, high water simply means a perfectly good spring day spent in the office. For me, it means a long day tending to a flooded experiment. But to others, spring floods often symbolize crop losses or damages to communities amounting to millions (or sometimes billions) of dollars. This wasn’t always so. The predictable flooding cycle of […]

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4:36 AM | im currently studying biology and im interested in procceding to an ecology or marine ecology or biological oceanography masters and i was wondering if you have any good master courses to suggest

‘Good’ is subjective. I can only advise that you take time and consider what you want...

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4:30 AM | Last Thursday, I ate fish for the first time in two years, and was wondering if I should go back to vegetarian. Would it be better if I only ate farmed fish..? (Sorry for sending another question)

I assume you’re asking in an environmental/ sustainable context…and in that respect, not...

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2:31 AM | Hi, is it hard to find a job as a marine biologist in Malaysia? And how much do you roughly get paid per month?

I’m not going to tell you my salary, but it’s enough to get by. As for job prospects in...

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2:27 AM | fuckyeahtattoos: Freehand squid tattoo done by Shaggy at House...

fuckyeahtattoos: Freehand squid tattoo done by Shaggy at House of Pain in Byram, MS. Check out some of his work at Tumblr: http://swkshaggy.tumblr.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/swkshaggy Instagram: http://instagram.com/swkshaggy

April 28, 2013

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2:40 AM | ichthyologist: Ambon scorpionfish (Pteroidichthys...

ichthyologist: Ambon scorpionfish (Pteroidichthys amboinensis) The ambon scorpionfish is an ambush predator. Its weedy body invites curious prey to approach. Daniel Dietrich on Flickr

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12:26 AM | Asian Dive Expo (ADEX) 2013 - All about whale sharks Last...

Asian Dive Expo (ADEX) 2013 - All about whale sharks Last weekend, I crossed a major event off my bucket list. Speaking at ADEX. Every year of my adult life that I spent in Singapore, I went to ADEX. It’s a big space, full of diving goodies, underwater photos and brilliant people. I would go with dive buddies/best friends to network, get stickers to decorate my laptop and anything else, and just generally revel in the world of people who love being underwater. I have genuinely […]

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12:00 AM | jtotheizzoe: Into the Abyss: Incredible Shrinking Cups Marine...

jtotheizzoe: Into the Abyss: Incredible Shrinking Cups Marine biologists and ocean scientists are somewhat of a tribe unto themselves. They spend weeks and months in cramped conditions aboard research vessels, doing science that’s a bit unlike any other science, and drinking enough to make Jack Sparrow proud. So it’s perfectly natural that their tribe would have some unique customs. I discovered one of those today: Sending styrofoam cups to the bottom of the ocean as souvenirs. When […]

April 27, 2013

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6:06 PM | rhamphotheca: The psychedelic frogfish, Histiophryne...

rhamphotheca: The psychedelic frogfish, Histiophryne psychedelica, is named for its psychedelic pink and white stripes arranged in a fingerprint pattern. This species was described in 2009 from three specimens collected off Ambon and Bali, Indonesia. The psychedelic frogfish moves by walking on its pectoral fins over the seafloor. It can also bounce like a rubber ball, jet-propelling itself by forcing water out of its gill openings. More about this fish on EOL: […]

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8:00 AM | thelovelyseas: Whale Shark & Snorkeler - Tofo,...

thelovelyseas: Whale Shark & Snorkeler - Tofo, Mozambique

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6:50 AM | Are any of you looking for work experience and skill development...

Are any of you looking for work experience and skill development for marine conservation? If you’ve done a science degree but haven’t got much work experience, or if you’ve done lots of work experience, but didn’t do a marine science degree, but still want to get into conservation - Zoox might be perfect for you. Doing the Zoox Experience Programme will give you intensive and unique training on the basics of marine conservation, then you embark on a six-week work experience helping […]

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5:20 AM | coffeeshopdiary: Digital experiments with the Mantis Shrimp...

coffeeshopdiary: Digital experiments with the Mantis Shrimp illustration. I actually like these ones.

