Ocean Science Radio

By Ocean Science RadioScience Technology Natural Sciences Nature

Ocean Science Radio episodes

November 29, 2024 Saildrone and the work that will map study and secure the ocean
The team sits down with Brian Connon, VP of Ocean Mapping for the ocean science technology firm Saildrone to talk about what the company does, why their tech is so interesting and versatile, and some of the cool projects the company has worked on.
24 min
October 29, 2024 The Election, Project 2025, and Its Terrifying Impact on the Ocean
Project 2025, otherwise known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project. The Project aims to promote conservative and right-wing policies to reshape the United States federal government and consolidate executive power, under the premise that Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election. If you haven’t read it, we don’t blame you, it is literally 900 pages written in the most mind-numbing legalease and political speak that you can possibly imagine, but the contents have HUGE ramifications if they were enacted. Our guest, and long-time friend of the show, Dr. Andrew Thaler actually took the time to examine Project 2025 and look for what impacts the policy proposals would have on the ocean.

Additional music "Convicted Felon Cult" by John Lopker

20 min
September 27, 2024 Mapping the Deep with ESRI's Deep Sea Dawn Wright
The Ocean Science Radio team chats with "Deep Sea" Dawn Wright, a geographer and oceanographer and Chief Scientist at ESRI (The Environmental Systems Research Institute) - one of the world's leading suppliers of GIS software, web GIS and geodatabase management applications. We cover why mapping the bottom of the ocean is important, some cool ocean mapping history, and her recently released book "Mapping the Deep: Innovation, Exploration & the Dive of a Lifetime" about her 2022 dive to the deepest part of the ocean, the Challenger Deep.
42 min
August 29, 2024 Cetacean Opps - Cracking the Sperm Whale Alphabet
Complex compositions made up of groans, moans, sighs, roars, and high-pitched squeals that can last for hours - The songs of whales are both beautiful and haunting. Humans have had a particular fascination with the sounds of cetaceans and the possible meanings behind it since Roger Payne, a marine biologist, first noticed the complex sonic arrangement of humpback whale sounds during a research expedition to Bermuda in 1967 But what if we could translate what they were saying? Really understand what the different clicks and codas actually mean?
On this episode we're going to chat with the Cetacean Translation Initiative, also known as CETI, who is revolutionizing the latest advancements in cetacean research and discuss the potential implications of breaking the language barrier between humans and whales.
Guests:
- Giovanni Petri - Professor of network science at the Network Science Institute of Northeastern University and principal of research at project CETI
- Shane Gero - A scientist in residence at Ottawa's Carlton University and the biology lead for project CETI
48 min
July 30, 2024 Frances' Super Awesome Shark Paper
A new paper just dropped on incorporating environmental factors when determining conservation baselines for sharks on coral reefs by our very own Frances! (That's right, it is a META episode!)
24 min
June 28, 2024 In Memorium - Dr. Wallace J Nichols
In honor of the untimely passing of Ocean advocate, Turtle biologist, and author of the book "Blue Mind," Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, we are re-releasing our episode with him featuring the topic of "Blue Mind" and the benefits of being close to the ocean and other bodies of water.
16 min
April 25, 2024 Opening a Can of (Fish) Worms)
Today on the show we're diving into a story that might surprise you. It doesn't involve dazzling coral reefs or majestic whales, but something a little closer to home... canned salmon! In this episode, we’ll be discussing how Dr. Natalie Mastick - a postdoctoral associate at the Yale Peabody Museum and a marine ecologist - used this unusual technique of examining super super old canned fish to track changes in a salmon and their parasites.
27 min
March 28, 2024 Underwater Superstructures for Beginners
In this episode, we talk about ocean superstructures - a new scientific phrase that our guests hope start up some important conversations about how the bottom of the ocean was formed.
Guests:
Dr. Kevin Konrad -Assistant Professor of Geoscience and Director of the Nevada Isotope Geochronology Laboratory (NIGL) University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Dr Val Finlayson - Postdoctoral Associate Department of Geology University of Maryland
Dr. Andrea Balbas - Assistant professor at California State University Long Beach
22 min
February 29, 2024 Ocean Lovin - Immaculate Shark-ception
It is February and we once again have our seasonal episode of Ocean Lovin - covering cool and strange ways ocean creatures make little ocean creatures. We speak with Dr. Christine Dudgeon, a senior research fellow at the University of Queensland and the University of the Sunshine Coast about sharks and a peculiar story of immaculate shark-ception.

As with every year, we want to remind our listeners that Ocean Lovin episodes cover adult themes not meant for children without supervision, please listen to the episode before sharing it with youngsters.

Guest co-host: Dr Skylar Bayer, a marine ecologist with expertise in shellfish population dynamics, invertebrate life history, fertilization ecology, and science communication.
34 min
January 31, 2024 Bottom trawling and the Great Carbon Sink
The ocean is a vast and powerful carbon sink, absorbing about a quarter of the carbon dioxide we emit into the atmosphere. That carbon is pulled into the water column and is also buried under the layers of dirt and soil on the ocean floor.
But this vital role could be jeopardized by a common fishing practice: bottom trawling. Today we will be talking to Dr. Tricia Atwood, an associate professor of watershed sciences at Utah State University who is also a researcher with the National Geographic Society’s Pristine Seas Program, whose team published a paper in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science looking at the CO2 impacts from bottom-trawling.
Join us now as we take a deep dive into this silt-shifting practice on a brand new episode of Ocean Science Radio.
15 min