Rosenberg Institute Seminar Series - Max Czapanskiy

Reproducible is reusable: promoting research and education through open science

Max Czapanskiy, Postdoctoral Scholar, NOAA / UC Santa Cruz

Abstract: Marine megafauna include some of California’s most iconic species, from gigantic blue whales to ocean-traversing albatrosses and sea turtles. An indispensable component of the modern marine biologist’s toolkit for studying these large vertebrates is the bio-logger: animal-attached sensor packages that track an organism’s location, behavior, physiology, and local environment. The current generation of bio-loggers now contain many of the same sensors found in smart phones, including cameras, GPS, and fine-scale movement sensors. As bio-loggers collect ever larger and more complex data, our traditional analysis techniques are being stretched beyond their capacity. In this talk, I will share two new computational methods for analyzing behavior and physiology in bio-logging data, demonstrating how these devices capture diverse biological information beyond their intended use. I also turn a critical lens on the “big data revolution” and address growing technical barriers to broad participation in the scientific process.

Bio: Dr. Max Czapanskiy is a postdoctoral scholar with UC Santa Cruz and NOAA. His career began software engineering before pivoting to field biology and data science. He specializes in bio-logging techniques for remotely observing the behavior and physiology of marine mammals and seabirds, with experience in polar, temperate, and tropical marine ecosystems. An ardent educator, he is the creator of the Just enough software engineering (for scientists) curriculum and teaches scientists of all career stages how to make robust data and code part of their scientific workflow.