Shannon was a CNS-UCSB Graduate Fellow from 2010-2013. He received his PhD in Environmental Science and Management in 2013 and was also a member of the Center for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (CEIN). As a member of CEIN, Shannon's work focused on the impact of metal oxide nanoparticles on marine benthic organisms, specifically he was interested in whether or not nanoparticles in the environment affect physiological rates, including growth, metabolism and feeding, of various marine organisms. Shannon received his bachelor's degree in biology from the University of West Florida, and his master's degree in marine biology from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. At CNS, he was part of Barbara Herr Harthorn's Risk Perception research group. He was awarded a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship in 2013 and is working with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop standardized methods for nanoparticle toxicity tests.