Dr. Jack Cooper
@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social
Science Communicator with a PhD in shark functional diversity. If you couldn't tell, I like sharks. Known for studying #megalodon, the biggest of them all. Scottish. Climber, cinema-goer and cyclist. Cat person. Find more at: https://www.drjackacooper.com/
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
This a big deal: "China’s carbon dioxide emissions have been flat or falling for 18 months"
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China’s CO2 emissions have been flat or falling for past 18 months, analysis finds
World’s biggest polluter on track to hit peak emissions target early but miss goal for cutting carbon intensity
www.theguardian.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:20 AM
This a big deal: "China’s carbon dioxide emissions have been flat or falling for 18 months"
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
🚨New Website blog 🚨 🧵
Did you watch Shark Whisperer on Netflix? I did & it was pseudoscientific rubbish. In this blog, I do a deep dive into the documentary; its subject, Ocean Ramsey; & the harmful effects of “shark influencers” on shark conservation (1/9)
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/shar...
Did you watch Shark Whisperer on Netflix? I did & it was pseudoscientific rubbish. In this blog, I do a deep dive into the documentary; its subject, Ocean Ramsey; & the harmful effects of “shark influencers” on shark conservation (1/9)
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/shar...
October 31, 2025 at 11:27 AM
🚨New Website blog 🚨 🧵
Did you watch Shark Whisperer on Netflix? I did & it was pseudoscientific rubbish. In this blog, I do a deep dive into the documentary; its subject, Ocean Ramsey; & the harmful effects of “shark influencers” on shark conservation (1/9)
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/shar...
Did you watch Shark Whisperer on Netflix? I did & it was pseudoscientific rubbish. In this blog, I do a deep dive into the documentary; its subject, Ocean Ramsey; & the harmful effects of “shark influencers” on shark conservation (1/9)
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/shar...
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
It's very interesting how Prince Andrew has gone to such great lengths when it comes to doing everything a guilty person would do, in order to prove his innocence.
October 21, 2025 at 11:04 AM
It's very interesting how Prince Andrew has gone to such great lengths when it comes to doing everything a guilty person would do, in order to prove his innocence.
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
I wish they had used this beautiful quote he offered in the story as the headline instead:
“She was scared also. It was not her fault.”
“She was scared also. It was not her fault.”
‘She Could Have Killed Me’: Scientist Survives Shark Bite to His Head
www.nytimes.com
October 2, 2025 at 4:39 PM
I wish they had used this beautiful quote he offered in the story as the headline instead:
“She was scared also. It was not her fault.”
“She was scared also. It was not her fault.”
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
New #sharkscience out in @currentbiology.bsky.social by @seaprinceaaron.bsky.social and colleagues.
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
@iucnshark.bsky.social
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
@iucnshark.bsky.social
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras
Judah et al. identify 30 species of chondrichthyans that overlap with proposed deep-sea
mining activities, nearly two-thirds of which are already threatened with extinction.
Precautionary management o...
www.cell.com
October 2, 2025 at 4:53 PM
New #sharkscience out in @currentbiology.bsky.social by @seaprinceaaron.bsky.social and colleagues.
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
@iucnshark.bsky.social
Deep-sea mining risks for sharks, rays, and chimeras. A must read for this looming threat to many already threatened species.
www.cell.com/current-biol...
@iucnshark.bsky.social
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
Hiding the truth.
September 16, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Hiding the truth.
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. Here, I look at another recent #megalodon study - one that used zinc isotopes & found that the giant shark wasn't just a whale killer; but probably ate whatever it wanted.
Give a read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega... 🦈
Give a read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega... 🦈
Megalodon and its relatives were super-predators that ate whatever they wanted — Dr. Jack A. Cooper
The iconic megalodon shark is generally pictured as having been a specialised whale killer. Now, a new study finds that megalodon and its closest relative Otodus chubutensis weren’t picky eaters. Inst...
www.drjackacooper.com
August 17, 2025 at 1:31 PM
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. Here, I look at another recent #megalodon study - one that used zinc isotopes & found that the giant shark wasn't just a whale killer; but probably ate whatever it wanted.
Give a read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega... 🦈
Give a read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega... 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
@historicalbiology.bsky.social now has online Collections. One where I highlight papers that are thought-provoking or advance a field. The other is edited by our Science Communication Editor (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) - which brings together his SciComm series.
www.tandfonline.com/journals/ghb...
www.tandfonline.com/journals/ghb...
