Dr. Marissa Civic
@stemfactually.com
Owner of STEM Factually | Inorganic Chemist | Former Professor | NY, US Substack: https://drmarissacivic.substack.com/ Podcast: https://bit.ly/3ZOrZbc Science Store: https://bit.ly/4hDb2HH Website: www.stemfactually.com
This beautiful #butterfly has been feasting in my garden all afternoon. Enjoy these closeups! I like how her proboscis is very visible in the second photo! #photography #art #nature #bugsky #bloomscrolling 🦋🌱🐡🧬🍎🧪👩🔬
While these fritillaries love the coneflowers in my garden, they actually rely on wild violets for laying their eggs. They lay their eggs on withered violets and caterpillars hatch and go into a dormant state for winter. #bugsky #bloomscrolling #butterfly #photography #naturephotography 🍎🧬🧪👩🔬🌱🦋🐡
Mini harvest! Surprised I got some before the chipmunks! 🌱🍓🍅
Just a friendly FYI, if you're looking out your windows and it looks yellow and post-apocalyptic, that's climate change causing an increase in wildfires. Smoke particles scatter sunlight changing which wavelengths that reach our eyes #climatechangeisreal 👩🔬🦋🧪
When judging science fairs, I often see high school projects focus more on broader impact than on novelty or intellectual merit. My next newsletter will explore why this happens and how we can better prepare students for college-level STEM research. 🧪🥽👩🔬🍎🧬🦋⚛️ www.linkedin.com/newsletters/...
STEM Factually: Office Hours | LinkedIn
Virtual mentoring and guidance for the STEM community from Dr. Marissa Civic, PhD and former professor
linkedin.com
Cool read: www.americanscientist.org/article/curi... Hydrangea color varies based on aluminum availability, not internal pH shifts. Soil pH determines if roots can absorb metals to form colorful coordination complexes w/anthocyanin pigments. White ones lack these pigments 🦋🐡🧬🧪🥽👩🔬🍎📷🌱 #bloomscrolling
Very excited to introduce my new logo! I'll be gradually updating my sites to incorporate it. www.stemfactually.com #stemfactually #smallbusiness #logo #graphicdesign #stem #womanownedbusiness
Butterfly weed is another host plant for monarch butterflies. It's a type of milkweed and a valuable native plant across most of the US. It lacks the white sap associated with common milkweed. This photo was taken in my Dad's gardens. 🦋🌱🍎👩🔬🥽🧪🧬🐡 #photography
Robber fly enjoying lunch. Robber flies inject a neurotoxin into their prey which liquifies their insides. 🦋🧪🥽👩🔬🍎🌱🐡🧬 #photography #bugsky
Never forget to stop and smell the...bugs? Here's a netwing beetle who could use some appreciation. Found him hanging out in my pumpkin vines. 🌱🍎👩🔬🥽🧪🪲🦋🐡 #photography #art #bugsky
Not all ladybugs we see in our gardens are native. I found this Asian lady beetle in my garden today. You can tell by the "W" shape on the white part of its exoskeleton. They're welcome in my garden if they're eating aphids, but I'd like to try to support a native population. 🧪🥽👩🔬🌱🍎🐞🦋
Found this little leafhopper nymph eating my sage plant. Fortunately there's enough for both of us Note all the little hairs on the leaf. They make the sage surprisingly hydrophobic which helps with cleaning and reducing fungal growth. I'll comment a photo of water beads on the leaves! 🦋🧪🥽🧬👩🔬🌱🌿🍎
Made a simple coin cell battery with the kids today. They really appreciated the concept of a battery when we wrapped it up and related it to the ones we buy in the store. Got 1 V and powered a small LED. 👩🔬🧬🧪🦋🥽🍎🔋 #kids #parenting #momsknowsciencetoo
Why do elementary science curricula often contain zero quantitative analysis? I'm trying to compile a curriculum for 1st grade homeschool and everything is qualitative. Little kids can learn how to use a ruler, measure distances, etc. Math is fun...my kids love a good excel spreadsheet 🍎🥽🦋🧪👩🔬🧬 #math
Tried to get a bee photo for everyone but the bumble got angry when he saw the pumpkin flowers closed and buzzed off above my fairly high roof in a tizzy 🐝🦋🌱
Post your favorite garden helpers! For me it's probably toads and bumblebees. Found this guy in my garden yesterday! Not only do toads eat pests, their skin contains neat antimicrobial peptides that help protect them while they hang out in the dirt. 🌱🦋🍎🥽👩🔬🧪🐸🧬
Blueberries soon enough! 🫐 Just waiting on some sugars and anthocyanins 🧪👩🔬🥽🍎🌱🦋 #photography #garden #plants #nature
Harvested my first crop from the garden today! A coolapeno. I was pretty disappointed when I found out my jalapeno plant was a coolapeno, but it tasted better than I anticipated. Kind of like a lighter poblano, with a little zest. Happy 4th! 👩🔬🦋🌱🫑🌶️4️⃣🎇
Interesting read. Baby formula is not required to be tested for botulism due to the difficulties with detecting spores in powder. 🦋🥽🧪👩🔬🍎 Why botulism keeps cropping up in infant formula | Scientific American share.google/PtBAni66NLsr...
Why botulism keeps cropping up in infant formula
The toxin behind two outbreaks in seven months is hard to find—and just a handful of labs are equipped to look for it at all
share.google
Found an invasive bee with his foot stuck in milkweed (natives are stronger and able to break free), and a goldenrod crab spider seized the moment and ate him #natureismetal 🌱🦋 #bugsky
It's a big world out there! *Insert shameless plug about hiring a STEM Mentor* lol Check out this spotless lady beetle I found in my garden yesterday! Thanks for eating all those aphids 🪲 🐞 #bugsky #ladybugwithnospots #photography #photo #stemfactually 🦋🌱🧪👩🔬🍎🥽🐡
Bets on if this will turn red before the chipmunks steal it? Here's a fun read about strawberry chemistry from @rsc.org : What's in your strawberries? | Feature | RSC Education share.google/uJakzMQJDkVw... 🍓 🌱🧪👩🔬🥽🍎🦋
