Seadog Science

MATEYS, LOOK ALIVE! Today your captain takes you on a journey to the medieval Baltic Sea to visit some of the toughest plunderers in history - the Curonians. Similar to their Viking counterparts to the West, Curonians were looking to assert their trading prowess, but prved to be just as or even more brutal in their pirating. Listen now!NOTE: Your Captain referred to this time period as "pre-medieval" but she was WRONG! It is medieval times, no pre- about it. REFERENCES:Britannica Editors (2026, February 26). Teutonic Order. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Teutonic-OrderThe Lithuania Tribune. (2016, June 18). Curonians, the fearsome pirates of the Baltic. Delfi. https://www.delfi.lt/en/culture/curonians-the-fearsome-pirates-of-the-baltic-71509824 Žulkus, V. (2012). Settlements and piracy on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea: The Middle Ages to modern times. Archaeologia Baltica, 16, 58–71. https://doi.org/10.15181/ab.v16i0.34

The legend lives on, crew! The gales of November may have left, but your Captain remains intrigued by the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Have you heard the song, and don't know what it's about? Hop on the Seadog Science journey to learn more!DISCLAIMER: There are mentions of the Great Lakes Historical Society, when the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society is meant. Also, the Edmund Fitzgerald was on her way to Michigan, not Minnesota. She usually went between Minnesota and Michigan, though. Thank you!GET CONNECTED:Instagram: @seadogscienceTikTok: @seadog.scienceSubstack: https://substack.com/@mossymusketeerREFERENCES:Edmund Fitzgerald. Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society. (2025, December 6). https://shipwreckmuseum.com/edmund-fitzgerald/ Hultquist, T. R., Dutter, M. R., & Schwab, D. J. (2006). Reexamination of the 9–10 November 1975 “Edmund Fitzgerald” storm using today’s technology. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 87(5), 607–622. https://doi.org/10.1175/bams-87-5-607

A SPOOKY AHOY TO MY CREW! We are back with a new episode on one of Australia's mythical creatures, the Bunyip. Explore the legends surrounding the monster, both old and new. Learn how the Bunyip had captivated the British colonists, and how it fits into their colonial science scheme. Try not to get too scared, fearless crew! Which mythical creature are you? Find out with this link:https://play.howstuffworks.com/quiz/what-cryptid-are-youREFERENCES:Edmonds, P. (2018). The Bunyip as Uncanny Rupture:Fabulous Animals, InnocuousQuadrupeds and the AustralianAnthropocene. Australian Humanities Review, 63. Mancini, M. (2023, June 27). Does the bunyip really haunt the Australian wetlands?. HowStuffWorks Science. https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/strange-creatures/australian-bunyip.htm Weinstein, P. and Koolmatrie, M. (2025) Monster Radiation in Changing Times and Environments: A Case Study of the Australian Bunyip, Folklore, 136:2, 215-231, DOI:10.1080/0015587X.2025.2452770

WE ARE SO BACK, CREW! Your captain presents to you a voyage into the New England shipbuilding industry pre-American Revolution. Tune in to hear about the independence movement, the cast and characters needed to make and run a typical American schooner, and the control the British government sought to have over the American coasts - all told through the schooner Sultana. It's a wicked good episode!REFERENCES:Reid, P. (2024). The Schooner Sultana and the BritishAmerican Maritime Industry, 1768-1773. The Chronicle, 77(3). The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica (2025, September 5). Townshend Acts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Townshend-Acts

IT'S SHARK TIME, Y'ALL! It's time to learn about some of the origins of the fear around sharks. We are talking about the Mediterranean, from the ancient to the Age of the Ocean, to dive deeper into why humanity fears our cartilaginous companions in the sea. Some of these stories are sure to make your jaw drop.REFERENCES:Mazzoldi, C., Bearzi, G., Brito, C., Carvalho, I., Desiderà, E., Endrizzi, L., Freitas, L., Giacomello, E., Giovos, I., Guidetti, P., Ressurreição, A., Tull, M., & MacDiarmid, A. (2019). From sea monsters to charismatic megafauna: Changes in perception and use of large marine animals. PLOS ONE, 14(12). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0226810 Mojetta, A. R., Travaglini, A., Scacco, U., & Bottaro, M. (2018). Where sharks met humans: The Mediterranean Sea, history and myth of an ancient interaction between two dominant predators. Regional Studies in Marine Science, 21, 30–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2017.10.001 Santos-Buch, G. (2024, January 31). Tonnare: Ancient tuna fisheries in sicily & beyond. PastPathways. https://www.pastpathways.com/europe/italy/tonnare-ancient-tuna-fisheries-sicily-beyond/#:~:text=The%20term%20%E2%80%9Ctonnara%E2%80%9D%20refers%20to,rich%20historical%20and%20cultural%20significance. White, W. T. Mackerel Sharks, LAMNIDAE in Fishes of Australia, accessed 07 Aug 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/family/345Wikimedia Foundation. (2024, June 17). Halaf culture. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halaf_culture Wikimedia Foundation. (2025a, May 22). Chalcolithic. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalcolithic#:~:text=The%20Chalcolithic%20(/%CB%88k%C3%A6,the%20late%203rd%20millennium%20BC. Wikimedia Foundation. (2025, July 2). Sharks in popular culture. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharks_in_popular_culture

