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Daniel Engber

@engber.bsky.social
26K followers 433 following 102 posts

Senior editor, The Atlantic

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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Here's a delightful + moving podcast about the history of football shenanigans, which is somehow just as much about family: pod.link/6812943096/e... from the great @joshuablevin.bsky.social
pod.link
A History of Football in One Trick Play
Listen to A History of Football in One Trick Play from Replay Booth wherever you get your podcasts!
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Tamar Haspel @tamarhaspel.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Excellent overview of where we are on food-borne illnesses, by Dan Engber in @theatlantic.com www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...
theatlantic.com
The Truth About American Food Safety
Have sprawling outbreaks become the norm?
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
They're not anti-vaccine, and they had no idea anyone was talking about the child they lost. www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...
theatlantic.com
The Family at the Center of Pennsylvania’s Measles Controversy
Two Amish parents grieving the loss of their newborn child tell their story.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
A good, disturbing story about carelessness with data: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Are Men to Blame for the Birth-Rate Collapse?
Whether dads do their fair share of the housework appears to have no effect on fertility.
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The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 06/08/2026
The Cambridge professor Jason Arday’s remarkable rise through academia has come to an end, @engber.bsky.social writes. He examines Arday’s forthcoming memoir, and finds both implausible details and the makings of a tragic arc:
bit.ly
Icarus in the Faculty Lounge
The Cambridge professor Jason Arday’s unlikely ascent has come to a tragic end.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Sociologist Jason Arday has resigned from Cambridge University after being accused of rampant fraud. Now his very inspiring memoir is about to come out from Simon & Schuster, and it's already an Editor's Pick on Amazon. Something very weird is going on: www.theatlantic.com/books/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Icarus in the Faculty Lounge
The Cambridge professor Jason Arday’s unlikely ascent has come to a tragic end.
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Damon Beres @damonberes.com · 11/07/2026
This is so interesting. @engber.bsky.social is such a wonderful and ~consumable~ journalist.
theatlantic.com
The Thinking About Kids and Heat Has Flipped
Kids are supposed to be uniquely vulnerable to heat, but the data tell a different story.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Psychologists Jonathan Haidt and Peter Gray were once allies in the fight against the ONE BIG THING that is destroying children's lives. Then they had a disagreement over which THING, exactly, is the BIGGEST THING of all... www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
theatlantic.com
What if It’s Not the Phones?
An evolutionary psychologist is challenging the popular understanding of kids and technology.
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Jerusha Klemperer @eathere2.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
If you’re only thinking about how pesticides affect you or your kids, you’re not seeing the full picture. With this episode I tried to help people widen that aperture.
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Damon Beres @damonberes.com · 26/05/2026
"The same person who will pay $900 for microneedling with salmon sperm may refuse a hepatitis B shot for her newborn baby." 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 @engber.bsky.social
theatlantic.com
Americans Have Entered the Age of the Needle
Americans’ enthusiasm for injection has never been higher.
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Retraction Watch @retractionwatch.com · 20/05/2026
In which the Retraction Watch Database makes it into the Harper's Index. harpers.org/harpers-inde...
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
The humpback whale that tumbled ashore in Yachats, OR could not be saved, but the people who tried to move it still found meaning in the effort: www.theatlantic.com/science/2026...
theatlantic.com
They Tried to Move a Whale
A juvenile humpback washed ashore in Oregon. Could local residents save it?
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Thinking back to the "disappearing scientist" mystery of 2002, in the midst of the anthrax scare, when a bunch of microbiologists died mysteriously over a few months. (It turned out not all of them were microbiologists, the deaths were not actually mysterious, etc) www.nytimes.com/2002/08/11/m...
nytimes.com
The Odds of That (Published 2002)
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Adrienne LaFrance @adriennelaf.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
This is worth reading. @engber.bsky.social on the birth of a new conspiracy theory: www.theatlantic.com/science/2026...
theatlantic.com
The Single Dumbest Conspiracy Theory of 2026
The “disappearing scientists” story is, in its way, a remarkable achievement.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
In NYT today, Frank Bruni tells the inspiring story of Woody Brown, a minimally-speaking autistic man who got an MFA at Columbia and then put out a best-selling novel. "How much do we overlook in people," he asks, " ... by making overly hasty judgments?" A very good question. (1 / 2)
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Adrienne LaFrance @adriennelaf.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
This is completely fascinating, by @engber.bsky.social: www.theatlantic.com/books/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Is Woody Brown the Author of Woody Brown’s Best-Selling Novel?
