Why we need better tech to study microplastics | Jenni Brandon | TEDxEncinitas Blvd

Marine biologist Dr. Jennifer Brandon discusses new technological advances in marine research that make it possible to observe microplastics at a much finer scale. Her work focuses on plastic pollution, including techniques developed to identify and quantify microplastics and a finding on the rising amount of microplastics in modern sediment records. The talk was given at TEDxEncinitasBlvd, an independently organized TEDx event.

• Better tools for detecting microplastics in marine environments
• Methods to identify and quantify microplastics
• Microplastics found in modern sediment records
• Speaker: Dr. Jennifer Brandon, marine biologist and ecologist

This talk from Dr. Jennifer Brandon at TEDxEncinitasBlvd explores the technological breakthroughs in marine research that are now allowing us to see microplastics at a whole new scale. TEDxEncinitasBlvd was made possible by Executive Producer, Lead Organizer, and Editor Rohan Phadnis, WayZero, and BAAIRS. Dr. Jennifer Brandon is a PhD marine biologist and ecologist who has spent most of the last decade researching plastic pollution. She has developed multiple new techniques to identify and quantify microplastics and she was the first to discover the exponential increase of microplastics being left behind in our modern sediment record. She has been interviewed dozens of times for her expertise in marine plastics, including by NPR, The New Yorker, and the BBC. She is also an expert in science communication, and has given hundreds of lectures and invited talks, including as a National Academy of Sciences Distinguished Speaker and as a guest of the US Consulate in Brazil. Jenni holds a MS in Marine Biology and PhD in Biological Oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx