I just recently finished up my slideshow on my computer and it's pretty beastly . . . no lie, but I just realized upon uploading it to slideshare.net that Slideshare doesn't do any of the click for the next group or timing effects. This is bothering me, because one of the reasons my slide is so beastly is because of a huge timing related thing that took me forever to do. Warning: It's also kind of nerdy, but I like it, thereby making me a nerd.

Here's what it's like on Slideshare [Another warni… Continue

*a school of yellowtail snappers below the sailboat, May 2009

Our 2009-2… Continue

Linked below is a copy of the Marine Biology information packet and application for the upcoming 2009-2010 class.
Pay particular attention to the dates for enrollment on page 5. The first important date coming up is
the "informational meeting" this THURSDAY NIGHT, May 14th, in room #307 at 7:00pm. Applications are due completed and returned by 3:30pm next Wednesday afternoon, the 20th.… Continue

(yes, this is serious)

Toss in your two cents to the official naming contest for the Bonaire Banded Box Jellyfish. Come on, you know you love Latin.

I received a message about this a day or so ago on a marine science listserv. Go… Continue

I survived Ike.....I can officially say it now

I finally received power and cable in the house that I have been staying in. It has been seven days since I could sit and relax in air conditioning! Unfortunately Galveston, TX is still closed and now my school is officially moving all 2000 students to main campus on Texas A&M located in College Station. I will be attending there on Sep. 24th until who knows when....I have to start all my classes over and we are on a accelerated schedule now. I… Continue

I see all these blog posts on turtles and on the book...even though I don't have the book I will express my feelings on turtles..

When I started my Major I always thought turtles were boring until I had the chance to work with them and I discovered there mysterious ways. They can be very fierce creatures, and very strong. They may look slow, but in fact are very fast animals. I have been cut, hit and had to run after turtles to keep track of them.

Here is how many of us it takes to keep one to… Continue

Toward the end of chapter 2, Osha Davidson describes the long-term relationships we discover between living organisms, symbiosis, as a “kind of marriage.” As he further states, “Not all marriages are made in heaven, and neither are all symbiotic relationships” (17). Marriage is an apt metaphor for the “union” of two different creatures that, in some scenarios, cannot survive without the other. Parasitism is, indeed, a marriage that is NOT made in heaven – but rather, more like the marriage betwe… Continue

When I first looked at the table of contents and saw that the title of the second chapter was “Animal, Mineral, Vegetable” I didn’t know what to think. At first I was thinking maybe it’s a food chain or something. Come to find it’s a philosophy; rules of scientific classification. I really like it, it’s extremely easy to understand. Living organisms are classified so in depth starting wit… Continue

Corals are strange animals. They cant move. They cant see. They cant hear. They dont have a true nervous system. They only have two layers of true cells...but, they need food. Class Animalia?...sure!

How do they get their food?
From an algae called zooxanthellae or "zoox." Zoox do far more than give the coral 98% of their food. Zoox give corals their color. Zoox also speed aid in the process corals use to build… Continue

Viola: A Barrier Reef

It is absolutely astonishing how Darwin already had a theory on reef formation before he even swam and examined a reef with his own eyes. He was so interested in the coral reefs that he traveled for five years across South America to study the geology of the coral reef. It blows my mind how Darwin climbed 1300 ft. up Valparaiso and found towering beds of fossilized seashells.

When Darwin was l… Continue

This chapter starts off with a quote by Darwin, and contains a single word that shows his true feelings toward the coral reef, “astonishment”. Sure, we all know Darwin for his Theory of Evolution, but who knew that he had a love for such a small creature. He wanted to dig deep into the mysteries found within the coral, and had a true love for the animal. He al… Continue

Chapter Eleven was an interesting part of the book because I didn’t think anyone actually used this type of fishing anymore. I mean I have heard of it but out side of a movie I have never heard of its use especially in Indonesia. I think that it is horrible that the guys who obey the law and not blast fish are actually punished because they have no way of making the kind of money the blasters can.

The part where Osha mentions the two joke… Continue

I did the whole write to a scientist thing about the role the bacteria play in the ecosystem around the underwater vents. I wondered about how the packet we got said that since there is no light and every other food chain on the planet starts with sunlight, how the bacteria play a role in making everything work. “However at deep sea vents, where the su… Continue

I am a firm believer that communicating science to the general public is one of the most important and underrepresented aspects of research. Scientists do TONS of work that helps us to understand the natural environment we live in but they publish their findings in obscure scientific journals where large words and complex sentence structure is applauded. Not only does the general public (the driving force behind legislation and policy) not have access to these journals, if they did they wouldn't… Continue

Holy crap! Check this guy out: http://www.mbari.org/news/news_releases/2009/barreleye/barreleye.html

The barreleye fish lives in the mid-pelagic region and has a transparent head shield that houses a roving eye that moves in the fluid filled cavity!!! I am continuously amazed by the adaptations that have evolved and we humans (a.k.a. evolutionary-newborns) had no idea they existed! We think we're so cool for bui… Continue

April 2, 2009
Tomorrow’s the BIG day. Headed off to Andros. A place I’ve been dreaming of for the past year. Ever since Mrs. Nash showed me pictures of the previous trip in my Zoology class. I was mesmerized by all the colorful fish, breathtaking corals, beautiful sunsets, and amazingly blue waters. I had to go! Tomorrow’s the BIG day. Hope I can get a little sleep.

… Continue

MY ANIMOTO

April 4th, 2009

Beautiful… Tranquil…Divine… Those are just a few of the words that could describe this place. They say a “picture is worth a thousand words…” well no one could take… Continue

Awe: 1. n overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like. 2. power to inspire fear or reverence. 3. fear or dread. Now in the way Osha puts it, the only appropriate response when confronted with a coral reef is awe. But which definition is he using? Could it be number one; just in sight of the beauty of what is the epitome of life completely overwhelm you and consume you with every word, th… Continue

"Coral reefs are literally overflowing with life...One example: On a single coral reef surrounding one tiny Australian island, there are one thousand known species of fishes. Zoom in closer: a scientist has counted 620 species of shrimp living on corals. Get even closer; go inside the coral: there, searching through a labyrinth of passageways within a single colony, an investigator found 103 species of a single kind of worm."

This book, so far, makes me wonder like Ive never wondered before. It… Continue

Beautiful Colorful Breathtaking

If I were told to describe a coral reef in just three words, I would choose the words listed above. However, I have never experienced a coral reef firsthand, so does that make my choices unreliable? I don't believe so. Sure, I have never physically visited and immersed myself in a reef, but I have seen pictures, though that doesn't really make my opinion much more credible. I'll go ahead and cut to the chase. The reason I would consider my opinion legitima… Continue