Scicom, But No Space Travel

This week, I unfortunately did not get to work in space; we aren't there yet. Instead, I got to work more on my current projects, chat with colleagues about their work, and present on meiofauna for the first time since my dissertation defense. I think science communication (scicom) is an integral part of a scientists' job, but as many of us will admit, scientists are notoriously poor communicators. We do a great job at learning new skills and making new discoveries, but if we cannot then teach that information to someone else, our work becomes inherently less valuable. This week, I presented my thoughts on why marine research tends to ignore meiofauna even though meiofauna are exceptionally abundant and serve important functions as links between microbial and phytoplankton communities and macrofauna communities as part of the USM Science on Tap. I got to show pictures of animals that audience members likely had never seen before and talk about the microscopic highway system that nematodes create in the mud.

I also had the joy this week of signing off on the presentations our team would like to host at the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation conference this coming November. Our session on freshwater inflow effects on estuaries received a wonderful number of interesting presentations and the conference organizers said that researchers submitted more than 1100 abstracts for this conference - the highest number since 2017. Some of the sessions even feature creative endeavors, where scientists are challenged to present their findings in perhaps a nonconventional manner, through rap, song, visual art, and storytelling. The idea of someone composing a rap about the seafloor makes me wish November was already here.

Next week is a busy week due in part to some collaborative projects I'm working on and because we have a thesis defense and an associated trip planned to celebrate the end of years of hard work. Will I ever make it to space though? We will have to wait and see (the answer is yes, of course, but when is a good question). See you next week.