Melody Jue

Melody Jue is a Professor of English at the University of California, Santa Barbara, specializing in Ocean Humanities, Science Fiction, Science Studies, and Media Theory. She holds a Ph.D. in Literature from Duke University and a B.A. in English from UC Davis.

• Education:
• Ph.D., Literature, Duke University
• B.A., English, University of California, Davis

Her research explores the intersections of oceans and environmental humanities, digital media, science fiction, and the critical relationship between theory and practice. She has first-hand experience from scuba diving and employs ocean alterity to shift humanities methodologies.

Her recent work investigates the mediations of seaweeds in trans-Pacific contexts. She has published in journals like Grey Room, Configurations, Women’s Studies Quarterly, Resilience, and Media+Environment.

• Scientific Awards:
• Katherine Goodman Stern Dissertation Completion Fellowship
• James B. Duke Graduate Fellowship
• Speculative Fictions and Cultures of Science book award (2020)

She is co-editor of Saturation (2021) and Informatics of Domination (2025), and author of Wild Blue Media: Thinking Through Seawater (2020).