Author; mammalfish

“Animals are classified as follows: 1. those that belong to the Emperor, 2. embalmed ones, 3. those that are trained, 4. suckling pigs, 5. mermaids, 6. fabulous ones, 7. stray dogs, 8. those included in the present classification, 9. those that tremble as if they were mad, 10. innumerable ones, 11. those drawn with a […]

Earlier this month I followed my boyfriend/dolphin researcher colleague Eric to the Brazilian state of Bahia, where we stayed with his friend/whale researcher colleague Marcos. Marcos and Eric met me early in the morning at the airport in Salvador. I changed into comfortable clothes in the car, and we went straight to the beach, where […]

I know I haven’t blogged in awhile, and there’s a reason. I finished up my summer at VOA, and immediately hopped on a plane to Bahia, Brazil. It’s been a shenanigans sort of week. Here is a gif set of my boyfriend, Eric, and our amazing host, Marcos. These photos brought to you by some […]

I haven’t talked much about my boyfriend on this blog, mostly because I love him so much that I figure writing about him would make everyone hate me. That might be a risk I’m willing to take, so here I go: He’s a scientist who studies dolphin calls, and I would like to become a […]

I love the sound that ice makes when you pour warm water on it—that splitting, rending, singing sound. It turns out that an iceberg the size of an island will make those same noises when it melts and cracks apart. But the sound, like the ice, is much, much bigger. Listen to this story for […]

When the US and the USSR were busy flexing at each other by blowing up bombs on testing fields, they were spraying the atmosphere with radioactive carbon. (What could be more obnoxiously macho, right?) That carbon is being eaten up by the ocean at a certain rate, and it can let us know how old […]

Anyone out there in the mood to live out a Disney fairy tale for a hot sec? Grab someone you feel very strongly about and sing a ditty or something together. New research suggests that your hearts will literally beat as one. Well, at least they’ll slow down and speed up together. Take a listen […]

I don’t know about you, but I hate chemistry. I battled through every one of my classes and failed two of them. I played dirty, and so did the chemistry. I cried a lot. But in the end, I’m grateful to know the damn stuff. We know the minute structure of the building blocks of […]

“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlyn, “is to learn something. That is the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you […]

My newest radio piece for VOA News! Listen in here: I would like to thank VOA reporter Steve Baragona for letting me steal the phrase “thieving lemurs.” More information can be found in the accompanying web write-up for this story. Way more information can be found in the publicly accessible PLOS ONE paper. If you’re […]