SOLD for $50.1 million--a new record--to an unnamed buyer

Kate Wong@katewong.bsky.social · 3w ago

Today at 10 AM EDT Sotheby's will start the live bidding on its natural history auction featuring one of the largest, most complete skeletons of T. rex ever found. It could fetch $30M+ and go to a private collector. Here's what science--and the public--stand to lose. My story for @wired.com 🧪

Today at 10 AM EDT Sotheby's will start the live bidding on its natural history auction featuring one of the largest, most complete skeletons of T. rex ever found. It could fetch $30M+ and go to a private collector. Here's what science--and the public--stand to lose. My story for @wired.com 🧪

Sotheby’s Big T. Rex Auction Raises Concerns Hype and Wealth Are Upending Science

Private buyers are increasingly outbidding museums for fossils. That’s making it difficult—or even impossible—for researchers to improve our understanding of the past.

wired.com

Today at 10 AM EDT Sotheby's will start the live bidding on its natural history auction featuring one of the largest, most complete skeletons of T. rex ever found. It could fetch $30M+ and go to a private collector. Here's what science--and the public--stand to lose. My story for @wired.com 🧪

Sotheby’s Big T. Rex Auction Raises Concerns Hype and Wealth Are Upending Science

Private buyers are increasingly outbidding museums for fossils. That’s making it difficult—or even impossible—for researchers to improve our understanding of the past.

wired.com

I've been doing sexual harassment and assault research and advocacy work since 2012. If there's one thing people need to understand is that everything, literally everything, is stacked against the victim. Every one who comes forward risks their reputation, identity, safety, and more. 1/2

In late June, Springer Nature sold Scientific American to LabX Media. I have since decided to step out of my role as a senior graphics editor for the magazine :: #sciart 📊 🧪 :: 🧵 [1/7]

Last week, my time as associate health editor at Scientific American came to an end when the publication was sold to a new owner. I will miss my brilliant colleagues more than words can say. I’m open to freelance work and full-time opportunities in newsrooms, classrooms and beyond. 🧵

If you didn’t know, former @sciam.bsky.social owner Springer Nature sold us just three days ahead of the tally of the vote to unionize. It resulted in layoffs, including 60% of the union’s organizing committee. We’re out here to fight, to keep doing vital science journalism.

Tuesday, June 30, 5:00 PM: Rally with the Scientific American Union! Join us for a rally outside of Springer Nature offices to support workers at Scientific American, protect workers' right to organize and defend free speech. RSVP here: actionnetwork.org/events/scien...

An eventful week at Scientific American. Owner Springer Nature rushed to sell SciAm 3 days before the staff overwhelmingly voted to form a union, and laid off a lot of people. Including me. I got to work with amazing writers during my time, people who made me better. Thank-you list in comment below:

So awful. This paper just won a Pulitzer and deserves another one for its coverage of ICE’s actions in Minnesota. A reminder that journalism layoffs have nothing to do with the quality of work. Minnesota Star Tribune eliminates 24 union jobs, primarily in newsroom www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Minnesota Star Tribune eliminates 24 union jobs, primarily in newsroom

About 175 employees remain in the newsroom, according to spokesperson Chris Iles. The company announced layoffs and buyouts for additional employees earlier in June.

mprnews.org

YIKES: The OPM is proposing new NDAs for federal workers, this means scientists cannot talk about their work. They can't share their data, or talk to journalists. But it's still open for public comment! Comment by June 26. www.regulations.gov/search?filte...

Meghan is an incredibly smart and versatile science journalist and altogether delightful human and you should absolutely hire her!

Meghan Bartels@meghanbartels.bsky.social · last mo.

I’m so sad to share that yesterday was my last day at Scientific American. It was an honor to work alongside my incredible colleagues and to speak with researchers across the sciences. If you’re looking to hire staff or freelance, please consider me and my other laid off coworkers (🧵)

Scientific American is being sold to LabX Media, publisher of Discover: group.springernature.com/gp/group/med... They've fired me and other union staff, ahead of June 26 vote ratification. My rates are suddenly more reasonable, if you need editing or reporting - Argonaut2026@gmail.com

Today is my last day at Scientific American, which has been sold to LabX media group. For three decades I've led the magazine's coverage of human origins, archaeology, paleontology, animal behavior, ecology, BIRDS. End of an era. Anyway this feels weird to say, but I'm now available for assignments!

Seen a lot of theories about why the paint is peeling at the Reflecting Pool. I spent way too much time tracking down pool experts to get to the bottom of this. www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-...

Why is the paint peeling off the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool? An investigation

Poor preparation and a failure to properly apply the coating may be just a few of the reasons why the Reflecting Pool’s new paint job appears to be peeling off

scientificamerican.com

I recently found a tick on my body and didn't know what to do. I went into journalist mode to find out. Here's what I learned about how to manage tick bites, with illustrations of the tick species that cause diseases in humans by Diogo Guerra and maps of where they occur by @jenchristiansen.com 🧪

Bitten by a tick? Don’t panic—do this

Knowing what kind of tick bit you and where you got it can help inform next steps

scientificamerican.com

Mars scientists have detailed, deliberate plans for what missions can give them the data they most want about the Red Planet. SkyFall's trio of helicopters (relying on the first-ever nuclear-propulsion spacecraft and mid-air deployment, all with a 2028 launch date!) is...not among them. 🧪 🔭

Will NASA’s SkyFall Mars helicopter fleet sink science at the Red Planet?

