Sarah DeWeerdt
@sarahdeweerdt.bsky.social
Freelance science journalist covering biology, medicine, environment. Always gets the name of the dog, but may be too besotted with the dog to remember the name. Working on a family history of my local whales.
Just how DO bees do it? Make biodegradable plastics, that is. Scientists are trying to figure out the recipe, I report for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/11/natu...
Nature already invented biodegradable plastic. Scientists want to reverse engineer it.
Cellophane bees make a polyethylene-like plastic that breaks down in soil within a year. A new PNAS study shows how it could inspire biodegradable bioplastics.
anthropocenemagazine.org
What if automobile tires were constructed more like waffle makers? I dig in to the possibilities in my latest for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/10/the-...
The case for a more sustainable tire that comes apart on purpose
Tires are hard to recycle and shed microplastics as they wear. A modular design with a replaceable tread may offer a solution to both problems.
anthropocenemagazine.org
Large language models, like humans, have a "status-quo bias." And that could be bad news for the green transition, I report in my latest for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/10/how-...
How AI chatbots may be talking people out of climate action
Across 28,800 prompts, models were 7.5 times more likely to advise “stay the course” than “change,” even when the status quo is anti-climate.
anthropocenemagazine.org
Solar farms dampen dust pollution, improving air quality for cities downwind -- I report on this surprising fringe benefit of renewable energy development for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/10/sola...
Solar panels have (another) surprising side effect: Stopping dust storms in their tracks
In a first, researchers realistically calculated how solar farms in the Gobi Desert improve air quality in northern Chinese cities
anthropocenemagazine.org
Just one of many ways in which scientific discovery depends on the cryosphere. Let's keep it around.
Jennifer Ouellette@jenlucpiquant.bsky.social · 4w agoInordinately pleased about this year's Nobel Prize in Physics. Francis Halzen is an immigrant (originally from Belgium), a visionary physicist, and also an all-around mensch. I like to see good people winning well-deserved recognition. Also, neutrinos are awesome. arstechnica.com/science/2026...
"When [gray] whales first foray into Puget Sound, then, they are likely some combination of intrepid and desperate." -- My love letter to the Sounders, and what they can tell us about how gray whales as a whole are adapting to climate change: www.eopugetsound.org/article/gray...
Gray whale safe haven in Puget Sound takes on new significance amid population decline | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Almost 200 gray whales have washed up dead along the West Coast in 2026. A small group of gray whales who feed in Puget Sound is surprisingly central to understanding the crisis.
eopugetsound.org
Absolutely tremendous work -- clear science & riveting narrative. Read it to learn lots about animals' magnetic sense, & also about how to write:
Calli McMurray@callimcflurry.bsky.social · 2mo agoMany species of migratory animals use the earth’s magnetic field as a compass to guide their journeys—that much is clear. What’s been harder to parse, however, is how the magnetic sense actually works. New work in monarch butterflies could help. Read my latest: www.thetransmitter.org/sensory-syst...
The best part about this is that the seemingly ridiculous maneuver of using a remote-controlled helicopter to collect whale snot is now bog-standard methodology and leading to lots of great insights! 🐳🐳🚁
@elizabethcooney.bsky.social · 2mo agoIn 2010, I covered an Ig Nobel ceremony celebrating using a remote-controlled helicopter to collect whale snot, treating asthma symptoms with a roller-coaster ride, and proving microbes stick to bearded scientists. Can't make this up. Or see this years's in the U.S. www.statnews.com/2026/09/02/i...
Thrilled to share my new feature about a plucky group of scientists investigating the effects of rising temperatures on animal nervous systems. Come for The Blob, stay for the "unflappable" bird brains!
The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 3mo agoMany aspects of animal physiology contribute to temperature tolerance. But “the nervous system is one of the major drivers of animal expansion,” says Wolfgang Stein. #neuroskyence By @sarahdeweerdt.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/environment/...
K-Pod returned to inland waters this morning, ending a 7 week drought with no Southern Residents in the inland waters of the Salish Sea! In case you missed it, here's a short clip off the Lime Kiln hydrophone: soundcloud.com/orcabehavior...
K-Pod on August 2, 2026
Listen to K-Pod on August 2, 2026 by Orca Behavior Institute #np on #SoundCloud
soundcloud.com
NEW: Big new feature from me about offshore wind farms as anchors for wildlife! For example: seals swimming *into* turbine towers to, apparently, hunt fish - and scour protection at the base of turbines used by sea creatures as a dwelling place. atmos.earth/science-and-...
The Sea Life Making a Home in Offshore Wind Farms | Atmos
Offshore wind farms can pose risks to birds and marine life. But their foundations also serve as artificial reefs, offering essential habit.
atmos.earth
I *dare* you not to be captivated by the sound of the echolocation clicks of a foraging three-year-old killer whale.
Sarah DeWeerdt@sarahdeweerdt.bsky.social · 3mo agoWhat do orcas get up to at night? A LOT, it turns out. Find out more in my latest piece for Salish Sea Currents magazine from @pugetsoundinstitute.org: www.eopugetsound.org/article/orca...
What do orcas get up to at night? A LOT, it turns out. Find out more in my latest piece for Salish Sea Currents magazine from @pugetsoundinstitute.org: www.eopugetsound.org/article/orca...
