Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In this repost episode of Math! Science! History!, Gabrielle Birchak speaks with Professor Gillen D’Arcy Wood, author of The Wake of the HMS Challenger: How a Legendary Victorian Voyage Tells the Story of Our Ocean’s Decline. Together, they uncover how a nineteenth-century Royal Navy warship transformed into a floating laboratory and gave humanity its first global snapshot of the oceans. From discovering thousands of new species to inspiring NASA’s Challenger shuttle, the expedition shaped modern oceanography and continues to inform today’s conservation science.
Wood’s biocentric storytelling reminds us that to save our planet, we must first fall in love with it again, to be, as he says, re-enchanted by the living ocean that sustains us all.
Three Things Listeners Will Learn
How the HMS Challenger (1872–1876) became the first global oceanographic expedition, collecting temperature, depth, and biological data still used today.
Why Gillen D’Arcy Wood’s “biocentric” approach reframes history through the perspective of marine life rather than human explorers.
What the voyage teaches us about modern ocean crises: from overfishing and warming seas to microplastics—and how species like the green turtle show that recovery is possible.
Resources and Further Reading
The Wake of the HMS Challenger by Gillen D’Arcy Wood - HarperCollins Publishers
Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h
Let’s Connect!Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mathsciencehistory.bsky.social Instagram: instagram.com/math.science.history Facebook: facebook.com/mathsciencehistory LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/math-science-history Threads: threads.com/@math.science.history Mastodon: https://mathsciencehistory@mathstodon.xyz YouTube: Math! Science! History! - YouTube Pinterest: pinterest.com/mathsciencehistory
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Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show! Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs! Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform
Check out our merch: mathsciencehistory.com/the-store
Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers
Smooth Piano by Universefield
Musinova - Travelling And Discovering (Marimba World Percussion)
Documentary-Nikita Kondrashev
Audio Editor: Podcast mixed by David Aviles
Until next time, carpe diem!
In this repost episode of Math! Science! History!, Gabrielle Birchak speaks with Professor Gillen D’Arcy Wood, author of The Wake of the HMS Challenger: How a Legendary Victorian Voyage Tells the Story of Our Ocean’s Decline. Together, they uncover how a nineteenth-century Royal Navy warship transformed into a floating laboratory and gave humanity its first global snapshot of the oceans. From discovering thousands of new species to inspiring NASA’s Challenger shuttle, the expedition shaped modern oceanography and continues to inform today’s conservation science.
Wood’s biocentric storytelling reminds us that to save our planet, we must first fall in love with it again, to be, as he says, re-enchanted by the living ocean that sustains us all.
Three Things Listeners Will Learn
How the HMS Challenger (1872–1876) became the first global oceanographic expedition, collecting temperature, depth, and biological data still used today.
Why Gillen D’Arcy Wood’s “biocentric” approach reframes history through the perspective of marine life rather than human explorers.
What the voyage teaches us about modern ocean crises: from overfishing and warming seas to microplastics—and how species like the green turtle show that recovery is possible.
Resources and Further Reading
The Wake of the HMS Challenger by Gillen D’Arcy Wood - HarperCollins Publishers
Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h
Let’s Connect!Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mathsciencehistory.bsky.social Instagram: instagram.com/math.science.history Facebook: facebook.com/mathsciencehistory LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/math-science-history Threads: threads.com/@math.science.history Mastodon: https://mathsciencehistory@mathstodon.xyz YouTube: Math! Science! History! - YouTube Pinterest: pinterest.com/mathsciencehistory
🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?
☕ Support the Show: Coffee!! PayPal
Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show! Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs! Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform
Check out our merch: mathsciencehistory.com/the-store
Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers
Smooth Piano by Universefield
Musinova - Travelling And Discovering (Marimba World Percussion)
Documentary-Nikita Kondrashev
Audio Editor: Podcast mixed by David Aviles
Until next time, carpe diem!
