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Alexa Robles-Gil

@alexaroblesgil.bsky.social
1.2K followers 2.1K following 29 posts

Science Reporter, The New York Times roblesgilalexa@gmail.com

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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Julia Métraux @juliametraux.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
For @motherjones.com, I looked into how Meta could be using disabled people to promote its Meta glasses to the masses. As one expert told me, “companies have used accessibility...as a Trojan horse for a tool that poses significant privacy and security threats.” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Is Meta using disabled people to promote its glasses?
AI glasses are a double-edged sword for disabled people, who face unique risks from surveillance.
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Emma Smith @3mm4sm1th.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Great work as per usual by @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social. Please give it a read!
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Many of us have seen videos of humans swimming with orcas. The reality, however, is much different. Over the course of nearly a year, I traveled to Norway and Mexico to report on the complexity of swimming with these apex predators. Read more in @nytimes.com gift link www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/s...
nytimes.com
Clear Waters, Murky Morals: When Humans Swim With Killer Whales
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 05/02/2026
Having an imaginary friend, playing house or daydreaming about the future were long considered uniquely human abilities. Now, scientists have conducted the first study indicating that apes have the ability to play pretend as well.
nyti.ms
At a Bonobo’s ‘Tea Party,’ Scientists Find Hints of Imagination
In a playtime experiment, researchers found that our closest living relatives have the capacity for make-believe, too.
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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
I'm at the Willard Hotel where I've been denied entry and kicked out of the Reclaiming Science event with NIH director Bhattacharya & other top agency leaders. @jocelynkaiser.bsky.social and I registered for the event months ago yet were told capacity was full, even as they let in dozens of others.
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
Off the coast of British Columbia, dolphins lead killer whales to salmon and earn their share of lunch, a new study reveals. My latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/12/11/s...
nytimes.com
Killer Whales Find an ‘Unlikely Friend’ in Dolphins
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Dean Napolitano @dinonapolitano.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
Killer Whales Find an ‘Unlikely Friend’ in Dolphins Off the coast of British Columbia, dolphins lead killer whales to salmon and earn their share of lunch, a new study reveals. By @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social
nytimes.com
Killer Whales Find an ‘Unlikely Friend’ in Dolphins
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 11/12/2025
The twelfth installment in the @nytimes.com Lost Science series is up: an entomologist who helped protect people from malaria. Story by @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social Gift link: nyti.ms/4pBdYbk
nytimes.com
She Studied Mosquitoes to Prevent Malaria
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The Open Notebook @theopennotebook.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
*️⃣ Focus on key statistics that will resonate with your audience. *️⃣ Investigate how setbacks in studies could affect citizens’ lives. TON/@bwfund.bsky.social early-career fellow Lucila Pinto spoke with @emilywoodruff.bsky.social, @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social and others for this helpful story. 🧪
theopennotebook.com
How to Make Science and Health Funding Cuts Resonate with Readers - The Open Notebook
By tracking funding losses and finding angles that illustrate the impacts of those cuts beyond the numbers, journalists can give readers a deeper understanding of how fiscal decisions have profound co...
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
A global treaty has extended trade protections to more than 70 shark and ray species whose numbers are in sharp decline. my latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/s...
nytimes.com
Sharks and Rays Gain Sweeping Protections From Wildlife Trade
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
In my latest for @nytimes.com, scientists and Indigenous sailors in the Marshall Islands are studying seafaring and the human brain. I became completely fascinated by navigation while reporting this story. (gift link!) www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/s...
nytimes.com
A Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Hugo Spiers @hugospiers.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
A huge thankyou to @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social for covering our research in the Marshall Islands for the @nytimes.com ! In the photo Ken Daniels (an expert indigenous sailor) is looking towards the horizon whilst wearing an fNIRS system. Analysis underway! www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/s...
nytimes.com
A Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
I first heard about orcas attacking white sharks while working as a field biologist in South Africa. Back then, no one had really seen it. Now, scientists in both South Africa and Mexico have drone footage. my latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/s...
nytimes.com
In Mexico, Killer Whales Take Down Great White Sharks
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
Through blackwater photos, scientists have found an interaction rarely seen before. Baby fish might be using free-living anemones to protect themselves from predators in the deep sea. The photos are a delight. my latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/s...
nytimes.com
Armed With Anemones: How Some Young Fishes Survive in the Sea
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
The bumpy snailfish, discovered 10,000 feet down off the coast of California, shows that not all denizens of the abyss are frightening. (I watched the video more than 10 times.) My latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/09/08/s...
nytimes.com
A New, ‘Adorable’ Deep-Sea Fish Swims Into View
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
"It's not just cool ecology" – my latest story for @nytimes.com looks at the benefits of letting bison roam as free as possible. (gift link!) www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/s...
nytimes.com
In Yellowstone, Migratory Bison Reawaken a Landscape
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
Like humans, every tree has its own microbiome — an invisible ecosystem that is only beginning to be understood. My latest for @nytimes.com (gift link!) www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/s...
nytimes.com
In Every Tree, a Trillion Tiny Lives
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Another way drones are changing how scientists study whales: A new tagging method called tap-and-go allows researchers to gather more data on the health and behavior of whales, with less disruption. (gift link!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/s...
nytimes.com
How Scientists Are Using Drones to Study Sperm Whales
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Alan Burdick @alanburdick.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
I learned a lot about Fresnel lenses for this amazing series of lighthouse photographs by Michal Siarek: nyti.ms/41qkFCN
nyti.ms
A Voyage to Bring Norway’s Lighthouses Into the 21st Century
More than 2,000 navigational beacons, big and small, oversee the nation’s 60,000-mile-long coast. Now they need an upgrade.
