The Power of Anecdote By Richard Ross In the last nine installments of Skeptical Reefkeeping we have looked at varied topics from phosphate to marketing to fallacious lines of reasoning to communication. One of the through lines all along has been the idea of...
By Rich Ross and Chris Jury There are many standard parameters in the reefkeeping world that aquarists strive to match in their home reefs – water quality, light spectrum and intensity, and water flow, just to name a few. Rarely do we stop to think where these...
By Richard Ross and Kevin Erickson There are many terms in the marine aquarium hobby that are used in multiple ways by different people, which can cause a great deal of confusion. This is especially true as it pertains to the origins and sustainability of animals – it...
By Richard Ross Ethical discussion about almost every area of reefkeeping has been a part of the hobby for as long as the hobby has existed - What size tank do I need to meet my animals’ needs? Are some animals better left in the ocean? Do I really need a separate...
By Richard Ross The Internet makes information instantly available for Reefkeepers all around the world, but that information can be clouded in inaccurate fog, anecdote, baseless opinion and unsubstantiated arguments from authority. To keep the inaccurate fog at a...
By Richard Ross In the previous installments we talked about skeptical methodology and how it can be used to sort through the overwhelming amount of reefkeeping information that is now at the virtual fingertips of reef hobbyists. We also discussed how skeptical...
By Richard Ross In the previous installments we talked about skeptical methodology and how it can be used to sort through the overwhelming amount of reefkeeping information and products available. We also discussed how skeptical thinking has impacted the idea of...
By Richard Ross In the previous two installments of Skeptical Reefkeeping, we talked about how applying skeptical thinking to reefkeeping can help you make decisions about what methodology to follow or which products to use. In this installment, we’ll spend less time...
Richard Ross is a longtime hobbyist, author and authority on the captive care and breeding of cephalopods. He is a moderator on Reefs.org, former president of the Bay Area Reefers club and an aquarist at the California Academy of Sciences Steinhart Aquarium in San...
By Richard Ross It's every reefkeepers worst nightmare: opening the front door to the house and smelling the pungent smell of the shore that the Yucatecans call ‘lodo’. While pleasant near the ocean, that smell in your house means something has probably gone wrong...