In March, the visitor count on Southern Fried Science’s old ocean science and conservation blog normalized slightly after a surge in traffic due to three highly popular articles in February. Over 19,500 people visited the blog during the month, representing a 50% increase from January. The content on the blog varied between old and new, with some classic articles resurfacing after a long hiatus.
During March, deep-sea mining was a major topic of discussion on Southern Fried Science, with a notable decline in traffic following a series of complex articles on economics and international negotiation. This showed that unusual topics tend to attract more readers than technical analysis.
In addition to the blog content, Southern Fried Science launched the Big Sticker series for its Patreon campaign in March. Patreon has been instrumental in sustaining the blog for over 15 years, covering server fees and supporting various projects such as OpenCTD and research on microplastics in the deep sea. Patreon contributions also enable in-depth coverage of events like the ISA meetings, where the future of ocean exploitation is discussed among diplomats. This support has allowed for the continuation of informative and impactful projects on Southern Fried Science.