Upward Bound has gotten rave reviews and celebrity endorsements, but experts question its authenticity.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Upward Bound, a best-selling debut novel about life in a day-care center for adults with disabilities, is very good. But who wrote it? [gift link] www.theatlantic.com/books/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
Is Woody Brown the Author of Woody Brown’s Best-Selling Novel?
Upward Bound has gotten rave reviews and celebrity endorsements, but experts question its authenticity.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
A movie couple that would definitely have a podcast.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
How bad is it, really, to have your whole family infested with blood-sucking parasites? www.theatlantic.com/science/2026...
theatlantic.com
Don’t Get Sucked Into the War on Lice
It hasn’t been going well.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
What do you make of this claim: the Inca Empire had a progressive system of taxation in which poor people were encourage to pay in head lice, which served in turn as a public-health intervention.
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Ross Andersen @rossandersen.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
I wrote about Dario’s Oppenheimer moment and the utopian dreams of the nuclear age www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
theatlantic.com
Dario Amodei’s Oppenheimer Moment
It came earlier than expected.
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Nicholas Thompson @nxthompson.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
The Trump admin has shown a particular interest in animal welfare. Trump worries about windmills killing “our beautiful bald eagles.” Pam Bondi brings dogs to meetings. Animals are wonderful, but as @engber.bsky.social points out, there is probably something more at play here. buff.ly/in8hczH
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The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 22/02/2026
Donald Trump's administration has taken a more active approach to animal welfare than any other president's in recent memory—which hints at something more widespread in right-wing, nationalist politics, @engber.bsky.social writes:
bit.ly
MAGA’s Animal Nationalism
The Trump administration has a special bond with dogs and cats. ​​​​​​
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
The Trump administration has been working very hard to protect puppies, kittens, even mice from harm. This fits into a long history of animal-welfare activities in ultranationalist movements: www.theatlantic.com/science/2026...
theatlantic.com
MAGA’s Animal Nationalism
The Trump administration has a special bond with dogs and cats. ​​​​​​
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
The "jeans guy" at the gym comes out into the light www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...
theatlantic.com
Let’s Talk About RFK Jr.’s Workout Pants
Our health secretary is jeans guy, and he knows it.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
As a migraine sufferer I am intrigued by the "extra strength" medicine that contains the exact same dosages as the regular-strength
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
Oof, that scene at the end where Ernest Hemingway gets totally drunk and drives off a bridge www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Once again "hunker culture" is taking over-- using minor inconvenience as a rationale for buying too much food slate.com/human-intere...
slate.com
Big Storm Coming—Better Stock Up on Boxed Salad at Trader Joe’s. Wait, What?
It’s mayhem at my local Trader Joe’s right now. The line snakes out onto the sidewalk, and then around the corner. Everyone is desperate to make some...
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Jesse Sheidlower @jessesword.com · 15/01/2026
Slate ran a spectacular piece by @engber.bsky.social 15 years ago about a previous generation's obsession with quicksand; it's one of my favorite things ever. www.slate.com/articles/hea...
slate.com
The rise and fall of quicksand.
The fourth-graders were unanimous: Quicksand doesn't scare them, not one bit. If you're a 9- or 10-year-old at the P.S. 29 elementary school in Brookl ...
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The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 09/01/2026
A generation ago, getting braces was a rite of passage into seventh grade. Now orthodontists are giving palate expanders—meant to keep teeth from crowding—to seven year olds. @engber.bsky.social reports:
bit.ly
An Expander in Every Child’s Palate
A fervor for reshaping young mouths has taken hold in orthodontics. What purpose does it really serve?
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 08/01/2026
Even NASA's potted plants have now withered and disappeared, after money was withdrawn for watering them. This tiny detail, evoking E.T., is one of many to remember from @rossandersen.bsky.social's latest feature... www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
theatlantic.com
Inside Donald Trump’s Attack on NASA’s Science Missions
During his first year back in office, the president tried to bring America’s age of discovery to an end.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
This technology sounds nifty but the way they've shoehorned in a fake **octopus** connection is truly outrageous news.stanford.edu/stories/2026...
news.stanford.edu
New material changes color and texture like an octopus
Stanford researchers have developed a flexible material that can quickly change its surface texture and colors, offering potential applications in camouflage, art, robotics, and even nanoscale bioengi...