Historical Biology article collections
Browse article collections from Historical Biology
www.tandfonline.com
August 14, 2025 at 4:42 PM
@historicalbiology.bsky.social now has online Collections. One where I highlight papers that are thought-provoking or advance a field. The other is edited by our Science Communication Editor (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) - which brings together his SciComm series.
www.tandfonline.com/journals/ghb...
www.tandfonline.com/journals/ghb...
Fancy a late-night museum event surrounded by Cenozoic giants? Well on September 20th, you can do that in Birmingham. And you'll even get to talk to yours truly about giant sharks 🦈
Looking forward to taking part and hope to see some of you there: www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/events/giant...
Looking forward to taking part and hope to see some of you there: www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/events/giant...
GIANTS Late | Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery | Birmingham Museums
Step into the museum after dark for an unforgettable evening at the GIANTS exhibition — where science, stories, and supersized creatures come to life.Enjo
www.birminghammuseums.org.uk
August 14, 2025 at 9:22 AM
Fancy a late-night museum event surrounded by Cenozoic giants? Well on September 20th, you can do that in Birmingham. And you'll even get to talk to yours truly about giant sharks 🦈
Looking forward to taking part and hope to see some of you there: www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/events/giant...
Looking forward to taking part and hope to see some of you there: www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/events/giant...
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. Here, I reflect on a framework inferring ecological traits from shark teeth from my PhD & look at 2 fascinating studies that took it further than even I thought possible 🦈
Give it a read here:
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/new-...
Give it a read here:
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/new-...
New studies highlight the use and limitations of teeth as ecological proxies in ancient sharks — Dr. Jack A. Cooper
In 2023, I published my first PhD chapter as a scientific paper – producing a framework to infer shark traits from tooth measurements. Being based on living sharks, I would subsequently apply this fra...
www.drjackacooper.com
August 4, 2025 at 1:23 PM
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. Here, I reflect on a framework inferring ecological traits from shark teeth from my PhD & look at 2 fascinating studies that took it further than even I thought possible 🦈
Give it a read here:
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/new-...
Give it a read here:
www.drjackacooper.com/writing/new-...
You can officially call me Dr of Sharks now! 🦈 Delighted to have graduated from my PhD yesterday; and to get to celebrate with my family & girlfriend & my brilliant supervisors Catalina & John. The support has been immense & I've made some great pals in Swansea over the 4 years 🦈
July 25, 2025 at 5:49 PM
You can officially call me Dr of Sharks now! 🦈 Delighted to have graduated from my PhD yesterday; and to get to celebrate with my family & girlfriend & my brilliant supervisors Catalina & John. The support has been immense & I've made some great pals in Swansea over the 4 years 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
One of the most common plot summaries of Shark Week “documentaries” is
-Person has a question about Shark behavior.
-Person does not ask scientists that question, they’d know the answer
-Person goes diving with sharks, which would not answer the question
-Question is never addressed again
-Person has a question about Shark behavior.
-Person does not ask scientists that question, they’d know the answer
-Person goes diving with sharks, which would not answer the question
-Question is never addressed again
July 16, 2025 at 1:13 PM
One of the most common plot summaries of Shark Week “documentaries” is
-Person has a question about Shark behavior.
-Person does not ask scientists that question, they’d know the answer
-Person goes diving with sharks, which would not answer the question
-Question is never addressed again
-Person has a question about Shark behavior.
-Person does not ask scientists that question, they’d know the answer
-Person goes diving with sharks, which would not answer the question
-Question is never addressed again
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
I've been called "Shark Week's biggest critic," and in that capacity a question I get asked a lot is "that show is obviously pseudoscientific nonsense, why would that real scientist agree to participate?
Here's my answer to that question
www.southernfriedscience.com/why-would-a-... 🧪🦑🌎🦈🐟 #SciComm
Here's my answer to that question
www.southernfriedscience.com/why-would-a-... 🧪🦑🌎🦈🐟 #SciComm
Why would a serious scientist agree to participate in a nonsense Shark Week show?
Tons of Shark Week shows are full of obvious pseudoscientific nonsense, and yet feature real scientists. Why would these people agree to do that? In my capacity as “Shark Week’s Biggese…
www.southernfriedscience.com
July 15, 2025 at 6:33 PM
I've been called "Shark Week's biggest critic," and in that capacity a question I get asked a lot is "that show is obviously pseudoscientific nonsense, why would that real scientist agree to participate?
