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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A USF St. Petersburg anthropologist is using music and song to share scientific data. It’s a way to educate those who may not understand the science. It’s called the CRESCENDO Lab.
CRESCENDO stands for “Communicating Research Expansively through Sonification and Community-Engaged Neuroaesthetic Data-literacy Opportunities.”
“If I were to invite you over here on a weekend night saying, ‘Let’s look at this data together,’ I’m probably going to get, ‘No way, I got other plans,’” said USF St. Petersburg anthropology professor Heather O’Leary. “But if we look at this — not like an economist and not like a social scientist — and like a musician, now we’re talking.”
O’Leary said she got the idea for the CRESCENDO Lab after going to the orchestra with her toddler. She saw how engaged her child was with the music and thought it would be a great way to get more people interested in science.
Over the last couple of years, O’Leary has worked with student researchers on musical projects regarding Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease and Red Tide. Her latest project features jazz and oysters.
“Florida used to be one of the biggest hotspots for the most delicious oysters on America’s coasts,” O’Leary said.
She was fascinated by how polarizing the delicacies have become over the years. Some people like them. Others don’t. O’Leary wanted to know the financial impact.
“People are suspicious of them because of their hard work, they are powerhouses that clean our waters. So they are afraid or grossed out about eating them. It seems like it ‘ain’t safe,’” O’Leary said.
After conducting research, some students made a jazz song about what they discovered. The song is called, “Oysters Ain’t Safe.” The title was taken from a response on one of the surveys conducted during the research.
“I think what’s really interesting is that it comes with two sides,” O’Leary said. “On one side, oysters aren’t safe. There are a lot of people suspicious about eating oysters, but on the other side, oysters have so many different shocks right now, that they themselves might be safe.”
O’Leary said the issues oysters face include over harvesting, oyster acidification and the changing amount of freshwater available. The song focuses on some of the challenges.
“It’s a really interesting way to interpret data,” said AJ Gross, a graduate student with the College of Marine Science.
Currently, there is a five-year ban on wild oyster harvesting in Apalachicola Bay, Florida. The goal is to allow the oyster population time to recover. That ban ends at the end of 2025. Reopening is expected to be limited in the beginning of 2026, and O’Leary said it all has a financial impact.
“I don’t think we think about how economics plays into marine science and marine biology,” said USF music student Emma Urbanski, one of the students singing the new scientific melody.
Student musicians will perform “Oysters Ain’t Safe” in a concert at the IPAC Theater at Pasco-Hernando State College in Wesley Chapel on Tuesday, Nov. 4. It will be part of a series called “Water Works,” which begins at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.
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Dalia Dangerfield
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