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Tom Hollenstein @tomhollenstein.bsky.social · 07/12/2025
So...my undergrad thesis student is doing a quality analysis of studies found in meta-analyses. She identified a few and we contacted the authors to request their effect sizes and other variables for the studies in their papers. Here's what happened: scientiapsychiatrica.com/index.php/Sc...
scientiapsychiatrica.com
The Impact of Social Media on Adolescent Mental Health: A Meta-Analysis | Scientia Psychiatrica
Introduction: The proliferation of social media has raised significant concerns about its potential effects on the mental health of adolescents. This meta-analysis aims to provide a comprehensive asse...
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Jon Mooallem @jmooallem.bsky.social · 06/12/2025
New sign for my meditation room
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Is there any lower form of journalism than the "holiday debunker"? Here I inaugurate a new series of holiday-debunker debunkers. First up: DON'T BELIEVE THE MYTH ABOUT THE MYTH ABOUT THE 'TURKEY COMA' www.theatlantic.com/health/2025/...
theatlantic.com
A War on Facts About Thanksgiving Dinner
We don’t need to do this every year.
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Swapnil Hiremath 🍁🇨🇦 @hswapnil.medsky.social · 24/11/2025
Surrogate outcomes Screening versus prevention schools of thought And much more in this extremely readable @hildabast.bsky.social post absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/11/24/t... (Remember Nordic Cochrane aka Gøtzsche went off the rails a few years ago? This is the outcome)
absolutelymaybe.plos.org
This Evidence Fundamentally Shifts the Debate About the HPV Vaccine - Absolutely Maybe
We’ve had to wait a long time to get to this point. If cervical cancer develops after HPV infection, it will take…
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The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 15/11/2025
Last year, the Canadian government ordered a flock of ostriches to be killed after some contracted bird flu. The movement to save the birds became a right-wing cause célèbre—and sparked a standoff with authorities, @engber.bsky.social reports: theatln.tc/8UCgg88M
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Adrienne LaFrance @adriennelaf.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
Well that’s one way to think about intellectual property… Common Crawl’s Rich Skrenta: “You shouldn’t have put your content on the internet if you didn’t want it to be on the internet.” Must-read Alex Reisner: www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
theatlantic.com
The Company Quietly Funneling Paywalled Articles to AI Developers
“You shouldn’t have put your content on the internet if you didn’t want it to be on the internet,” Common Crawl’s executive director says.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 29/09/2025
More news on the slimy, invasive species that everyone loves: www.nytimes.com/2025/09/29/w...
nytimes.com
Octopuses Invade the English Coast, ‘Eating Anything in Their Path’
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Scott Myers @smyers20.bsky.social · 27/09/2025
New PubPeer comment on "Efficacy of oral folinic acid supplementation in children with autism spectrum disorder: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial" (Panda et al, 2024). Concerns about significant errors. #folinicacid #leucovorin, #autism pubpeer.com/publications...
pubpeer.com
PubPeer - Efficacy of oral folinic acid supplementation in children wi...
There are comments on PubPeer for publication: Efficacy of oral folinic acid supplementation in children with autism spectrum disorder: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (2024)
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Experimental Philosophy @xphilosopher.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
People sometimes face a conflict between intuition (system 1) and reasoning (system 2) In cases like these, which will be seen as the person’s true self?
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Michael Inzlicht @minzlicht.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
Major new paper by finds implicit measures like the IAT are no better than asking people directly about their biases. After decades of avoiding self-reports, turns out our sophisticated replacement tools work no better than what we abandoned. New post!
open.substack.com
The Great Implicit Bias Bamboozle
Where were you when you first learned about implicit bias?
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Experimental Philosophy @xphilosopher.bsky.social · 19/07/2025
People normally think that certain things should not be for sale (e.g., organs) But what happens when people consider the principled arguments economists have given for the view that these things *should* be for sale? link.springer.com/article/10.1...
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
" Watchdogs and institutionalists alike seethed with frustration. Did the health secretary want more regulation or less? What was his overarching philosophy? How could any agency possibly accommodate so many paradoxes? ... " www.nytimes.com/2025/07/08/m...
nytimes.com
Inside the Collapse of the F.D.A.
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Holy cow
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Daniel Engber @engber.bsky.social · 29/06/2025
💡!
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Jessica Pickett @pickettjessica.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
So far this article by @engber.bsky.social best captures the overall ACIP meeting vibes
theatlantic.com
‘I’m Not Quite Sure How to Respond to This Presentation’
The discomfiting spectacle of RFK Jr.’s new vaccine-advisory committee
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