Here's my answer to that question
www.southernfriedscience.com/why-would-a-... 🧪🦑🌎🦈🐟 #SciComm
Here's my answer to that question
www.southernfriedscience.com/why-would-a-... 🧪🦑🌎🦈🐟 #SciComm
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
Happy Shark Awareness Day!
I want people to be aware of 5 things:
1 Sharks are awesome
2 Sharks are not a threat to your safety
3 Sharks are ecologically important
4 Sharks are highly threatened
5 We can still save them- but it matters what we do, don’t reinvent the wheel, follow experts!
I want people to be aware of 5 things:
1 Sharks are awesome
2 Sharks are not a threat to your safety
3 Sharks are ecologically important
4 Sharks are highly threatened
5 We can still save them- but it matters what we do, don’t reinvent the wheel, follow experts!
July 14, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Happy Shark Awareness Day!
I want people to be aware of 5 things:
1 Sharks are awesome
2 Sharks are not a threat to your safety
3 Sharks are ecologically important
4 Sharks are highly threatened
5 We can still save them- but it matters what we do, don’t reinvent the wheel, follow experts!
I want people to be aware of 5 things:
1 Sharks are awesome
2 Sharks are not a threat to your safety
3 Sharks are ecologically important
4 Sharks are highly threatened
5 We can still save them- but it matters what we do, don’t reinvent the wheel, follow experts!
Delighted to share that I'm now represented by Past Preservers for all future TV expert appearances! Can't wait to get started when next documentary job appears!🦈
You can check out my profile with them here: pastpreservers.com/portfolio/dr...
Watch my showreel here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGrL...
You can check out my profile with them here: pastpreservers.com/portfolio/dr...
Watch my showreel here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGrL...
Dr Jack Cooper, Palaeobiologist & Shark Expert « Welcome to Past Preservers
Past Preservers is a Creative Media Hub
pastpreservers.com
July 10, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Delighted to share that I'm now represented by Past Preservers for all future TV expert appearances! Can't wait to get started when next documentary job appears!🦈
You can check out my profile with them here: pastpreservers.com/portfolio/dr...
Watch my showreel here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGrL...
You can check out my profile with them here: pastpreservers.com/portfolio/dr...
Watch my showreel here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGrL...
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. This time, a recent paper details a huge migration from a great white shark named Alisha from South Africa to Indonesia!
Big thanks to Madison Stewart for being part of this. Read all about Alisha's story here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/the-... 🦈
Big thanks to Madison Stewart for being part of this. Read all about Alisha's story here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/the-... 🦈
The story of Alisha: how a recovered tag revealed one great white shark’s epic voyage — Dr. Jack A. Cooper
In 2024, a fisher in Indonesia contacted shark experts to discuss a recovered shark tag. This set in motion a chain of events that produced three startling findings: (1) that the tag had been deployed...
www.drjackacooper.com
July 4, 2025 at 6:04 PM
New #ScienceCommunication website blog from me. This time, a recent paper details a huge migration from a great white shark named Alisha from South Africa to Indonesia!
Big thanks to Madison Stewart for being part of this. Read all about Alisha's story here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/the-... 🦈
Big thanks to Madison Stewart for being part of this. Read all about Alisha's story here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/the-... 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
📣Editor spotlight
Dr Jack Cooper (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) is the science communication editor at Historical Biology. A palaeobiologist with a PhD from Swansea University; his research focuses on the ecological diversity of both fossil & living sharks 🦈
Dr Jack Cooper (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) is the science communication editor at Historical Biology. A palaeobiologist with a PhD from Swansea University; his research focuses on the ecological diversity of both fossil & living sharks 🦈
July 2, 2025 at 10:00 AM
📣Editor spotlight
Dr Jack Cooper (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) is the science communication editor at Historical Biology. A palaeobiologist with a PhD from Swansea University; his research focuses on the ecological diversity of both fossil & living sharks 🦈
Dr Jack Cooper (@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social) is the science communication editor at Historical Biology. A palaeobiologist with a PhD from Swansea University; his research focuses on the ecological diversity of both fossil & living sharks 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
🐠🦈 Just out: In this paper we ask "How has reef trophic structure changed since humans started removing predatory fishes from Caribbean coral reefs?".
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Illustrations @cookedillustrations.com
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Illustrations @cookedillustrations.com
July 1, 2025 at 6:40 PM
🐠🦈 Just out: In this paper we ask "How has reef trophic structure changed since humans started removing predatory fishes from Caribbean coral reefs?".
