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KC Cushman

@cushmankc.bsky.social
202 followers 490 following 22 posts

Ecologist studying forests with remote sensing — books, running, my cat, reality TV — views my own

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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
I had a playlist timed for my walk to campus during the last months of my PhD, and it ended with “Light of a Clear Blue Morning”…thanks for the inspiration then and always, Dolly, from one east TN girl to another 🦋 youtu.be/RfinvuRolR0?...
youtu.be
Light of a Clear Blue Morning
YouTube video by Dolly Parton - Topic
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New Phytologist @newphyt.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
✨ Paper spotlight ✨ (🧵 1/7) Soil fertility controls on tropical forest productivity and mortality: synthesis and roadmap nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Fig. 1 Conceptual map of links between soil fertility and forest carbon dynamics.
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New Phytologist @newphyt.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Why doesn't tropical forest biomass track increasing productivity with higher soil fertility? Wong et al. @michellewongca.bsky.social @jane-lucas-phd.bsky.social @kaaze7.bsky.social @cushmankc.bsky.social @dallingjim.bsky.social nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Conceptual map of links between soil fertility and forest carbon dynamics.
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Monica G. Turner @monicagturner.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
I am working on my public comment. All scientists should do so, this would be devastating to US science and the innovation and leadership that has been a real gold standard.
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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 30/05/2026
I’m a climate scientist. Let me fix this headline. “Nearly a century ago, scientists showed that burning fossil fuels warms the planet. Today, we know human emissions account for over 100% of the warming. Yet dark money and disinformation still work to keep Americans addicted to fossil fuels.”
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geo-trees.bsky.social @geo-trees.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
@bgeo-trees.bsky.social GEO-TREES would like to express its sincere thanks to all Panama Workshop participants. The collaborative work achieved will be invaluable for integrating the datasets ( #ALS, #TLS, #TreeInventory ) toward robust forest carbon estimation. 📷 J. Aleman #forests #carbon #lidar
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Jacquelyn Gill @jacquelyngill.bsky.social · 21/02/2025
It's so hard out there right now, especially for early career scientists. Publishing expectations have never been higher, and it's taking a year or more for papers to go through peer review, largely because of these delays. I know things are hard, but if you're publishing, you should be reviewing.
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Linda Holmes @lindaholmes.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
I love making this list every year, and I never have any trouble coming up with 50 things I think were genuinely wonderful.
npr.org
50 wonderful things from 2025
Each year, critic Linda Holmes looks back on the year and compiles a list of the things that brought her joy.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
A new thing that I’ve noticed in the last few weeks is review requests including something like: “In your previous review, you asked to see the revised version”, even though I never previously reviewed it (I keep my a spreadsheet of MSs I review). Anyone else seeing this tactic?!
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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 30/10/2025
If you take the time to read the whole Gates memo (which I did), the bulk of the content was mostly solid and encouraging. Really! It was the FRAME that was off--very off, from the first line. And when your framing is off, then how you make decisions and set priorities is off. THAT'S the problem.
My quote from an Axios interview, stating that: People often think of climate change as a separate bucket at the end of a long row of other buckets of problems we're trying to fix that are wrong in the world," Hayhoe told Axios.
This includes poverty, disease and access to clean water.
"Climate change is not a separate bucket," Hayhoe said. "The reason we care about climate change is that it's the hole in every bucket."
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 04/06/2025
#seenonmyrun
Hazy sunrise over a lake, with flowers in the foreground and forested ridges surrounding.
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Katherine Sinacore @ksinacore.bsky.social · 31/05/2025
BRB, going to binge four hours of Bugs that Rule the World, featuring bug enthusiast, researcher, and science communicator @the-bug-hut.bsky.social. www.pbs.org/show/bugs-th... @pbs.org
pbs.org
Bugs That Rule the World
A four-part investigation into insect declines, exploring their diversity and ecological importance.
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Emilio M Bruna @brunalab.bsky.social · 31/05/2025
It’s hard to see how international field research continues under an 89.6% cut to NSF DEB.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 22/05/2025
Very excited to read this Paint Rock ForestGEO paper! 🌳 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
Relationship between topographic variables and live aboveground tree biomass on a large temperate forest plot
Understanding local variation in forest biomass allows for a better evaluation of broad-scale patterns and interpretation of forest ecosystems’ role i…
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
Delighted to finally watch the first episode with my parents while we had Mother’s Day dessert! Bugs That Rule The World is beautiful and @the-bug-hut.bsky.social is the best ambassador for the bugs. 10/10
Bowl with cobbler and ice cream in the foreground, TV with Ummat’s head looking across the savanna in the background
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Becca Dzombak @rdzombak.bsky.social · 02/04/2025
These trees are into getting shocked. Dipteryx oleifera towers above the rest of Panama’s rainforest — arboreal lightning rods. They’re more likely to survive ⚡ than their neighbors, giving them a competitive edge. Read more at: @nytscience.bsky.social: www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/s...
nytimes.com
This Tree Wants to Be Struck by Lightning
Before a discovery in a Panamanian rainforest, “it seemed impossible that lightning could be a good thing for the trees,” a scientist said.
