Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Aug 4

After years of work, a team of researchers with support from The Nature Conservancy have identified the causative agent of Sea Star Wasting Disease! Big implications for my work & an inspiring example of the amazing things we can do w/ science...plus I'm quoted in it ;)
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...

Giant sea stars are melting away — and now scientists know why

Canadian scientists say they’ve finally identified what is likely causing giant colourful sea stars in the Pacific Northwest to literally waste away: It's bacterium from the same family that causes ch...

www.cbc.ca

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

Nessa O'Connor @nessocon.bsky.social · Jun 23

we did not need another reason to ❤️ #kelp but here's one anyway...

Julie Packard @juliepackard.montereybayaquarium.org · Jun 23

Guess who else loves kelp? Orcas in the Pacific Northwest! Cool findings from @whaleresearch.bsky.social: www.science.org/content/arti... #algae #ToolUse #nereocystis #SalishSea #allokelping

A black and white orca swims through blue water from left to right with a piece of bull kelp balanced on the back of its head. Text on the screen identifies the images as created by the Center for Whale Research, under permit 27038 from the National Marine Fisheries Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · May 7

Woohoo! Congrats Bennett!

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Apr 17

Ahhhhh amazing!!! Thank you so much for making me aware of this!

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Apr 17

Can we crowdsource backing up this data? I'd be happy to back up a chunk of it and put it up on some public github or other kind of repository

Jenna C. Hill @chillocean.bsky.social · Apr 17

NOAA just announced a long list of datasets that are going away🧪⚒️🌊: www.nesdis.noaa.gov/about/docume...
Download what you need asap and send comments to: [email protected]

Notice of Changes

Notices of changes are formal public announcements of planned services changes to applications and other products.

www.nesdis.noaa.gov

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Apr 3

Nice work Alyssa!

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Apr 1

FYI Folks, for a while NOAA's Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool was down. It's back up now! Everybody go check it out and then DOWNLOAD the data so that if/when NOAA resources continue to be gutted, we can still use that data.
edgi-govdata-archiving.github.io/j40-cejst-2/...

Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool

This screening tool identifies disadvantaged communities that are underserved &overburdened by pollution. It provides socioeconomic, environmental, health and climate info to inform decisions.

edgi-govdata-archiving.github.io

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Mar 20

Yup, two of my co-authored articles are in here as well :/

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · Mar 20

Can confirm that my book, as well as 3 random articles I wrote, are part of this AI training database.

Sigh

www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...

Search LibGen, the Pirated-Books Database That Meta Used to Train AI

Millions of books and scientific papers are captured in the collection’s current iteration.

www.theatlantic.com

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Mar 19

Shellfish Program Leader position open at OR Dept of Fish and Wildlife. Well paid and you get to live in beautiful Newport OR. Plus you get to interface with my group, ORKA, to make management decisions about urchin removal, Pycnopodia outplanting, etc
oregon.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/SOR_Ex...

Natural Resource Specialist 4 (Shellfish Program Leader)

Initial Posting Date: 03/13/2025 Application Deadline: 03/27/2025 Agency: Department of Fish and Wildlife Salary Range: $6,667 - $9,830 Position Type: Employee Position Title: Natural Resource Special...

oregon.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Mar 11

Bought it! Been following you for years and excited to read this

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

BWEEMS @official-bweems.bsky.social · Mar 5

Did you hear? We have just launched our eco/evo mini grant! Where are our ecologist/evolutionists?!

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Mar 5

Presenting to local high schoolers for career day. What topics do you think I should hit? So far I'm going over what my job is, what a 'day in the life' looks like, how I got to this job, and ways to have a career in marine science that don't require a PhD. Anything to add or subtract??

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

Elizabeth Warren @warren.senate.gov · Feb 25

The CFPB has returned over $21 billion directly to Americans scammed by Wall Street.

