Ocean Alliance is a 501(c)3 organization founded in 1971 by Roger Payne. Its scientists collect a broad spectrum of data on whales and ocean life relating particularly to toxicology, bioacoustics, behavior, and genetics. In recent years, Ocean Alliance has widened its interests to include the study of marine pollution using whales as a model subject. In 2011, led by Dr. John Wise and Dr. Iain Kerr, Ocean Alliance and the University of Southern Maine is sending daily blogs from its research vessel Odyssey, which is currently offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, looking at the effects of the Gulf oil spill. University of Southern Maine - Lead by Dr. John Wise, the Wise Laboratory of Environmental and Genetic Toxicology at the University of Southern Maine conducts state-of-the-art research aimed at understanding how environmental contaminants affect the health of humans and marine animals. The Wise Laboratory’s mission is accomplished through pursuit of a number of key objectives, including innovative and multidisciplinary research in toxicology and molecular epidemiology to increase understanding of disease in humans and marine organisms, particularly in relation to cancer, asthma and reproductive/developmental effects.