John MacNeill Miller
@snarlsdickens.bsky.social
Writer and former English professor. Author of *The Ecological Plot: How Stories Gave Rise to a Science* (Virginia 2024). Death positive. Interested in animals, environments, and all things Victorian.
Animals have long been the subject of human experimentation, both in captivity and the wild. But a new research trend aims to see animals as participants instead. How? By asking the animals for their consent to be involved in experiments. I wrote about the trend for @atmosmag.bsky.social.
Puzzles, Treats, and Consent? The New Frontier in Wildlife Studies | Atmos
From raccoons solving puzzle boxes to dogs leaving saliva samples, scientists are experimenting with less invasive ways to study wildlife.
atmos.earth
Nobody says on their deathbed, “I wish I had been more efficient”
sorry, you want me to *revise* and then *resubmit* this shit? dog, i sent it to you because i never wanted to see it again
if they're drinking nounwine it's fantasy. if they're snorting a verb it's sci fi
AHAB: *YouTuber voice* Have any of you guys seen this white whale yet? I am, like, obsessed
[James Stewart as Odysseus] now listen here, Agamemnon, I'm going home, y'see. You keep your fancy armour, I'm getting off this crummy ol' beach. [Spotting the Cyclops] now here's a curious fella, he's only got one peeper
Washington Monthly is looking for an editor for its expanded books section. If you see this and get the gig, you're obligated to assign me stuff. washingtonmonthly.com/careers/?utm... (h/t @roncharles.bsky.social)
Careers
Join Our Team! We’re Hiring for the Following Positions: Executive Editor, Washington Monthly Book Review Summary The Washington Monthly, a 57-year-old independent print and digital media outlet known...
washingtonmonthly.com
So excited to have a story, “Visitation Days,” in the new issue of Cosmic Horror Monthly! If you’re interested in violent nonhuman entities that inexplicably quarter themselves with families in a small town for weeks on end, this one is for you! (And if you’re not interested in that, seek help.)
@chmmagazine.bsky.social · 2w agoFull TOC for CHM #74, grab single issues here: zurl.co/hNkol
So excited to have a story, “Visitation Days,” in the new issue of Cosmic Horror Monthly! If you’re interested in violent nonhuman entities that inexplicably quarter themselves with families in a small town for weeks on end, this one is for you! (And if you’re not interested in that, seek help.)
@chmmagazine.bsky.social · 2w agoFull TOC for CHM #74, grab single issues here: zurl.co/hNkol
Hit the Museum of Edinburgh first thing and, I gotta say, this country fucking rules
Smash Mouth: The ice we skate is gettin’ pretty thin The water’s gettin’ warm so you might as well swim My world’s on fire; how ‘bout yours? That’s the way I like it and I’ll never get bored Friedrich Nietzsche:
Still mad about this. The plot involves a mini-Cthulhu who guides minions on trip to the Mountains of Madness to revive two creatures named Howard and Phillips—and they unite to resurrect what is basically a Shoggoth named Irene. And no one in the Weird community is talking about this?!?
John MacNeill Miller@snarlsdickens.bsky.social · 3w agoMinions & Monsters contains extensive references to H. P. Lovecraft and none of you thought to tell me?!
Nature is weird and we want to read about it 👇
The Rotting Leaf@rottingleafmag.bsky.social · 2w agoHeads up: we open to submissions tonight at midnight, EST
Crabs get a lot of PR, but the porcupine is underrated as the Purest Form towards which all animals are evolving, and the examples here don’t even include Will Stancil.
the ideal academic life is being an eccentric Victorian lord. Invent a stamp licking machine at 22. Get elected to the Royal Academy for counting the beetles on your estate. Die in an arsenic explosion. The perfect life.
Americans have more confidence in higher education than in big tech companies, and the gap is growing rather than shrinking. The higher ed-doomsday pundits need to get on board with the real vibe shift in public trust that is happening right now.
Mark Copelovitch@mcopelov.bsky.social · 3w agoI look forward to all the reports & coverage about all of the internal problems & mistakes of all of these other institutions, in the same way that universities are constantly blamed (& blaming themselves) for “declining trust.” “Compared to what?” news.gallup.com/poll/712436/...
“One does not get better but different and older and that is always a pleasure.” – GERTRUDE STEIN
Minions & Monsters contains extensive references to H. P. Lovecraft and none of you thought to tell me?!
Feeling joy at the news that corporate Nueva Pescanova's plans for a large-scale octopus farm in Gran Canaria, Spain, are finally shut down. This follows years of international global activism (my role was small to be sure but done with love for octopuses)!! #octopus #animalwelfare #animalrights
Victory! Plans for World’s First Octopus Farm Abandoned
Hundreds of thousands of octopuses will be spared from a life of misery.
peta.org.uk
Penelope: And you really didn't have sex with anyone else in those twenty years. Odysseus: I can honestly say that Nobody was having sex.
📚 Submissions are open through August 3rd at 11:59pm PDT for our Humans & Nature Press call for single-author book manuscript proposals! Guidelines: humansandnature.org/book-manuscript-proposals Submissions: humansandnature.submittable.com/submit #creativenonfiction #writers #callforsubmissions
“To the extent that the ELF was a political project, it did not give much thought to long-term goals or building power. Its focus was action… but its members’ eventual disillusionment with their own tactics—& failure to achieve lasting change—seems to speak for itself.” Bleak, important review here
The Eco-Sabotage Group That Went Up In Smoke
The Earth Liberation Front grew impatient with legal forms of protest. Then they turned on each other.
newrepublic.com
I read this. Actually, I had Siri read most of it to me in a rental car yesterday. 😏 I have takes. But I’m glad it exists. I’m glad we’re talking about this. I don’t think the article is in bad faith. The headline is. But it’s doing what it’s supposed to Ok, in order of ascending importance… 1/7
Annie Abrams@annieabrams.bsky.social · last mo.ah come on www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
Maine officials search the rocky beach for a new senate candidate. They find an unconscious man clad in tattered rags washed upon the shore. The sea provides for Maine, it always does
TREBEK: Popular opinion says the hard, earthy exterior of this coastal creature hides a pearl, but look inside and you’re likely to find nothing but a disgusting ball of slime CONTESTANT 1: What is an oyster TREBEK: No CONTESTANT 2: What is a Platner TREBEK: Right. Not an oyster but an oyster farmer