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Hansi Lo Wang (he/him) @hansilowang.bsky.social · 28/03/2025
NEW: Ten voting House Republicans have now signed on to a resolution that says Congress "should take all appropriate measures" to make sure USPS remains an independent government agency and "not subject to privatization,” including Reps. Sam Graves and Thomas Kean www.congress.gov/bill/119th-c...
A list of the latest cosponsors of House Resolution 70
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Evan Gora @evangora.bsky.social · 28/03/2025
When lightning strikes D. oleifera trees - and apparently trees of several other taxa - it kills nearby trees that compete for resources and the woody vines that infest their crowns without causing meaningful damage to the directly struck tree. (2/5)
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Evan Gora @evangora.bsky.social · 28/03/2025
⚡⚡Did you know that some trees WANT to be struck by lightning?⚡⚡ Well, trees don't "want" anything, but if they did, then Dipteryx oleifera trees would want to be struck by lightning. Just published yesterday (tinyurl.com/ltbnft) and described in this video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwX_... (1/5)
youtube.com
How some trees benefit from being struck by lightning
YouTube video by Evan Gora
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Hansi Lo Wang (he/him) @hansilowang.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
My latest @npr.org story: Under President Trump, the Justice Department is starting to step away from legal actions that had begun during the Biden administration to combat racial discrimination in elections — including voting rights cases in Louisiana, Texas and Georgia’s Houston County
npr.org
Under Trump, the Justice Department is stepping away from some voting rights cases
Under the Trump administration, the Justice Department has stepped away from some voting rights lawsuits, leaving behind a gap in enforcement of protections against racial discrimination in elections.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
Update: it turns out Arden was the first member of our family to notice a bluebird finally using our box!
Poor resolution zoomed pic of a bluebird with brush in its mouth on top of a birdhouse.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
Recharging during the first weekend of spring 🌼
Fluffy grey and white cat sitting on the back of a chair with her paw on the windowsill, looking out into the sunny woodsThree trilliums emerging beside a decomposing fallen log
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Laura Boeschoten @lauraboeschoten.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
I'll be presenting my work on tree growth in an everwet forest in Puerto Rico at the ForestGEO seminar next week! Mar 19, 2025 09:00 AM, EST time. Register here for the link: smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
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The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
Fascism is here. Name it. This is not what we are supposed to be about. 🇺🇸
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Saeed Jones @theferocity.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
My mentor and dear friend @roxanegay.bsky.social recently joined me here at Harvard Medical School for an incredible event. We both read new work and then had a wide-ranging discussion about the creative life, politics and culture. I’m delighted to be able to share the video now:
youtube.com
Creative Nonfiction in Conversation: Roxane Gay and Saeed Jones
YouTube video by HMS: Global Health and Social Medicine
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Elsa Ordway @elsaordway.bsky.social · 08/12/2024
I'm delighted to share the final #PANGEA White Paper: tropicalforestscoping.com/news-2/ (English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, & Indonesian) Thank you to the 800+(!) ppl who contributed their ideas, input, time, & energy. Truly a community concept for a #NASA Terrestrial Ecology Field Campaign
tropicalforestscoping.com
News
The PANGEA White Paper is out! See below for the draft white paper Final white paper PANGEA White Paper (English)Download PANGEA White Paper (French)Download PANGEA White Paper (Spanish)Download PA…
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 12/01/2025
Happy to contribute this review of remote sensing research in the Barro Colorado Nature Monument to the BCI 100 book! Check out the SI for a table listing all the refs, data they used, and links to available remote sensing datasets over BCNM 🛩️ dx.doi.org/10.5479/si.2...
dx.doi.org
Remote Sensing of Forest Structure and Dynamics in the Barro Colorado Nature Monument
The structure of tropical forests provides globally important information about carbon storage and dynamics, but ground measurements remain relatively sparse. Remote sensing instruments have the abili...
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 12/01/2025
Love our cozy backyard view on a snowy weekend ❄️
A few inches of snow on fallen logs in front of woods going down a slope, another ridge somewhat visible in the distance.Fluffy grey and white cat looking cutely at camera, sitting on a window mounted cat bed, snowy trees visible outside.