Mars researchers are wrestling with the potential costs of a flashy new NASA mission to the Red Planet

scientificamerican.com

20 years after the approval of the HPV vaccine, countries are now working to eliminate cervical cancer. Australia says it's on track to eliminate the disease by 2035. The US is an outlier as one of the few countries without a national elimination plan, www.cidrap.umn.edu/human-papill...

HPV vaccines allow nations, states to work toward eliminating cervical cancer

cidrap.umn.edu

Researchers in Tanzania say state-backed efforts to build tourism infrastructure at some of the most unique and precious ancient human archeological sites are imperiling them for the future. My latest on @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...

The oldest hominin footprints ever found are at risk of destruction, researchers warn

A new investigation alleges that official organizations in Tanzania have imperiled the country's artifacts and remains at four critical human heritage sites they were supposed to protect

scientificamerican.com

When I heard the theory that the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak originated at a landfill in Argentina that is popular with birders, I had questions. I visited that dump on a bird-watching trip last year. It seemed like an unlikely infection site. So I did some digging. Here's what I found out 🧪 🪶

Did a bird-watching visit to this Argentine landfull spark the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak? Experts raise doubts

The hantavirus cruise outbreak may not have started in a garbage dump in Ushuaia, Argentina, after all

scientificamerican.com

When I heard the theory that the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak originated at a landfill in Argentina that is popular with birders, I had questions. I visited that dump on a bird-watching trip last year. It seemed like an unlikely infection site. So I did some digging. Here's what I found out 🧪 🪶

Did a bird-watching visit to this Argentine landfull spark the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak? Experts raise doubts

The hantavirus cruise outbreak may not have started in a garbage dump in Ushuaia, Argentina, after all

scientificamerican.com

Scoop for @sciam.bsky.social: Last year's sweeping NIH grant cuts included funding to study hantavirus transmission, the virus that's likely killed three people on a cruise ship. The cuts shuttered a network of facilities meant to study dangerous pathogens. www.scientificamerican.com/article/trum...

Trump administration cut funding to study hantavirus behind deadly cruise ship outbreak

The Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases were designed to study viruses that could jump from animals to people, including hantavirus, but the National Institutes of Health in 2025 said...

scientificamerican.com

As @springernature.com continues to employ tired and costly union-busting tactics, we just wanted to say we’re so grateful to all the subscribers, scientists and journalists who’ve reached out and said they’ll stand with us as we fight to ensure @sciam.bsky.social lasts another 180 years. Thank you!

We're in peak spring bird migration! Here's my guide to making the most of this incredible spectacle, for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪🪶🦉

The spring bird migration is here and it's glorious. Get out and see it!

The migration of birds from their southern wintering grounds to their breeding grounds in the north is in full swing

scientificamerican.com

Could Ozempic be the solution to inflammatory diseases? Perhaps not for all of them, but compelling research from @danieljdrucker.bsky.social's lab and others is exploring where GLP-1s' anti-inflammatory properties could have meaningful clinical benefits. My latest @sciam.bsky.social

Ozempic’s greatest benefit may be their anti-inflammatory power

A growing body of research suggests that GLP-1 drugs do more than control appetite and blood sugar. They could also fight inflammation

scientificamerican.com

Fossil jaws belonged to real-life 'Krakens.' These ancient octopuses were up to 19 meters long, smart and capable of crunching the skeletons of large prey. They gave giant marine reptiles and sharks a run for their money as apex predators of the Cretaceous seas 🧪

Meet the real-life ‘Kraken’ that ruled the Cretaceous seas

Fossil jaws from colossal octopuses place them at the top of a prehistoric marine food chain

scientificamerican.com

Hey Bluesky! 👋🦋 We’ve been reading your replies about our paywall, and we’re listening. We want to share why it’s there—and an easy, low-cost way to read more. TL;DR: You can unlock every Scientific American article for 90 days for just $1 spklr.io/6003EyRIR More context below 🧵 1/6

"I've sometimes been accused of degrading mankind, or insulting human dignity, of making man beastly" "This surprised me because I like animals and I feel proud to call myself one. I've never looked down upon them, so to call human beings animals is not, to me, degrading."

PaleoAnthropology@qafzeh.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Zoologist and author Desmond Morris dies aged 98 www.bbc.com/news/article...

Are expensive binoculars worth the $$$? For the May issue of @sciam.bsky.social I looked into the science of binoculars to find out what separates break-the-bank bins from budget-friendly ones. 🧪 🪶 🦉

Why some binoculars cost $300—and others cost $3,000

Binoculars and other far-range optics span a gamut of price points. Here’s what separates top-tier from entry-level

scientificamerican.com

When the asteroid hit, why did birds survive when all other dinosaurs died? It's a question I ponder in my upcoming book The Story of Birds. But first, I explore it here for @sciam.bsky.social ! www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-a...

Why birds were the only dinosaurs to survive mass extinction

Scientists finally understand why birds were the only dinosaurs to pull through the end-Cretaceous mass extinction

scientificamerican.com