UMT Lecturer Creates New Gadget from Ladies Hair Clip to

Conserve Aquatic Species and Create New Industries in Malaysia

Marine Biotechnology Scientist uses common hair ornament to create new
gadget he says can help to reduce stress to marine animals and world food
sources while lessening effects of climate change!

Crab-Grab conservation trap made from ladies hair clip!

Terengganu ~ November 8, 2014

A familiar face on the University of Malaysia-Terengganus Campus is Dr. Joseph
A. Resnick. Dr. Joe, as hes known among Faculty and Students, is the newlyappointed Principal Research Fellow in the Institute of Marine Biotechnology at
UMT. Dr. Joe is no stranger to developing new gadgets and technologies. As a
former NASA Scholar and Scientist he has some 26-plus issued and pending US
and Foreign Patents to his credit, including, among various other inventions, oil
spill cleanup technologies that use microbes encapsulated in beeswax to cleanup
oil spills. At UMTs IMB, Dr. Joe has oversight of five research projects.

A staunch Environmentalist and nominee for both the Tyler Prize for
Environmental Achievement (USC-Los Angeles) and the St Andrews Prize for the
Environment (University of St Andrews, Scotland) , Dr. Joe is also an avid sport
fisherman and a long-time crabber and lobsterman, he says. Dr. Joe is the
developer of a number of gadgets used worldwide in recreational and sport fishing,
e.g., The Hand-Off belt mounted fishing pole holder and The Sand Spike (US
Patent #5,052,146), both of which can be found in use by fisherman and sport
enthusiasts in villages, on boats, and at beaches worldwide.
One of Dr. Joes latest inventions is a new device that he says is used to catch
only one crab, squid or lobster at a time. He said that he got the idea for the
invention while he and his grandson were fishing and saw people catching large
numbers of Blue Crabs, most too small for harvesting, but were being left to die
without being eaten. Dr. Joe said that when he saw this happening and the way
people were catching crabs and other aquatic life, indiscriminately using crab traps
and lobster pots to catch individual species he knew would never be used nor eaten
by fishermen, he came up with the idea to make a new kind of fishing appliance
that would catch only one crab, or one squid, or one lobster, and only above a
certain weight and below a certain size.

The Grab-Crab is made with items you probably have in your home!

The gadget, affectionately dubbed by Dr. Joe as The Grab-Crab, works on the
same principle as a common hair clip. A small spring inside the device forms the
operational foundation of the invention. The tiny spring enables a spring-activated
jaw that makes up most of the invention to open and close. The device is attached
to a fishing line and is triggered when one crab touches the bait. In doing so the
crab triggers the grab mechanism and the jaw closes, capturing the crab between
the jaws in a gentle, but firm, manner. When activated, the fisher feels tension on
the line and knows that the trap has been activated and that the crab has been
captured. The crab is then drawn into shore and immediately placed inside a
cooler or other sanitary holding means.

The Crab-Grab is designed to be used by people of all ages for conservation of marine animals.

The Grab-Crab, because of its design, eliminates the need for the fisher to
have to use other tools to handle the catch, such as long-handled cooking tongs.

To remove the catch one simply squeezes the device which results in opening of
the jaws and releasing of the catch directly into the desired container or holding
means. The fishers hands never come into contact with the catch thus making the
process safer and more sanitary for both fisher and catch.
Dr. Joe stated that The ideal size for harvested crabs, e.g., those found in the
waters of the South China Sea, is about 400 grams, or just slightly over one half
pound. He continued, saying, Its wasteful to take more food from the ocean
than a person needs to feed himself or his family. And its shameful to capture
marine animals and let them die and go to waste just because you caught too many
or that a trap catches more than one person can eat in a 24-hour period.

The Crab-Grab is designed to capture only one crab or squid, reducing stress on marine life.

Dr. Joe said that The Grab-CrabTM is safe, fun, quick and easy to use, and that
he hopes it will be enjoyed by people all over the world for many generations to

come. He said other benefits from use of the invention will help to reduce the
stressors to marine animals by reducing the number of smaller individuals caught
while simultaneously preventing capture of larger individuals, generally considered
as brood stock. He continued, In other words, I designed the device so it cant
capture smaller crabs or marine animals and cannot capture larger ones that are
usually carrying eggs or are breeding stock. Its designed to capture specimens
falling between optimal ages and weights. In using this new method of harvesting
marine life we can assure that there will be future generations of marine animals,
that the smaller ones may be harvested in the future and larger ones will be able to
function as brood stock, as nature had intended. Dr. Joe said that he designed the
device to catch and hold slightly over pound of buoyant weight, which, if
measured on dry land would be about 3/4th of a pound per catch.
Dr. Resnick said, The Crab-Grab is very easy to make (at home) with things a
person has laying around the house or in drawers or on a key ring. All you really
need is three key rings and a plastic clip (like the one I have on my I.D. Badge) and
a ladys hair clip. Under Patent Law, called, The Doctrine of Fair Use, people
are permitted to make seven (7) of any invention for personal use, but cannot
practice the invention in Commerce. Dr. Resnick said, I hope people do make
their own Crab-Grab devices and use them. This will help to reduce the pressure
on the crab population, on squid, and will help to conserve precious natural
resources. He finished the interview by saying, I hope the ladies dont get angry
with me when their hair clips come up missing when Dad and Kids go fishing!.
Dr. Joe concluded the interview by stating that he believes, In the larger scope of
things, by reducing the number of crabs, squid and other marine animals we catch
that are not used as a food source, we can positively impact the eco-balance of
nature by reducing environmental stressors to marine populations. Marine animals
produce eco-friendly gasses and other environmental by-products that are
beneficial to Man, to the oceans and the Earths environment in general. By
reduction of over-harvesting of marine life we can reduce, prevent or eliminate
entirely any additional impact that absence or depletion of these beneficial gasses
could have on climate change.

The Crab-Grab is a simple but effective way to practice environmental conservation and have fun too!

The Grab-Crab is being developed and readied for marketing by Dr. Resnick
in collaboration with the RMANNCO, Inc. of Nevada (USA) that has offices in
Terengganu, Singapore, Shanghai, Florida and North Carolina.

END

Point of Contact:

Dr. Joe Resnick is Principal Research Fellow at the Institute of Marine

Biotechnology at the University of Malaysia Terengganu
Dr. Joseph A. Resnick, Ph.D.
Principal Research Fellow
Institute of Marine Biotechnology
Universiti Malaysia Terengganu
21030 Kuala Terengganu
Terengganu Darul Iman
Tel
09-668-3103 Ext. 3881
Fax
09-68-3105
HP
09-667-2102
Cell
011-375-91102
Email Joseph.Resnick@umt.edu.my