Orcas by night: A rare look at the nighttime activities of endangered killer whales | Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Killer whales are active both day and night, but most scientific research focuses on their daytime activities. A recent study looked at a small group of endangered southern residents to find out how o...
eopugetsound.org
Sorry, but, do we actually know if Jimothy is a boy or a girl?
Wow!! And look -- the world is home to orcas we still don't even know about. Maybe we shouldn't give up.
Orca Behavior Institute@orcabehaviorinstitute.org · 3mo agoWhile on the water out of Seward, Alaska last month, we had the incredible experience of encountering a group of ~20 uncatalogued Alaskan resident orcas on back-to-back days. Check out this incredible mid-air salmon grab that was one of the highlight moments of the trip! #orcas #whalesky #alaska
Fantastic (and accurate!) words about a fantastic book!
Roberta Kwok@robertakwok.bsky.social · 3mo agoWonderful review of Lost in Curiosity in Science: "Young scientists’ passion and commitment take center stage in a moving portrait of research in action... Kwok brings readers to the wings of a play whose ending has not yet been written" www.science.org/doi/full/10.... by @vijee.bsky.social
Slow down, losers, we're saving the climate: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/07/obey...
Obeying the speed limit would save 57,000 tons of carbon a day. It would cost you 54 seconds.
A study of more than 120 million trips finds that Americans' rush to save time on the road comes at an outsize environmental cost.
anthropocenemagazine.org
It's pub day for Lost in Curiosity -- please re-post widely! "Lively and revelatory" (Elizabeth Kolbert), "beautifully written" (Alan Lightman), "an utter delight" (Sabrina Imbler), "the kind of trip you won't want to miss" (Deborah Blum) www.robertakwok.com/book
Check out this art installation and gray whale skeleton - it moves! www.seattletimes.com/entertainmen...
A whale washed ashore on Vashon. Now it’s a work of art and something more
As Washington grapples with gray whale mortalities, Vashon Island turns one whale’s death into a story of celebration, conservation and awe.
seattletimes.com
ICYMI: I wrote a poem about a really big tree, which also kind of ended up being an America 250 poem(??), after going on a road trip with my family and getting inspired by a guy who was inspired by Homer. You can read it here: www.linkedin.com/posts/sarahd...
Portrait of the Harris Creek Spruce The Harris Creek Spruce is found about 200 m (650 ft) down a flat, even trail from an easy-to-miss pullout along the road between Port Renfrew and Lake… | Sarah De...
Portrait of the Harris Creek Spruce The Harris Creek Spruce is found about 200 m (650 ft) down a flat, even trail from an easy-to-miss pullout along the road between Port Renfrew and Lake Cowichan on...
linkedin.com
Policymakers often shy away from climate fixes that involve using less energy, figuring those interventions will make people's lives harder and thus be unpopular. Neither assumption is true, I report in my latest for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/07/the-...
The surprising upside of asking people to use less energy
New research complicates the long-held belief that climate policy is a trade-off between cost and carbon, adding a third factor: it might make daily life better, too.
anthropocenemagazine.org
I just did this and believe me folks, if I can do it so can you.
Katie Mack@astrokatie.com · 4mo agoThere is still time to submit your comment and tell the government that you don't want US research to be completely destroyed by politicians meddling in individual grants. You can submit your comments here: www.regulations.gov/commenton/OM...
For Anthropocene's Daily Science blog, @sarahdeweerdt.bsky.social covered my student Aaron Farha's new paper. Many big devices we increasingly plug into our homes (electric vehicles, solar panels, LEDs, motors on heat pumps & air conditioners) run natively on DC. Should we connect them on DC wiring?
The overlooked wiring problem in the clean-energy transition
As more households add solar panels, batteries and heat pumps, researchers at Purdue found that running them all on DC power—not the AC current from the wall—could cut energy use and emissions.
anthropocenemagazine.org
Kevin J. Kircher@kevinjkircher.com · 4mo agoNew paper! Housing increasingly has big devices that run natively on Direct Current (solar panels, EVs, batteries, motors on heat pumps and air conditioners, etc). What if we connected them on DC, rather than today's AC distribution + lossy AC/DC conversions? 🧵 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Densification isn't one-size-fits-all. A new methodology enables urban planners to pinpoint where it makes the biggest difference in reducing the length of car commutes, I report for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/06/the-...
The climate friendly city is a bullseye
Urban planners have been asking the wrong question. It's not how dense a city is—it's how close. The sweet spot for shorter commutes and lower emissions, for many cities, forms a ring.
anthropocenemagazine.org
What the heck is the "urban mine" -- and why is it key to the green transition? I explain in my latest for @anthropocenemag.bsky.social: www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2026/06/to-c...
To complete its green transition, Europe should mine its own trash
Lithium in old batteries. Cobalt in discarded electronics. The rare earths in retired wind turbines. A landmark EU-funded study finds these buried materials could supply over half of what the clean en...
anthropocenemagazine.org
FOMA's Art Contest! Two categories: Over 18 and Under 18 Submissions open June 15 - July 15 First, Second and People's Choice winners Up to 3 pieces of artwork per artist. Every entrant receives FREE one-year membership to FOMA. Rules, guidelines & prizes: friendsofmidway.org/foma-art-con...
