It's My Ocean

Here is a movie that was created by Cornell University Freshman Elizabeth Henry (Arts and Sciences 2013).  The short clip explains Cornell’s plan to reach a carbon neutral status by 2050.  For…

In the introductory oceanography class that I teach at Cornell, I give a short lecture on whales that includes some aspects of whale evolution. I use the figure below in my lecture…

Eating shrimp (most especially the large tiger shrimp/prawn variety) is almost always a bad idea for a couple of reasons.  One, it is bad for your health if the shrimp are farmed…

As Northern Bluefin Tuna near extinction, the never ending greed of a few continues to take YOUR tuna. The UN’s Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) voted yesterday to not list Northern Bluefin Tuna

I came across this really nice documentary on ocean acidification.   Ocean acidification is a byproduct of increased carbon dioxide. When humans burn fossil carbon (oil, coal and natural gas) and release…

I went to YouTube the other day and did a search for “global warming” and was really-really dismayed to see that something like 90% of the top (most viewed) clips were about…

Alyssa is a Cornell Undergraduate and a big-big fan of sharks.  She sent me this really interesting segment of the 60-Minutes New Programs with Anderson Cooper about Great White Sharks.  I strongly…

Everyone is now painfully aware of the ecological devastation wrought by the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  But, before there was a BP Oil Spill, the so-called “Dead Zone”…

When a human runs a temperature of a few degrees above normal, we take a pill to eliminate the symptoms.  However, when the ocean runs a fever of roughly the same magnitude,…

In my introductory oceanography class Professor Warren Allmon (Directory of the Museum of the Earth) gives a guest lecture on the origin of life on earth.  During his lecture this semester Dr….

The ocean’s effect on thunderstorms and their formation is a fascinating local effect, especially if you happen to live at the shore and experience this phenomenon. Sometimes the ocean helps to build…

Essentially fish and shellfish farming, the aquaculture industry has been thriving, but it is very misunderstood by the public. To help satisfy the growing population’s growing hunger, the aquaculture industry has been…

A friend of mine posted a video on her Facebook page yesterday that I noticed was one I used last fall semester in my oceanography class when I talk about issues of…

The comprehensive report (600 pages) released yesterday by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority should open the eyes of some of the students in my oceanography class – many of…

At the start of my lecture on overfishing in the oceanography class that I teach, I emphasize that the good old days of small “mom and pop” family fishing efforts has given…

Julie Szabo asked if I would post a short article on my blog to let folks know about Project Aware – an ocean conservation group devoted to organizing divers to help clean…

A former student sent this youtube link to me this morning that describes a great story about sustainable fish farming.  It is a remarkable story and example of changing the way we do…

Here is a pretty cool video of an encounter between an Orca whale and a Great White Shark… Have a look. —Bruce   Did you like this? Share it:Tweet

This is a common practice used to collect fish for the marine aquarium trade around the world.  Pretty messed up. Check out the youtube video. —Carl   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9yPRl8KY4U Did you like this?…

I came across this nice video HERE.  It was produced by How to Save the Bluefin.  It touches on almost all the main points I mention in my oceanography class: 1) Huge…