The goal was to create a tree where the top represented the ocean’s surface and the base representing the abyssal floor. With a series of white, blue, and black ribbon and silver and blue miniature bulb ornaments, we created the effect of attenuated light as you move deeper. We wanted to make sure to include both a remotely operated vehicle on a lighted tether as well as lighted bathysphere. The tree also included a giant squid attacking a shark and whale fall complete with crabs and eels. We also made some tiny experimental wood falls to resemble the real ones we now have deployed all over the Gulf of Mexico.

You can print all of these decorations yourself. The complete collection can be found in my Thingiverse collection and include:

• The research vessel on top is the ICE – the icebreaker by vandragon_de (with the addition of little printed A-frame for the aft deck.
• The basic and blocky (or to sound like a sophisticated maker low-poly) remote operated vehicle was designed by us.
• Giant Squid by TheGreenFilament
• Shark! Sliced to Print by MacGyver
• Starfish model by Empiricus
• The Voyage of the Bathysphere by themindseye
• LOW POLY CRAB by RaffoSan (for whale fall)
• Eel by Benc (for whale fall)
• Whale by YahooJAPAN (whale for whale fall)
• Giant Deep-sea Isopod by the one and only Andrew_Thaler. (The model is actually based on a real specimen in our lab.)
• Puffer Fish (of awesomeness) by Dinoman (garland)
• A simple log by Montravont
• Vampire Squid by sinryan
• Hammerhead Shark by pmoews

The post 3-D Printing the Ulitmate Deep-Sea Christmas Tree first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Everyone gets into science communication for different reasons, but to date this might be my favorite:

“Some senators were being dicks and criticizing physiology science as wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars.”

Garfield Kwan, of the dynamic duo behind the ocean comic Squidtoons, was working in a physiology lab at the time when Senator Tom Coburn’s scaling 2011 critique of “wasteful” NSF funding was released. Little did the Senator know that putting on blast the epic physiological research that involved running shrimp on treadmills would inspire Kwan to explore connecting a larger audience to science in his own unique way.

Thus, Squidtoons was born. In collaboration with scientific illustrator Dana Song, Squidtoons is an ocean comic dedicated to translating scientific research into engaging infographics to educate the pubic about science, provide educators with teaching tools, and support scientists with compelling illustrations. Infused with a significant dose of humor and pop culture, each comic is the product of an extensive amount of research and expert scientific review. The illustrations are as accurate as they are dazzling. We here at DSN were fans of Squidtoons before it was cool.

This year Kwan and Song expanded their inky, scicom-ic empire by publishing their first ever Squidtoons book “illustrating science with farts, burps, and giggles.” Containing 120 pages of the Squidtoons “best of” playlist, the book is a fun romp for both kids and adults alike. Garfield reflects on his hopes for the book, “Squidtoons has the potential to be a great outreach tool for researchers around the world, as well as a great platform for the public to understand science by researchers from around the world.”

Get yours today just in time to dazzle your relatives for the holidays with all of your ocean science nerd jokes- courtesy of Squidtoons!

The post Writings on the SeaWall: Squidtoons first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Cassidy was photographed throughout his run on The Partridge Family as well as on his international concert tours wearing white puka shell chokers. It actually became somewhat of his calling card. While not alone in sporting the puka necklace (rat packer Frank Sinatra had even been photographed with a puka choker), David Cassidy was certainly the most frequent ambassador for this style. Even in first grade, I remember boys and girls wearing puka shells. Which, for a bunch of land-locked Northeast Pennsylvania kids, is amazing. Also, this was decades before cultural appropriation would become part of our everyday discourse.

So, what’s a puka shell?

For us haole kids (I’d learn the word “haole” a couple of years later in 1972 during the Brady Bunch Hawaii vacation episode), Puka just meant “shell necklace.” In 1970, if you found any string of shells, that was a puka shell necklace.

The work “puka” is Hawaiian in origin and means “hole.” Traditionally, puka shell necklaces were constructed from scavenged shell fragments that already had a naturally-occurring hole in them. A genuine puka shell necklace is sourced from the terminal helix of a cone snail. When the snail dies, the shell may eventually erode until the terminal helix breaks off. If the tip of the helix erodes further, it will leave a ring-shaped fragment of shell as a remnant. This natural bead was collected to create the original puka shell necklaces.