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
The New York Times @nytimes.com · 04/08/2025
A zoo in Denmark is asking pet owners to donate their animal companions — their guinea pigs, rabbits, chickens and even small horses — to feed to its predators. In a Facebook post, the zoo noted that donations of pets would help it mimic the natural food chain.
nyti.ms
A Zoo in Denmark Wants to Feed Your Pets to Its Predators
A Danish zoo is asking owners of companion animals nearing life’s end to instead donate them as food for captive lynxes, lions and other carnivores.
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
Since 2013, a mysterious epidemic wiped out billions of sea stars. A new study finally identifies the culprit. My latest for @nytimes.com (gift link below!) #marinelife www.nytimes.com/2025/08/04/s...
nytimes.com
Scientists Finally Identify Killer Microbe Behind ‘Terrifying’ Sea Star Disease
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Alan Burdick @alanburdick.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
You say potato, @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social says tomato: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/s...
nytimes.com
What’s a Potato? A Nine-Million-Year-Old Tomato.
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
An ancient hybrid of tomatoes and potato-like plants may have given rise to the modern spud, a new study suggests. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/s...
nytimes.com
What’s a Potato? A Nine-Million-Year-Old Tomato.
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 21/07/2025
Once a surfer's paradise, a string of deadly attacks made Réunion Island synonymous with one word only: sharks. But a team of scientists turned this tiny island into a hub of lifesaving research. For @science.org, I wrote about this fascinating place. www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
How a string of deadly shark attacks made a remote island a hub of lifesaving research
After 11 deaths, Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean became a center for shark attack science
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Meredith Wadman @meredithwadman.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
A fascinating summer read from the redoubtable @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social‬ for @science.org ! How a string of deadly shark attacks made a remote island a hub of lifesaving research | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
How a string of deadly shark attacks made a remote island a hub of lifesaving research
After 11 deaths, Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean became a center for shark attack science
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Dan Fagin @danfagin.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
Big day in the NY Times for NYU SHERP. Congratulations William Herkewitz (SHERP 31) and @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social (SHERP 42)! www.nytimes.com/2025/06/29/o... www.nytimes.com/2025/06/21/s...
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
Jaws' release in 1975 haunted the reputation of sharks worldwide. But a generation of scientists helped turn the tide. My story for @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/06/21/s...
nytimes.com
Fifty Years After ‘Jaws,’ Shark Science Is Still Surfacing
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Stunning video of this Antarctic gonate squid caught alive on camera for the first time. Before this, no one had ever seen this creature alive in the wild. Read more: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/11/s...
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
Today is my first day on the job as a reporter fellow on the Science desk for @nytimes.com! Send me any tips to alexa.robles-gil@nytimes.com
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Meredith Wadman @meredithwadman.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
"Promising" is overused when it comes to potential medicines, but here I think it's justified. 10s of millions of Americans have sleep apnea; many reject CPAP. @science.org.bsky.social : Sleep apnea pill shows striking success in large clinical trial | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Sleep apnea pill shows striking success in large clinical trial
Drug combination targeting lax airways is nearing an FDA submission
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Science Magazine @science.org · 07/05/2025
Work relating to Microsoft’s new quantum computing chip has been called into question after an author on the 2017 study acknowledged it contained “undisclosed data manipulations,” according to emails obtained by Retraction Watch and Science. scim.ag/42Z6Vz2
scim.ag
‘Data manipulations’ alleged in study that paved the way for Microsoft’s quantum chip
Internal emails from 2021 reveal tensions among researchers hunting for elusive Majorana particle
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Science Magazine @science.org · 05/05/2025
Did you hear? You can now listen to audio narrations of our #NewsfromScience stories. 🎧 Check out this new tool on a story about the oldest ant fossil ever found: scim.ag/44PK0IY
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Oldest ant fossil ever found reveals history of ‘hell ants’ www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Oldest ant fossil ever found reveals history of ‘hell ants’
Unusual Brazilian specimen trapped in limestone is 113 million years old
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 16/04/2025
“I’m going to keep trying to maintain the life that I have here,” a Nigerian student says. “But what life am I fighting for if people don’t want me here?” International students in U.S. are reeling from terminated records and revoked visas. My latest for @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
International students in the U.S. are reeling amid revoked visas and terminated records
The moves also affect a temporary work program heavily used by STEM graduates
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group @iucn-cetaceansg.bsky.social · 01/04/2025
In November 2024, the CSG worked with the IUCN SSC and WCPA chairs to draft and send a letter of concern that has helped to halt a potentially harmful LNG development in an Important Marine Mammal Area in the Gulf of California. Read more at: shorturl.at/VwvwF #conservation #IUCN #cetaceans
science.org
Mexican whale researchers sound the alarm on an energy megaproject
A planned gas terminal would routinely send huge tankers through a marine mammal oasis, scientists fear
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 02/04/2025
In Mexico, a planned gas terminal threatens an important whale sanctuary. The controversial megaproject would routinely send huge tankers through the Gulf of California. If the project moves forward, "we are going to regret it a lot," a whale researcher told me. www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Mexican whale researchers sound the alarm on an energy megaproject
A planned gas terminal would routinely send huge tankers through a marine mammal oasis, scientists fear
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Lisa M.P. Munoz @lisampmunoz.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
Excited to be working to share this new film on observation with the world, and especially the science community! A great writeup in Science by @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social 👇 #scicomm #science 🧪
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Humberto Basilio @humbertobasilio.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
The smartest and most beautiful person I know will now be covering Science for The New York Times. Please go follow her to keep reading her amazing work. Te amo, Alexa 🦭❤️
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
So happy to share I'll be joining the @nytimes.com as a reporting fellow on the science desk in June! I'm feeling really grateful and excited for this opportunity to continue covering science www.nytco.com/careers/news...
