More plastic, less glow? Pollution threatens deep sea’s bioluminescent life, experts warn

More plastic, less glow? Pollution threatens deep sea’s bioluminescent life, experts warn

Plastic pollution could disrupt the bioluminescent light produced by deep-sea organisms, researchers warn in a letter in the journal Cambridge Prisms: Plastics. When deep-sea organisms ingest…

news.mongabay.com

I love that when Canadian poet Anne Carson was notified that she‘d been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature she said she was “listening to the wind” in Iceland. If that’s not a writer at work, I don’t know what is.

This is fascinating. “Regulatory entanglement” of genes owing to changes in genome architecture enabled cephalopods to evolve absolutely wacky nervous systems and complex brains.

Universität Wien / University of Vienna@univie.ac.at · 3d ago

Why are octopuses, squid & cuttlefish so smart? 🐙 New study from the University of Vienna: it’s not just the genes, but how the genome folds in 3D. An ancient reorganisation brought distant #DNA regions together and rewired gene regulation. 🧬#Genomics Out now in @natcomms.nature.com ⤵️

Happy #WorldOctopusDay!

Octopus Mosaic in Pompeii, Italy

This is the first interview with Anne Carson, by RÚV, the Icelandic state broadcaster. Click the video, it’s in English.

Tilfinningin er klikkuð, segir nýi Nóbelsverðlaunahafinn - RÚV.is

Anne Carson hlýtur Nóbelsverðlaunin í bókmenntum í ár. Anne er íslenskur ríkisborgari og búsett á Íslandi.

ruv.is

Bill Reid’s Haida House facade (5 metres x 3 metres), created during his time in Paris in 1989. Polychrome on wood panels. musée du quai Branly in Paris as part of Premières Nations, Arts et cultures du Nord~Ouest de L’Amérique, 29 September 2026 – 17 January 2027.

all this is both foolish and unnecessary

Guys, I’m speechless. Gonna be sharing this award with my 8-year-old since this poem was inspired by their question “why do we never see fireflies in the winter?” Huge thanks to the Ignyte organizers, all the voters/readers, and to @thedeadlands.com for giving this one a wonderful home!

The Ignyte Awards@theignyteawards.bsky.social · last wk.

The #2026IgnyteAwards for Outstanding Speculative Poetry goes to THE LANGUAGE OF FIREFLIES by Angela Liu (The Deadlands)

Both parents feed & protect the chicks. “One of my all time favorite loon clips. This was the first time that I got 2 chicks on the parent’s back at the same time several years ago.” Canon R5 and 100-500mm lens IG: @harrycollinsphotography www.instagram.com/harrycollins...

Help save "Room" (Canada's oldest feminist lit magazine), especially if you'd like to see new fiction from me in their next issue. But mostly do it because they rock, and they're important: roommagazine.com/whats-new/an...

Save Room Magazine: A Fundraiser - ROOM Magazine

SAVE ROOM MAGAZINE: A FUNDRAISER Room is Canada’s oldest feminist literary magazine, running since 1975. For over 50 years, our small nonprofit has carved out a space in Canadian literary publishing w...

roommagazine.com

“Fish” can be both singular (one individual fish) or plural (multiple fish of the same species.) “Fishes” refers to individuals of different species. 🐟 Fish 🐟🐟🐟 Fish 🐠🐟🐡 Fishes Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

THIS.

LRR.rocks@lrrrocks.bsky.social · 3w ago

Every author you admire has sat looking at their screen page, unsure if the sentence in front of them was good enough. That uncertainty didn't disqualify them from finishing the book, and it doesn't disqualify you either.

Is "fantaspionage" the next big thing? Can we MAKE it the next big thing? @mcflycahill90.bsky.social (Audition for the Fox) speaks with @premeemohamed.com (Wickhills) about genre, weird cities, and who is the having the worst time in a story:

“What Kind of Person Would a City Like Wickhills Produce?”: A Conversation With Premee Mohamed - Reactor

On crafting the perfect spy story, and building a magical city.

reactormag.com

Are you going to Can*Con next month? Be sure to say hi! This is where I’ll be:

No one is disposable, including the canary ❤️🦜✊

Cliff PervoSCARY@pervocracy.bsky.social · 3w ago

This is a canary resuscitator, which miners would use to revive canaries that had passed out from toxic gas, because ideally not only do you care, you don't even leave the bird behind. just a little mining history and not at all a furious scream

i sincerely love soft scifi gesturing in the direction of science. "analyze this sample" to a man standing in a room full of equipment who just kinda looks through a microscope at some dots cus what else is he supposed to do.

N.K. Jemisin is the first author to win the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 3 consecutive yrs for her Broken Earth series & first to win for all 3 novels in a trilogy. Recipient MacArthur Genius Grant, 2020. She was born #OTD in 1972. Happy Birthday @nkjemisin.bsky.social 🎈 #SciFi #Fantasy #BookSky

DON'T PANIC BUT WE ARE LESS THAN A MONTH OUT FROM CAN*CON (we're panicking a little) If you haven't gotten your tickets yet, do so! If you're thinking about signing up for special events but haven't yet, what are you waiting for??? www.can-con.org

Can*Con

can-con.org

From Galveston Bookshop on Facebook

@gianttourtiere.bsky.social Hey can I turn some of the crew into glowing, gelatinous creatures

Quanta Magazine@quantamagazine.org · 4w ago

The glowing, gelatinous creature you see here is a comb jelly. Over the past decade, this remarkable organism has helped answer longstanding questions in biology, including how bioluminescence evolved. www.quantamagazine.org/ctenophores-...

I’ve never had a dog that watches tv before but the Chaos Puppy is fascinated by the big screen. He got so upset last night with a nasty man with a gun that we had to turn on Airbud for him. He watched the whole thing.

Just finished The Midnight Project by @cclim.bsky.social and if you haven't read this incredible book, what are you waiting for? Bleak yet hopeful near-future eco-horror meets sci-fi thriller in a story that feels all too prescient, right about now. Bonus points for Canadian content!

The "fantasy has to have rules" thinking just... generally bores me. I get where it's coming from! But I am bored. I don't want to read it. I don't want to write it. I want worlds and magic with chaos and surprise and a total absence of reliability. And also people occasionally getting electrocuted.

I love scientists so much

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈@whysharksmatter.bsky.social · last mo.

There’s a species of shark called the ninja lanternshark. It glows in the dark, like all lantern sharks. It’s called ninja because the scientist who discovered it was explaining her discovery to family at Thanksgiving and then her young cousin shouted “ninjas are cool, call it the ninja shark!”

Your monthly reminder: Keep writing. When no one cares, persist. When things appear to be crumbling, keep at it. When it's difficult, push through. When you feel alone, listen to the stories in your blood. Just write. The world needs your stories.

Been watching this all day. So brilliant. So true.

Elle Cordova@ellecordova.bsky.social · last mo.

Rough Draft vs Final Draft

Stubby Clapp is an all-time fabulous baseball name I have admired since the first played on Team Canada.

Brendel@brendelbored.bsky.social · last mo.

Today’s Baseball Name is Stubby Clapp

I'm not tired. You're tired.