Spring Fellow Ari Friedlaender '92

On Monday, March 11, Hopkins was honored by a visit from Spring Fellow Ari Friedlaender '92. Since graduating from Hopkins, Ari has pursued a career and a PhD in Marine Ecology, and is currently a research scientist at Duke University's Marine Laboratory. Ari began his day at Hopkins speaking at assembly, where he shared photos and video of his most recent research expedition studying whales in Antarctica. His work involves tagging whales with high-tech devices on suction cups that record the foraging and feeding behaviors of minke whales. His research has helped uncover some of the mysteries of what whales do under the water, their feeding and social behaviors, and how changes to the global climate have been affecting these aquatic creatures. See the video of Ari's assembly address in the attached video.

 

Throughout the day, Ari attended a number of Science and Environmental Issues classes where students were able to ask questions about his research and engage in group discussions about climate change. Faculty were invited to join Ari for lunch in the Alumni/ae House, and were joined by his parents. To end the day, Ari attended baseball practice in the gym, a sport he played at Hopkins as well as professionally in the minor leagues before he attended grad school.

 

Students and faculty were thrilled to have the opportunity to speak with Ari. His passion for whales and the environment inspired us all to think about how our life choices affect the planet on a larger scale. He also urged the students to enjoy their time at Hopkins and absorb all they can. 

 

You can read more about Ari's research on his blog: http://blogs.nicholas.duke.edu/antarctica/

An article with video about Ari and his work on tested.com : http://www.tested.com/science/life/454367-awesome-jobs-meet-ari-friedlaender-whale-tagger/