CREW! We are talking about New England colonial maritime culture and reliance on fisheries. Your captain discusses the culture as well as the ecological dynamics of the Atlantic Ocean. Listen now, ye salty sailors!REFERENCES:Bolster, W. J. (2008). Putting the Ocean in Atlantic History: Maritime Communities and Marine Ecology in the Northwest Atlantic, 1500–1800. The American Historical Review, 113(1), 19–47. https://doi.org/10.1086/ahr.113.1.19 Leavenworth, W. B. (2008). The Changing Landscape of Maritime Resources in Seventeenth-Century New England. International Journal of Maritime History, 20(1), 33–62. https://doi.org/10.1177/084387140802000103 Smith, J. (1616) A Description of New England . Zea E-Books in American Studies, 3.https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/zeaamericanstudies/3

BE WARNED CREW! To look into the eyes of a mermaid is to seal your fate. In this episode, we find out why mermaid legends have stood the test of time and what this means in terms of symbology and maritime culture overall. Your captain takes you all around the world to learn about the ladies that lurk in the depths of the sea. LISTEN NOW!REFERENCES:BRINK-ROBY, H. (2008). Siren canora: the mermaid and the mythical in late nineteenth-century science. Archives of Natural History, 35(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3366/e0260954108000041 Sax, B. (2000). The mermaid and her sisters: From archaic goddess to consumer society. Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment, 7(2), 43–54. https://doi.org/10.1093/isle/7.2.43

GRAB YOUR HORNED HELMETS, CREW! It's time to talk about the Vikings and their ships. Shipbuilding is a craft rooted in tradition and innovation, and will surely be a recurring theme in this voyage. Tune in now, faithful crew!REFERENCES:Hale, J. R. (1998). The Viking Longship. Scientific American, 278(2), 56–63. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0298-56 Bendig, C. D., & Gauthier-Bérubé, M. (2023). Agency and structure in shipbuilding: Practice and Social Learning Perspectives. Heritage, 6(2), 1444–1475. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage6020079

Welcome to the Giant's Causeway, crew! Your captain takes you on a journey to the place that is at the top of her bucket list. We are talking mythology, natural philosophy, and the power of perspective and observation. Listen in!REFERENCES:Crawford, K.R., Black, R. Visitor Understanding of the Geodiversity and the Geoconservation Value of the Giant’s Causeway World Heritage Site, Northern Ireland. Geoheritage 4, 115–126 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-011-0049-6Kennedy, A. (2007). In search of the ‘True Prospect’: Making and knowing the giant’s causeway as a field site in the seventeenth century. The British Journal for the History of Science, 41(1), 19–41. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0007087407000349 National Trust. (n.d.). Giant’s Causeway’s history: County Antrim. National Trust. https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/northern-ireland/giants-causeway/history-of-giants-causeway The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2009). Fomoire. In Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 2025, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Fomoire/additional-info#history.

AHOY YE LADS AND LASSES (and everyone else)! Hop on board as we travel back in time to the Celtic Age. We are talking about rivers, women, and swords. Plus, your captain gets excited and emotional about mythology (what's new). What more could you want!REFERENCES:Fox, S. (n.d.). Heritage Ireland. Women, Water and Wisdom in Celtic Mythology | Heritage Ireland. https://heritageireland.ie/2024/03/women-water-and-wisdom-in-celtic-mythology/ Hunt, P. (2008). Celtic Iron Age Sword Deposits and Arthur’s Lady of the Lake. Archaeolog (Stanford). Macleod, S. P. (2006). A Confluence of Wisdom: The Symbolism of Wells, Whirlpools, Waterfalls and Rivers in Early Celtic Sources. Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium, 26/27. https://doi.org/https://www.jstor.org/stable/40732065?seq=1