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Illustrations @cookedillustrations.com
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Illustrations @cookedillustrations.com
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
We need more politicians like him
June 29, 2025 at 8:54 PM
We need more politicians like him
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
Cutting medical research on trans people is horrific.
Cutting grants that contain the common-in-science prefix trans because you wrongly think they’re about trans people is horrific and stupid.
Cutting grants that contain the common-in-science prefix trans because you wrongly think they’re about trans people is horrific and stupid.
Duke appears to have lost NIH grants because they used the prefix "trans" in reference to disease transmission, transgenic genetic material, translational studies, or signal transduction www.dukechronicle.com/article/2025...
June 30, 2025 at 10:53 AM
Cutting medical research on trans people is horrific.
Cutting grants that contain the common-in-science prefix trans because you wrongly think they’re about trans people is horrific and stupid.
Cutting grants that contain the common-in-science prefix trans because you wrongly think they’re about trans people is horrific and stupid.
Finally wrote that blog on this new #megalodon paper! 🦈
Hop on to my website to read me writing about this paper & what it indicates about megalodon biology. Many thanks to Phil Sternes & Kenshu Shimada for discussing their work with me 🦈
Read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega...
Hop on to my website to read me writing about this paper & what it indicates about megalodon biology. Many thanks to Phil Sternes & Kenshu Shimada for discussing their work with me 🦈
Read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega...
June 27, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Finally wrote that blog on this new #megalodon paper! 🦈
Hop on to my website to read me writing about this paper & what it indicates about megalodon biology. Many thanks to Phil Sternes & Kenshu Shimada for discussing their work with me 🦈
Read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega...
Hop on to my website to read me writing about this paper & what it indicates about megalodon biology. Many thanks to Phil Sternes & Kenshu Shimada for discussing their work with me 🦈
Read here: www.drjackacooper.com/writing/mega...
New bit of #ScienceCommunication from me. I get to write for children here with my latest piece for @sharks4kids.bsky.social. Got a kid who's into sharks or all things prehistoric? Then this is for them 🦈
Read more here at the Sharks4Kids website: www.sharks4kids.com/post/five-th... 🦈
Read more here at the Sharks4Kids website: www.sharks4kids.com/post/five-th... 🦈
Five things to know about prehistoric sharks
Sharks are among the oldest marine vertebrates on Earth – over 450 million years old to be precise. To put that into context; that is older than grass, that is older than trees, and that is even older...
www.sharks4kids.com
June 26, 2025 at 12:18 PM
New bit of #ScienceCommunication from me. I get to write for children here with my latest piece for @sharks4kids.bsky.social. Got a kid who's into sharks or all things prehistoric? Then this is for them 🦈
Read more here at the Sharks4Kids website: www.sharks4kids.com/post/five-th... 🦈
Read more here at the Sharks4Kids website: www.sharks4kids.com/post/five-th... 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (Washington, DC)
In response to Shark Week’s 2025 programming including “Dancing with Sharks,” described as “a dance competition between SCUBA divers and their shark dance partners,” shark scientist Dr. David Shiffman has issued the following statement:
“Could we not?”
In response to Shark Week’s 2025 programming including “Dancing with Sharks,” described as “a dance competition between SCUBA divers and their shark dance partners,” shark scientist Dr. David Shiffman has issued the following statement:
“Could we not?”
June 24, 2025 at 5:45 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (Washington, DC)
In response to Shark Week’s 2025 programming including “Dancing with Sharks,” described as “a dance competition between SCUBA divers and their shark dance partners,” shark scientist Dr. David Shiffman has issued the following statement:
“Could we not?”
In response to Shark Week’s 2025 programming including “Dancing with Sharks,” described as “a dance competition between SCUBA divers and their shark dance partners,” shark scientist Dr. David Shiffman has issued the following statement:
“Could we not?”
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social had to take a picture of this for our favourite sharky boi
June 22, 2025 at 12:14 PM
@cooperpalaeo.bsky.social had to take a picture of this for our favourite sharky boi
Reposted by Dr. Jack Cooper
A shark scientist reflects on Jaws at 50 - Ars Technica | It me, I’m the shark scientist
A shark scientist reflects on Jaws at 50
Ars chats with marine biologist David Shiffman about the film’s legacy—both good and bad.
arstechnica.com
June 20, 2025 at 8:27 PM
A shark scientist reflects on Jaws at 50 - Ars Technica | It me, I’m the shark scientist