On February 20th, 2024, I was driving home from the grocery store listening to NPR when a news segment came on describing that it was the 200th anniversary of the first scientific dinosaur name pronunciation. The story described that back in 1824 a man named William Buckland, looking at bones and fossils found outside of…
For Branch Magazine’s The Open Climate Issue (20m audio essay, transcript below) We were told that the Internet would “de-materialise” society and decrease energy use. Instead the opposite is true: the internet has quickly become one of the most carbon intensive information processing systems. The solution isn’t as simple as relying less on the internet or…
A summer fellowship at theLSI prepares Michigan under grads for the next leg of their STEM journey. This piece was written for UMich’s 2022 magazine. Read the full thing here! Jacquelyn Roberts knows firsthand the power of authentic research opportunities for young scientists. “It only takes a single experience to start building your research career,”…
“Sure, but what’s the latin name,” Heather asks about the tree that’s starting to bloom in small white blushed blossoms around the property. Heather’s boyfriend knows it as juneberry, but she insists that it is serviceberry, hence going back to the scientific jargon to properly identify and name the plant beyond the regional nicknames. They…
Recently, I was asked to write a piece describing the “beauty of the Metaverse,” the augmented world through virtual reality. It’s arguably the next chapter of the internet and promises a new way to socialize and communicate with people around the world in a unique digital sphere. It’s made to be boundless, persistent, and immersive….
In 2016, a group of scientists publishing in PLOS Biology estimated that our bodies contain not the commonly accepted 10 human cells for every one microorganism, but something closer to a 1-to-1 ratio — with these tiny counterparts collectively weighing 4 or 5 pounds. This “other half” of us plays a vital role in human…
Book description: In 1977 NASA shot a mixtape into outer space, The Golden Record aboard the Voyager spacecraft contained world music and sounds of Earth to represent humanity to any extraterrestrial civilizations. To date, the Golden Record is the only home-made object to have left the solar system. Alien Listening asks the big questions that…
A year into the pandemic, much more is known about the coronavirus. In any study, especially scientific ones, it takes time to collect data, it takes time to collect samples, it takes time to run experiments, and it takes time to find the right and diverse sample size to have meaningful and representative data. However,…
This year, I’ve been hosting podcasts — a shocking thing to any of you who know that I hate public speaking and conversations with strangers — with the New Books Network. Luckily, once I finish their book, the authors no longer feel like strangers since I’ve spent time with their thoughts, their tone, their ideas…
When the pandemic disrupted their research, LSI trainees forged new routes to scientific success.
