Fashioning the Future With: Sarah McAnulty
Wave your tentacles in the air like you just don't care! You read that right, squad. Thanks to today's post, we are all suckers — suckers for squids and scicomm that is — because we have the inimitable Sarah McAnulty on the blog today. Sarah is a squid biologist and the founder of Skype a Scientist, an organization that connects classrooms and other groups of kids to scientists via a Skype session.
So far, Skype a Scientist — which is a totally free to the public, donor-supported program — has connected scientists to 21,000 schools in over 70 countries! Here's how it works: educators (or extracurricular program leaders) and scientists sign up for the program, get matched by the fine folks at Skype a Scientist, and then kids get to talk to their scientist in a 30-60-minute Q&A format through video chat. Group-chatting gummy octopi, that's scicomm gold!
As if founding and being the executive director of Skype a Scientist isn't cool enough, Sarah recently completed her PhD at the University of Connecticut. She then conducted a #SquidsAcrossAmerica tour where she dropped cephalopod knowledge all over the USA and made quite a splash in her Squidmobile! We're not squiddin' around, Sarah is the embodiment of scicomm excellence. (Oh, and she created this awesome cephalopod coloring book, too!)
It's no surprise that Sarah's work has been covered by outlets including Forbes, Grist, and Engadget. Gizmodo even consulted Sarah regarding her opinion of Apple's squid emoji. We were thrilled to ask Sarah all about Skype a Scientist, her favorite squid fun fact, who inspires her, and more. So, let's get kraken on this interview. Meet Sarah McAnulty, PhD, queen of the squid squad.
When did you first know you were a scientist?
That’s a good question — I don’t really know! I guess I first really felt like a scientist when I was working in Woods Hole at the Marine Biological Lab. I was doing experiments with cuttlefish and I knew I was working toward a publication in that lab and that’s probably the first time I really felt like I was working in science.
What is your personal philosophy as a science communicator?
Generally, I want to make everyone I encounter feel like there’s a place in science for them. I try to make science approachable, friendly, and fun — there are no stupid questions in the squid squad. I want to try to un-do some of the emotional damage our school system inadvertently does in the process of trying to make elite scientists while sometimes leaving everybody else on the sidelines. When people hear as kids that they’re not smart enough for science, that’s incredibly damaging, and I want scientists to bring those folks back into science.
What kind of research did you during your PhD at UConn?
I was in the molecular and cell biology department working on how animals and bacteria talk to each other! I used the Hawaiian bobtail squid as a study system for understanding those interactions.
What first drew you to squid biology?
I was a little kid and I borrowed this NatGeo tape out of the library on the ocean. About halfway through, Twilight Zone music played, and they introduced the cuttlefish. I was totally taken by what’s called the “passing cloud” display that cuttlefish use to confuse prey- it legit looks like a hypnotist's wheel. I was pretty much immediately converted from being obsessed with dinosaurs to obsessed with squid.
What is your favorite thing about squids?
Definitely their curiosity and ability to communicate with each other using color change.
Is there one squid species of which you are particularly fond?
The Caribbean reef squid! They hang out in groups and watching them swim is totally mesmerizing
Do you have a favorite squid fun fact?
Cephalopods have been on earth for longer than trees!
What inspired your #SquidsAcrossAmerica tour?
It was sort of a combination of motivations. One, I knew that I was going to be running Skype a Scientist full time after I graduated, and part of our core mission is to get scientists thinking about how best to communicate their science. Second, I was writing my thesis and wished I could get out of the house and get moving. Third, I had not seen much of our country, and I wanted to change that. I figured a road trip across the country speaking to scientists on how to better communicate their science might be a pretty good way of approaching that! I tweeted asking people if they would be interested in having me come speak on science communication at their universities, and sure enough, people did!
What’s been the most rewarding part of your squidtastic tour?
That’s a really hard question! There’s been so many awesome moments on this tour. I did a thrown together show in a park in LA with podcast host Alie Ward, got to meet a ton of scientists who value science communication, had scientists show me their research animals, saw national parks all over the Southern United States, it’s hard to pick one!
What is next for you after your tour?
I’ll be running Skype a Scientist full time!
What are some hobbies you enjoy in your free time?
Traveling, painting, reading, and playing water polo!
What inspired you to create Skype a Scientist?
Right after the 2016 election, many people were realizing for the first time how siloed society has really become. They wanted to find ways to connect with more people but didn’t even know where to start. Seeing all these people with so much energy but seeing that they didn’t know where to direct it made me realize we needed something to fill the gap. I made skype a scientist in January of 2017 and it took off immediately and we just keep growing!
Which scientists (modern day and/or historical) inspire you?
There are so many wildlife scientists that inspire me. Jacqueline Gill and Kate Marvel are both really great climate science communicators that inspire me daily. Corina Newsome, Jason Ward, and Earyn McGee are all wildlife ecologists and do a totally killer job on social media and I love seeing their work. David Steen, a reptile ecologist runs this non-profit all focused on wildlife ecology and science communication, and he really inspires me. I could go on and on forever with all these people doing amazing work for their science then going out there and spreading the word so beautifully.
Do you have a favorite anecdote (or an instance that stands out in particular) from a Skype a Scientist classroom interaction/event?
This didn’t happen to me, but one student asked a clam scientist, “Would you marry a clam or be a clam” and that, to me, is the funniest thing I’ve ever heard.
Do you have any favorite STEM and/or squid characters in books/movies/other art forms?
The kraken is pretty great! There’s a lot of art that uses squid in it and I generally always love that. I’m always on the lookout for the next squid painting!
If you were a superhero, what would your go-to wearable tech device be?
An earpiece that could translate anything an animal tried to communicate into English.
Where can people find you online?
Twitter: @Sarahmackattack & @SkypeScientist
Patreon: Patreon.com/SkypeAScientist
Instagram: @SarahMackAttack & @SkypeAScientist
YouTube: youtube.com/TheSquidSquad & youtube.com/SkypeAScientist
TikTok: @SarahMackAttack