What is Episode 73 all about?
The big blue. Our oceans are home to some of nature’s most gorgeous, unique, and wild species. From the vast open ocean to thriving metropolitan coral reefs, our watery neighbors are as beautiful as they are diverse. However, just as we’re starting to understand the depths of our own planet, we’re also realizing that we’re destroying it as quickly as new discoveries are made. We read headline after headline alerting us to rising sea temperatures, acidification of our oceans, and coral bleaching event after event. Considering the scale of these problems, it’s easy to feel hopeless and disconnected from the truth. So, what’s really going on with coral reefs? Why are these bleaching events happening? What are scientists doing to help corals combat climate change? And is there any way we can help, no matter where we are?
To teach us everything corals, today we’re sitting down with Annie Lamb, an Australian coral researcher, genetics expert, and very soon-to-be PhD. Annie grew up in temperate Victoria, Australia, but always knew that she wanted to become a marine biologist “someday”. Through a very windy path, she discovered the power of genetics to answer important ecological questions and to create conservation plans based on a species’ DNA. She finally had the opportunity to apply her newfound love of genetics to her favorite group of animals – corals. For the past several years, Annie has used genetics to study how we might be able to help corals survive the onslaught of issues they’re currently facing, particularly in the Great Barrier Reef. Annie and I nerd out over so many topics including population genetics, coral biology and reproduction strategies, the issues our reefs are facing, and how we all can make our corals’ lives a little easier.
Before we dive into the episode, I wanted to give you a quick heads up that Annie recorded her audio in a busy lab setting, so you may hear a few moments of commotion here and there. However, I felt that the conversation was so good that hopefully you won’t mind the occasional sound. With some help, I did my best to remove as much background noise as possible for you.
Alright, everyone. Here is my conversation with Annie.
Listen to this episode.
Watch this episode on YouTube.
Links & Resources
Annie’s Websites
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annielamb93/
Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/annikamlamb1
AIMS @ JCU Profile: https://aims.jcu.edu.au/our-people/students/annika-lamb.541/
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Annika-Lamb
Interviews:
“Coral spawning and assisted evolution at Australia’s Sea Simulator” – Carl Smith on The Science Show. Feb, 2019. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/scienceshow/coral-spawning-and-assisted-evolution-sea-simulator/10789814
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