OCTOPOD

Sadly due to a lack of funding we are closing down OCTOPOD. We are have greatly enjoyed being a podcast in your rotation and hope you all find new ways to keep abreast of ocean news and literature. We didn't want to leave you without some recent info though so here are the links to what we spoke about in the episode.  Polluted stormwater is fouling L.A. beaches. Little has been done about it, report finds Offshore Wind May Help The Planet — But Will It Hurt Whales? We like to think that someday this podcast may return, so we are saying goodbye for now and keep on keeping on!

We had the awesome opportunity to record a podcast at the Northwest Straits Commission conference this year and we are so excited to share the talented and passionate people who help preserve and protect the Northwest Straits marine ecosystem. This episode features a mash-up of 9 interviews from a variety of roles and locations within the initiative. We focused on citizen (or community) science and in this episode we hope you all discover a new way to take action in your communities! Mentioned resources: Links to all of the Marine Resources Committees MyCoast app REEF Environmental Education Foundation EBird app Interviewees: Jason Morgan from the Northwest Straits Foundation Pete Haase from Skagit County MRC Alan Clark from Clallam County MRC Ron Thom from the Northwest Straits Commission Emily Bishop from Jefferson County MRC Phil Green from San Juan County MRC Susan Tarpley from Snohomish County MRC Eleanor Hines from Whatcom County MRC Gwendolyn Hannam from Island County MRC Elsa Schwartz from Island County MRC

In this interview episode Allie and Raye welcome Joshua Manning to the podcast. Josh is a doctorate student at Florida State University doing some interesting research on coral reefs and the organisms who live with them. This episode covers Josh's research and how it is going with that whole PhD thing.  Links mentioned in the episode: The McCoy lab website: http://www.marecology.com/ Josh's website: https://joshuacmanning.wixsite.com/coralreefecology Lab Instagram: mccoy_marine_ecology Josh's Instagram: coralecoguy

Raye and Allie get a little political (sorry) about President Trump's actions to leave the Paris Climate Accord, but then bring it back to happy news about social media helping confirm the adorable presence of pygmy seahorses in Taiwan. Raye also shares a food-for-thought article about the importance of including locals in marine protected area planning. 

This episode is hosted by Allie and Nick (with a special guest appearance by Mike Hay who is OCTO's data scientist). Allie shares some new research on when we can expect the arctic ocean to be ice free for part of the year, hint hint it's soon. Allie also shares an article on a new tool that recently came out called Spyglass that helps fisheries enforcement officials (or you) track criminal fishing around the world. Nick then explains some research about using artificial neural networks to track fishing vessels and Mike Hay jumps in to explain what a neural network is.  Read the latest issue of The Skimmer HERE See the upcoming OCTO hosted webinars HERE

Raye and Nick are back talking some good and bad news. Raye discusses a recent article by National Geographic on climate change advancing arctic viruses and Nick brings some good news from New Zealand along with some very interesting works in the UK and among corals. 

In this interview episode Allie and Raye speak with two member's of the Cyan Planet team, Julia Jung and Tom Sanborn. Cyan Planet is an immersive media (think virtual reality) organization that focuses on marine conservation and science communication. Imagine being underwater and a dolphin, but also in a comfortable chair very much on land and able to breathe. That will soon be a possibility. Follow along with Cyan Planet's work on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

In this episode (recorded on Halloween) we focus on the deep sea (spooooky). Allie shares some research on bioluminescent organisms in the benthic zone (the floor) of the deep sea and Nick plugs some great deep sea networks and news organizations. He also shares some recent news about the continuing environmental impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and the lack of monitoring almost a decade after the disaster. Be sure to check out: INDEEP (International network for scientific investigation of deep-sea ecosystems) DOSI (Deep-Ocean Stewardship Initiative): http://www.indeep-project.org/ Deep Sea News: https://www.deepseanews.com/

In this episode Nick is back from the dead to tell us that research works, even if it's only to tell bad news, and to inform us on the latest in publishing scandals with Science on a paper about Microplastics. Raye is also in to give you the low-down on some ocean literature, news, and events. Enjoy! CORRECTION: Nick means to say NAS the National Academy of Sciences is a government mandated monopoly, not AAAS. Apologies for the confusion. Acronyms!

Allie shares some cool deep sea exploration finds and what's going on with sawfish, and Raye lays down what shrimp you should be eating and not eating. 

Allie and Raye interview their colleague Sarah Carr in this special interview episode. Sarah Carr is the editor of The Skimmer as well as the coordinator for the EBM Tools Network. Sarah shares how she got into marine science and what the latest lead article of The Skimmer is all about. 

In this episode Allie and Raye discuss a recent photo shared by the Ocean Cleanup Project and why it's causing some well deserved Twitter outrage  then tell you all to do the supposedly obvious and leave great white sharks alone. 

Allie shares some recent research about cigarette butt pollution. Raye continues the talk about trash and spills the tea about plastic in our tea and in our sea ice. She also shares an opportunity to volunteer in Antarctica studying microplastic. 

Raye brings up America's first planned offshore aquaculture set-up and Nick discusses a recent article on the Lyme Bay MPA.  The two also celebrate a huge accomplishment for MarXiv!

Raye is back! In this episode Raye describes some freshwater news on plastics in the Great Lakes and the loss of large freshwater animals, while Nick gives you some happy news about California's MPA system! 

An interview with Iain Kerr of SnotBot and Ocean Alliance starts with Pharrell Williams, whale snot, and drones then dives into some of the sadder things happening to our oceans and how we can make a difference together. 

In this episode we discuss a giant raft of pumice making it's way to Australia, manta ray friendships, a traditional whale hunt possibly starting again, an almost official new Marine Protected Area, and 16-year-old climate change activist Greta Thunberg who just sailed across the Atlantic.

In this episode we talk a lot about plastic. Nick shares that recycling is kind of a sham and Allie shares some news about microplastics being found in snow in remote areas and a new report by the World Health Organization that basically says we know nothing. Allie also shares a new research article about ship strikes causing whale deaths. 

In this episode Allie discusses recent research (now available free on MarXiv) about sediment effects on critters and Raye tells you about a wonderfully written article about a plastics summit, some good news for coral reefs, and a recent interview she did on her hometown radio station. 

In this episode Allie shares some feel-good news followed by some new research about sharks and fishing vessels. Nick moves a bit away from ocean news to share some news about a recycling plant shuttering, faculty making some threats for a good reason, and Monsanto getting up to no good.