If you have been personally helped by the CFPB - if you've filed a complaint, got money returned to you, or benefitted from their work, I need to hear from you.

www.warren.senate.gov/share-your-c...

Share Your CFPB Story | U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts

The Official U.S. Senate website of Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts

www.warren.senate.gov

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Feb 7

Got to attend an awesome ocean trivia night at Pelican Brewery hosted by Winter Waters PNW. Proceeds from the night went to the Oregon Kelp Alliance. So grateful for the creative, passionate folks who made this happen :)

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Jan 31

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT: Interested in getting paid a good living wage to live on the beautiful Oregon coast and help restore and protect kelp forests? If so, check out the Oregon Kelp Alliance's new job posting! www.oregonkelp.com/opportunitie...

An isopod grazes the top of a bull kelp stipe.

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

Greg Owens @gregowens.bsky.social · Jan 17

Excited to announce our work on kelp genomics is now out at Current Biology. Lead by Postdoc extraordinaire Jordan Bemmels, we sequence WGS for 600+ bull and giant kelp across BC and Washington. authors.elsevier.com/a/1kSP93QW8S...

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Jan 7

You might look into the near-strike that happened with grad students at the University of Oregon in 2019. The uni tried to take away grads healthcare in exchange for cash, grads voted 96% to strike, university backed down at the last second. A strong anecdote of how important healthcare is to grads.

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Nov 19

Hey folks! The Oregon Kelp Alliance recently released our 2024 Oregon Kelp Forest Status Report. It finds worrying losses over the last 15 years in OR's kelp forests but also exciting signs of resilience. Read it for yourself here and feel free to ask me any Qs!
www.oregonkelp.com/wp-content/u...

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Nov 13

Had a lovely time at the 2024 Western Society of Naturalists meeting in Portland this weekend! So much great content on kelp forest restoration, including some talks that got me super excited for ORKA's 2025 work.... feeling hopeful :)

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

Dr. Merritt Rae Turetsky @queenofpeat.bsky.social · Oct 9

Bogs are beautiful.
Bogs cool the climate.
Bogs lead to biological innovation (meat eating plants anyone?).
Bogs clean our water.
Bogs protect landscapes from drought.
We should all love and respect boglands.

Photograph of an Alaskan bog with red Sphagnum and blue pools of water in the foreground and green conifer trees in the background.

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Sep 18

Bluesky now has over 10 million users, and I was #1,139,337!

Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Aug 16

Congrats Brooke! So deserved!

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Reposted by Sara Hamilton, PhD

Karl Bode @karlbode.com · Jul 26

Senator Ron Wyden (@wyden.senate.gov) thankfully continues to warn people that automakers are hoovering up vast troves of sensitive driver behavior and location data, then selling access to any nitwit with two nickels to rub together...without making any of it clear to consumers:

Wyden Investigation Reveals New Details About Automakers’ Sharing of Driver Information with Data Brokers; Wyden and Markey Urge FTC to Crack Down on Disclosures of Americans’ Data Without Drivers’ Co...

The Official U.S. Senate website of Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon

www.wyden.senate.gov

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Jul 23

Thanks to The Oregonian for this excellent profile of Oregon's kelp forests and the Oregon Kelp Alliance!
www.oregonlive.com/environment/...

Oregon’s underwater forests are vanishing. Can they be saved?

As marine heat waves wreak havoc on Oregon’s ocean ecosystems, the collapse of kelp forests could prove catastrophic to marine life, fisheries and tribes.

www.oregonlive.com

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Sara Hamilton, PhD @sarahamilton.bsky.social · Jul 9

ORKA is hiring! Come work for kelp forest restoration and protection on the magnificent Oregon coast.
www.oregonkelp.com/opportunitie...

Administrative/Program Assistant - Oregon Kelp Alliance

About the Organization The Oregon Kelp Alliance is a collaborative initiative dedicated to the conservation and restoration of Oregon’s vital kelp forest ecosystems. We work with scientists, researche...

www.oregonkelp.com