Come on down to ancient Egypt, crew! Today we have a sampler of mythology, hydrology, and sociology - what a trio! We examine a tomb of an upperclass man from the sixth dynasty of Egypt, and a picture of three fishermen that resides in there to send him to the afterlife. REFERENCES:Abdelmoniem, A. (2020). The professions and hierarchy of Nekhebu. Journal of the General Union of Arab Archaeologists, 5(2), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.21608/jguaa2.2020.30303.1031 Angelakis, A., & Mays, L. (2014). Evolution of water supply through the millennia. IWA Publishing. Maitland, M. (2021). Fishing and fowling for pleasure versus produce: Ancient Egyptian representations of social status in relation to animals and the natural environment. His Good Name. Essays on Identity and Self Presentation in Ancient Egypt in Honor of Ronald J. Leprohon, 267–282. https://doi.org/10.5913/2021372.ch21 University College London. (2001). Burial customs: mastabas. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt/burialcustoms/mastaba.html#:~:text=Burial%20customs%3A%20mastabas,decorated%20with%20reliefs%20or%20paintings.

BUCKLE UP, BUCCANEERS! In this episode, we travel past the ancient Greeks 'n Romans 'n meet the Sea Peoples. This pirate culture was the fear o' the Mediterranean in the Late Bronze Age - 'n we discuss why. From thar impact on society to wha' thar outfits o' choice were, we natter about it all! Yo ho ho!REFERENCES:Barras, C. (2024, December 19). Who were the enigmatic Sea Peoples blamed for the Bronze Age collapse?. New Scientist. https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg26234904-200-who-were-the-enigmatic-sea-peoples-blamed-for-the-bronze-age-collapse/ Hitchcock, L. A., & Maeir, A. M. (2016). A pirate’s life for me: The maritime culture of the sea peoples. Palestine Exploration Quarterly, 148(4), 245–264. https://doi.org/10.1080/00310328.2016.1250358 Mark, J. J. (2024, September 22). Bronze age collapse. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Bronze_Age_Collapse/

The title says it all, crew! Time to get your daily thought in about the Roman Empire. We are heading out to explore some simple yet engaging cultural aspects to sailors in ancient Rome. We also discuss your captain's niche interest of sailing culture and how it influences main society. REFERENCES:Huppert, D., Oldelehr, H., Krammling, B., Benson, J., & Brandt, T. (2016). What the ancient greeks and Romans knew (and did not know) about seasickness. Neurology, 86(6), 560–565. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000002355 Rauh, N. K., Dillon, M. J., & McClain, T. D. (2008). Ochlos Nautikos: Leisure Culture and Underclass Discontent in the Roman Maritime World. Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome. Supplementary Volumes, 6, 197–242. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40379303

BUCKLE UP, CREW! We are embarking on the journey to ancient Greece and their view on the sea! From resources like myths, poems, philosophers, and (yes) even their garbage, we dive into what the sea meant to the ancient Greek culture. Opa!*NOTE* Seneca was a ROMAN poet and Stoic philosopher, not Greek like was mentioned in the episode. Sorry!REFERENCES:Chaliakopoulos, A. (2024). Athena and Poseidon’s contest: How did Athens get its name? The Collector. https://www.thecollector.com/athena-poseidon-contest-athens-name-giving/ Corbin, A. (1995). The Roots of Fear and Repulsion. In The Lure of the Sea: The Discovery of the Seaside in the Western World 1750-1840 (pp. 1–17). essay, Penguin. Lidov, J. B. (1977). THE ANGER OF POSEIDON. Arethusa, 10(2), 227–236. https://doi.org/https://www.jstor.org/stable/26307545 Lindenlauf, A. (2004). The sea as a place of no return in Ancient Greece. World Archaeology, 35(3), 416–433. https://doi.org/10.1080/0043824042000185801

Join your captain as we take a dive into how ancient (like really ancient, prehistoric) peoples used coastlines for survival, and how this relationship may have influenced how humanity has evolved into what we are today! Pretty deep stuff.REFERENCES:Erlandson, J. M. (2010). Food for thought: The role of coastlines and aquatic resources in human evolution. Human Brain Evolution, 125–136. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470609880.ch7 Marean, C. W. (2014). The origins and significance of coastal resource use in Africa and Western Eurasia. Journal of Human Evolution, 77, 17–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.02.025 Russ, J. (2020, November 23). Study: Ancient people relied on coastal environments to survive last glacial maximum. Study: Ancient people relied on coastal environments to survive Last Glacial Maximum | ASU News. https://news.asu.edu/20201123-study-ancient-people-relied-coastal-environments-survive-last-glacial-maximum

Welcome to Seadog Science! Let's set our sails on the educational and hopefully comedic voyage into the intersectionality between culture and the ocean.