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Linda Holmes @lindaholmes.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
I don’t always have good news to share first thing in the morning BUT… IT’S BOOKS WE LOVE DAY!!!!! apps.npr.org/best-books/#...
apps.npr.org
Books We Love
Here are 350+ great reads from 2024 hand-picked just for you by NPR staff and trusted critics.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 23/11/2024
Great to see this out, I love the gorgeous cover art! Check out page 706 for picture of my parents next to Big Tree (RIP Big Tree) in my ode to the mega flora of BCI 🥹🌳
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Martijn Slot @martijnslot.bsky.social · 22/11/2024
The BCI book is out! Almost 100 chapters of science about Barro Colorado Island plant and ecosystem science. scholarlypress.si.edu/store/all/th... Edited by STRI colleagues Helene Muller-Landau and Joe Wright. When I get my hardcopy, I'll want to read this cover to cover (1/2)
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 15/11/2024
Here’s something joyful that happened to me—I’ve had a pair of corduroy pants for a year that I love except they don’t have pockets 🙄 Today I realized that they DO have pockets, they’re just camouflaged 🥳
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 01/11/2024
12 trick-or-treaters this year, up from 2 or 3 last year…happy Halloween 👻
Fluffy grey and white cat reclined on a chair with a pumpkin in between her back paws in the foreground
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Hansi Lo Wang (he/him) @hansilowang.bsky.social · 28/10/2024
Dear mail-in voters, If your state's return deadline is Election Day (Nov. 5), the U.S. Postal Service recommends that you mail your ballot by Tuesday (Oct. 29). Sincerely, The reporter who wrote this: www.npr.org/2024/09/20/n...
npr.org
Voters are advised to return their ballots early because of mail delay concerns
Election officials are raising concerns about the U.S. Postal Service's ability to handle this fall’s expected influx of election mail. But USPS say it’s ready to deliver the country’s ballots.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 28/10/2024
Arden’s favorite time of year, watching leaves fall 🍂😻🍁
Fluffy grey cat with white ruff sitting on the top of a green wingback chair, looking out a window at autumn foliage.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 06/09/2024
I’ve reached 50 review requests for the year, and 17 have come since August 😱 doing what I can, sorry for the declined invites!
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 22/08/2024
Enjoying slightly cooler mornings while they last! #seenonmyrun
Spotted clouds in the sky during first light—reflected in a lake over a dark treeline
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 08/06/2024
#seenonmyrun
Morning sun shining through trees in a grassy area with paved path and lake in background4 pt deer at waters edge in front of forest, reflected in water below
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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 21/04/2024
If the economic damages of climate change are at least 6x > the cost of mitigation (and probably much more imho), why aren’t we acting like it? Because it’s not about economics: it’s about injustice. Those who hold the balance of power + wealth are not those who bear the brunt of the impacts.
nature.com
The economic commitment of climate change - Nature
Analysis of projected sub-national damages from temperature and precipitation show an income reduction of 19% of the world economy within the next 26 years independent of future emission choices.
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Emily J. Francis @emilyjfrancis.bsky.social · 11/03/2024
Post-doc opportunity in wildfire geospatial science in my lab at Colorado State! Work on developing geospatial data products to support fuel treatment planning/monitoring in southwestern US forests. w/ @mhurteau.bsky.social, me & others. Details and apply by 03/25: jobs.colostate.edu/postings/140...
jobs.colostate.edu
Postdoctoral Researcher in Forest and Wildfire Geospatial Science - Fort Collins, CO
The Postdoctoral Researcher will work on a Joint Fire Science Program-funded project to develop geospatial products to quantify forest structure and fuel conditions in the upper Rio Grande watershed i...
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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 06/03/2024
Big cuts in US research budgets were recently announced. Summary below, read www.science.org/content/arti... for more.
A summary of budget cuts to US research funding agencies.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 12/02/2024
I will forever regret not seeing Usher’s Vegas residency when we were living in Los Angeles 😭 were those summer conferences actually important 😭😭
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 18/01/2024
Haven’t left the house since Sunday bc of snow/ice but Arden is content with some good books! @roxanegay.bsky.social
Fluffy grey and white cat on table sitting on two books, “Opinions” by Roxane Gay and “Grand Union” by Zadie Smith.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 09/10/2023
There are few things more polarizing than Grape Nuts, evidently! 🥣
Kroger reviews of Grape Nuts, one single star “I always here good things about Grape Nuts but this taste awful…” and one five star “with a little brown sugar this is wonderful”.
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KC Cushman @cushmankc.bsky.social · 02/10/2023
hello (bluesky) world / we moved to TN! excited to be starting a staff position at ORNL 😁
Foggy marina and greenway in the morning sunSunny, leafy, forest canopy.
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