Thanks in large part to David Cassidy, demand for puka shell necklaces would skyrocket around the world throughout the 1970’s. To meet demand, any shells were sourced as raw material, and shells and shell fragments from snails and bivalves were cut and drilled to create “puka” beads. This high-volume puka production continues to this day, with the majority of these puka knock-offs coming from the Philippines.  Obviously, there are a plethora of conservation concerns related to the shell jewelry trade, but that’s another post.

Puka shells today remain a mainstay for tourists from Santa Cruz, to Daytona Beach, to Point Pleasant, to Ipanema, to Bondi Beach, to back home in Waikiki. They are part of the surfer phenotype.  A quick rummage through my cabinet of embarrassing and dated jewelry found a motley collection of assorted puka necklaces (from fake to authentic) that I once proudly wore.

But puka shell interest has also evolved. Today, the most prized shell lei and necklace demand is still found in Hawaii, but now its centralized on the small island of Ni‘ihau. There, traditional artists work with tiny ocean snail shells sourced only from the island and meticulously crafted (sometimes over the course of years) to produce exquisite shell necklace designs that can fetch tens-of-thousands of dollars. The traditional craft is so important to Hawaii that in 2004, the Hawaii State Legislature unanimously approved H.B. No. 2569 which prohibits the sale of “seashell items” with a description or label using the term “Ni‘ihau” or “Niihau” unless 100% of the shells are from the island of Ni‘ihau and the item is made entirely in Hawai‘i.

The Ni‘ihau shell-work is astonishingly intricate and beautiful. But shells are still assembled by punching a minuscule hole, a “puka,” in the micro-thin shell in order to pass a thread thread through.

A shell necklace or lei remains an expression of Aloha. “Aloha” can have rather broad definitions. But my time spent working in Hawaii over the years has taught me that it certainly can be used to express a “joyous affection.” It’s in that spirit that I extend my sincere “Aloha” to the memory of David Cassidy for his music and introducing this marine biologist to puka shells.

The post How David Cassidy Introduced A Hawaiian Shell To The World first appeared on Deep Sea News.

I love kelp. I love art. It’s safe to say that ‘kelp art’ brings me to a whole new level of excitement that some could consider “overwhelming” in normal human interactions. I’m okay with it- people need to get on my level.

I first came across artist Bryan Helfand’s kelp art a few years back now and I have since been a huge fan. Normally, I reserve this bit for artists whose work communicates science in some interesting way- Bryan is the exception here- but I have found myself enthralled with the way he portrays the ocean and more specifically everyone’s favorite primary producer. Helfand is a local San Diego artist who specializes in mixed media paintings, wood carvings, and murals and whose muse stems from his passion for and experience with the sea. I often find myself perusing his Facebook page for his next beautiful masterpiece- the man is a wizard with a jigsaw.

I love how he captures the unique ebb and flow of Macrocystis – not true to form per se – but beautiful and vibrant none the less. Enjoy a few of his imaginings here and then go take a look at his website for some inspiration. The ocean needs more excellent artists like Bryan to speak for it and show the world how beautiful it truly is.

The post The Writings on the Sea-Wall: Ocean Art by Bryan Helfand first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Using computer art magic, Armand Dijcks has turned the still photographs of Ray Collins into wonderful kinetic images of waves. Turn on full screen. Press play. Be soothed. Calm out.

The post Morning Zen: The infinite waves of Ray Collins first appeared on Deep Sea News.

As a coastal community, the economic, social, and industrial capacity of San Diego is intrinsically linked to climate change. So much so, that the city maintains one of the world’s most ambitious Climate Action Plans. Along these same lines, in an effort to unite the community towards climate resilience and education, the Climate Science Alliance (CSA) was established. The Alliance stands as a bi-national collaboration of over 130 government, academic, non-profit, private, tribal nations, and educational institutions working toward science focused partnerships, capacity building, and innovative community engagement. The ultimate goal — a united front on the South Coast across agencies and stakeholders to come together and work towards safeguarding our coast and communities from the effects of changing climate.

As part of their commitment to building a community of practice around climate adaptation, the Climate Science Alliance has developed the Affiliated Artists Program to work directly with artists who are exploring themes related to climate change and environmental stewardship. They work collaboratively to develop projects, programs, and opportunities to bring artists and scientists directly into climate resilience activities.