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2:41 AM | laughingsquid: Intricate Fantasy Animal Sculptures by Ellen...

laughingsquid: Intricate Fantasy Animal Sculptures by Ellen Jewett

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12:00 AM | colchrishadfield: Exeter to Land’s End, with the Moors visible...

colchrishadfield: Exeter to Land’s End, with the Moors visible from space. Just in time for Saint George’s Day. My playground during University!

April 26, 2013

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11:33 PM | Hungry sea lion pup

I haven’t seen this too often in Monterey — a nursing sea lion pup. This afternoon while checking on the Brandt’s cormorants nesting on the breakwater, I heard a wailing plea. On the ocean side of the rocks near the … Continue reading →

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11:32 PM | jtotheizzoe: The landscape winner for the Sony World...

jtotheizzoe: The landscape winner for the Sony World Photography Award: Nenad Saljic’s The Matterhorn, illuminated by the January full moon. Like a spotlight on Earth’s geologic splendor. Or as I like to say: Dayum. Just, wow.

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11:30 PM | Your blog is amazing! I've wanted to be a marine biologist staring in 5th grade, and never truly lost interest in it, but i did put that dream on the back burner for about a year, but the interest is coming back. I'm a freshman in high school now and was wondering what kinds of classes I should take over the next 3 years here. I'm taking honors bio next year, and then oceanography in Junior year if all goes well. What kinds of math do you recommend that I take?

Thank you! I strayed from the path in my teens too! You can read my choices etc in the About...

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11:21 PM | Hi! First off, I wanna say that I thoroughly enjoy your blog! I'd also like to say that, because of this blog, I have decided not to study marine biology like I had originally planned. While I care deeply for marine life (especially whales and sharks), I've realized that it's not something I desire to make a career out of. Part of me is sad, because I love marine life, but research isn't really my strong point. I'd still love to scuba dive and photograph marine life, though. <3

Hi! Thanks for writing! Don’t be sad! I’m glad I could help you figure out what you want or don’t...

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11:18 PM | I am considering marine biology as a possibility in University, and definitely going to doing conservation work. But I am also considering Theater as a possible direction I would want to go... How did you decide you wanted to study marine biology?

I knew after I did a marine biology fieldtrip (read About), and just never changed direction. But I...

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11:12 PM | hello! i was wondering if you could point me in the direction of some good news sites for science-y news? (marine science preferred, but really any science would be nice) thank you so much uwu

http://deepseanews.com/ http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/ http://www.newscientist.com/ http://www.sc...

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6:40 PM | sophieallthingstw: deduction019: Well. If you’re not afraid of...

sophieallthingstw: deduction019: Well. If you’re not afraid of the ocean by now you’re wrong. HO. LY. SHIT. Biggest fear… bigger fascination.

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5:57 PM | Unusual Offshore Octopods: The ‘Dumbo’ Octopus Swims with Fins [Video]

Down in the dark depths of the deep ocean live more than a dozen species of “Dumbo” octopuses. These octopods from the genus Grimpoteuthis are so named for their prominent, unusual earlike fins that they use to help them swim (reminiscent of the Disney elephant character who used his ears to fly). These graceful, gelatinous [...]

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4:04 PM | Dead Bird Quiz answers

It was very fortuitous that Bird A came in right as I am mired in writing the duck section of the Beached Bird Field Guide! Otherwise, I don’t think I would have had a chance at this i.d. What caught my eye on this wing were the pale primaries and secondaries contrasting with a darker [...]

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3:55 PM | NC legislature still trying to gag state employees

The Raleigh News & Observer is reporting that the NC legislature attempted to sneak an order gaging state employees (like me) from working on climate change (impacts, social resilience, etc). This is just one of many anti-environment legislative actions including the crazy legislation against sea level rise and the dismissal of the members of the [...]

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3:25 PM | Taking the pulse of ocean life

We tend to keep track of things we think are important—blood pressure, how many calories are in that muffin, hurricane tracks, stock prices, celebrity rehab details. But sometime we don’t know what’s important until it’s too late, and that ignorance can come back to bite us. Hence the annual physical exams that are standard in [...]

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