nytco.com
2025-26 Fellows | The New York Times Company
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
A few weeks ago in Boston, I met the organizers behind the Stand Up for Science (@standupforscience.bsky.social) rally and spoke with them about their motivations in the buildup to the event. Read more in @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
‘I really wanted something to happen.’ The students behind the Stand Up for Science protests
New group hopes to turn out researchers for 7 March demonstrations against Trump administration policies
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Hannah Richter @hannah-richter.bsky.social · 10/02/2025
Today for @science.org 🌎https://www.science.org/content/article/earth-s-inner-core-might-harbor-volcanoes-and-landslides
science.org
Earth’s inner core might harbor volcanoes and landslides
Seismic waves radiating through the planet’s interior point to dramatic activity
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 07/02/2025
“When we listen long enough and when we look, we find more complexity in these animal communication systems.” Really fascinating paper that deep dives into how whale song shares similar structures with human language My latest / @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Humpback whale songs are structured like human language
Languagelike patterns in whale songs could make them easier for whales to learn
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 29/01/2025
How do polar bears keep their fur ice-free despite living in the Arctic? These scientists have an answer 🐻‍❄️ My latest / @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Polar bear fur has a built-in deicing feature
An analysis of the Arctic animals’ fur reveals chemical clues to how they stay ice-free
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Reposted by Alexa Robles-Gil
Joe Spring @joespring.bsky.social · 17/01/2025
This is the way to give a song a natural vibe. A team of researchers trekked through Colombia and recorded the sounds of birds, frogs, jaguars and more, and used them to create a version of the national anthem. @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social with the story. www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...
smithsonianmag.com
How Scientists and Composers Teamed Up to Create a Stunning Natural Version of Colombia’s National Anthem
A team trekked for two weeks and collected the sounds of birds, frogs, a jaguar and whales in order to make the song
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Humberto Basilio @humbertobasilio.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
After 100 years of searching, scientists finally found this tiny frog. In Ecuador, where 57% of amphibians are endangered, this finding represents a flag of resistance in the battle to protect the forests from mining and illegal logging My story for NatGeo www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...
nationalgeographic.com
This Ecuadorian frog was lost for 100 years—until now
Scientists believe this rediscovery will be vital to protect the country's most degraded ecosystem, the southern Andes mountains.
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Humberto Basilio @humbertobasilio.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
Off-road vehicles racing through Chile's Atacama Desert have destroyed ancient geoglyphs over decades of competitions. Authorities have been unable to stop them. The images of the damage are striking. My investigation for @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2024/09/24/s...
nytimes.com
Desert Racers Demolish Art Carved by Ancient People in Chile
Preservationists say governments at all levels have failed to prevent authorized and illegal off-road racers from driving through giant figures of animals, humans and objects.
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Claudia Geib @cgeib.bsky.social · 18/11/2024
I have a new story up in @theguardian.com: how drones are showing promise in scaring predators, like grizzlies & wolves, away from human spaces in the American west—a way to keep both humans and animals safe as predator populations grow there. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Get away, grizzly: why scientists are chasing bears with drones
Wildlife experts in US west have found small aircraft are ideal for protecting humans and livestock from predators
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Alexa Robles-Gil @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
Kicking off my BlueSky feed with a recent story I did for @smithsonianmag.bsky.social In the ‘Salamander Capital of the World,’ Hurricane Helene flooded the ecosystems where the amphibians thrived. Will these species survive the aftermath? www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...
smithsonianmag.com
Hurricane Helene Battered the 'Salamander Capital of the World' With Floods and Landslides. Will the Beloved Amphibians Survive the Aftermath?
The storm decimated a region rich with dozens of species already struggling with habitat loss and disease
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