The artisans the Alliance collaborates with range from dancers to singers to more traditional art mediums. Working with students across the county and participating in large scale public engagement events, the seamless incorporation of art and science has resulted in a highly effective messaging strategy for the Alliance regarding climate change. The art allows people to connect to the issues of sea level rise, ocean acidification, and warming seas in a way that is more relatable than the science itself. Additionally, most of the pieces serve as a call-to-action platform whereas students and the public are encouraged to incorporate their climate commitments into the artwork. Through this program, the Climate Science Alliance has taken an effective approach for large-scale community dialogue and engagement regarding the most pressing issues facing our coastlines.

The post The Writings on the Sea-Wall: Climate Science Alliance first appeared on Deep Sea News.

As a result of anthropogenic climate change, sea level has risen approximate 7 inches in the past 100 years. With the combination of melting land ice and expansion of warmer seas, scientists conservatively predict a 1-4 foot rise by the year 2100. Effectively, sea level rise poses widespread and continuing threats to the economy and environment of coastal regions.

To reinforce the urgency of this situation, New York based artist Eve Mosher, started to walk the line. Literally. Using a baseball field chalk marker, Mosher laid a 70 mile white line of chalk in 2007 across Manhattan and Brooklyn. The HighWaterLine as it was called, demarcated the areas that would be severely impacted by increased mega floods if climate change continued. The power of this public installment truly hit home ironically in 2012 when the flooding brought on by Hurricane Sandy surpassed the proverbial “chalk line.”

“Walking the line with the participants and hearing of their stories after the event provides concrete evidence of the power of transformation of HighWaterLine…I hope that in every instance, HighWaterLine is just the beginning of these communities working together to build resilience and transform their cities.” says Mosher.

Since the first exhibition of the HighWaterLine, the project has debuted in five different cities from Bristol to Miami, the most climate vulnerable U.S. city. Along with the art piece, the project is also accompanied by interactive workshops to get the community more involved in the climate conversation and provide tools to create a culture of change. Currently, the group is working on a Action Guide to mentor others in bringing the HighWaterLine project to groups around the world.

The post The Writing on the Sea-Wall: High Water Line first appeared on Deep Sea News.

Go to this site NOW.

https://medium.com/@lubellwoo/mappin-the-floor-81a3b0472ca4#.su63m7ohx

Sincerely, SCIENCE.

WANT MOAR? Follow out Lucy on the twitters or even better, sponsor her on Patreon.

The post A research cruise as depicted by a high-seas adventure cartoonist? YAAASSSS first appeared on Deep Sea News.

For when it’s Thursday and everyone needs a little bit more cute, cuddly, and slightly slimey things in their life…Etsy never let’s us down.

I have seen a lot (LIKE A LOT) of fun ocean arts and crafts in my day, but I couldn’t help but SQUEEEE when I saw these adorable woolen nudis by artist Arina Borevich. They are perfectly detailed, true to form, and I need them all. So please go to her ETSY shop right now (craftshop27) and buy them….and send me one.

HT/Chad Thompson for sending me this and making my day a little bit brighter with all my favorite sea beasties.

The post #SlugLyfe first appeared on Deep Sea News.

-Space Oddity (Bowie)

A few weeks ago I took a visit to one of my favorite places in Los Angeles, The Huntington Library. Usually, I go because I am obsessed with the immaculate gardens and the 260 copies of “The Origin of the Species” in different editions and languages that the library houses. But this past visit had me excited for a different reason entirely.

As I came into the front entrance, I beheld “The Orbit Pavilion.” And without any background at all, I was like what in the heck is that big shiny thing??

Answer: One of the more interesting pieces of science communication I have seen in a while.

Created by Visual Specialists Dan Goods and David Delgado from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, The Orbit Pavilion is a Natiloid metal enclosure, with an inner lattice structure comprised of speakers.

For 19 Earth Science satellites, composer Shane Myrbeck created a unique sound track based on the data of their mission.  As the satellites orbit the earth in real time, their noises are broadcast through the speaker systems transmitting back to earth the crashing of a wave, a tree branch moving, a frog croaking. Each, an auditory representation of drought, hurricanes, ocean currents, and more. For the International Space Station, a sound track of human voices to represent the only current satellite with a human presence on board.

I found the experience uniquely visceral and an interesting medium to make the seemingly intangible satellites into something more real.

Double upside…I had Bowie stuck in my head the rest of the day…”Commencing countdown engines onnnnn…”

The post Can you hear me, Major Tom? first appeared on Deep Sea News.