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Mindy Weisberger

@laminda.bsky.social
34K followers 2.1K following 4.9K posts

Science writer/editor, bylines at CNN, Live Science, SciAm. Previously at Scholastic and the American Museum of Natural History. WGAE member. She/her. Author of Rise of the Zombie Bugs press.jhu.edu/books/title/53677/ris…

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Reposted by Mindy Weisberger
Greg Pak @gregpak.net · 12h
Huge news! @comixaction.com & @handsoffnyc.bsky.social are throwing a NO KINGS COMIC-CON on Thursday, 10/15 to kick off the NK VOTE EARLY campaign! Awesome comics & pop culture guests! FREE! ONLINE! You don't wanna miss it! RSVP now! I'll be there - see ya soon! www.mobilize.us/nokings/even...
mobilize.us
No Kings Comic-Con · No Kings
It’s the biggest pop culture fest in this or any other galaxy — NO KINGS COMIC-CON! Join us live on Thursday, October 15th for an early kickoff to the NO KINGS: VOTE EARLY festivities! This free, vi...
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 16h
Good morning to everyone except the lady who let her dog pee on @hensbreet.art's market tent and then scolded us for not understanding what it means to live in a community 🤨 Anyway, at least the dog wasn't tall enough to pee on the art 🎨
Six paintings showing different nature scenes, hanging on a black mesh wall in a market tent.Six paintings showing different nature scenes, hanging on a black mesh wall in a market tent.
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 02/10/2026
Calling all NYC artists — painters, filmmakers, poets, musicians and more! Did you know our city provides grants to support your work every year? And this year, we're DOUBLING the amount — from $5,000 up to $10,000 per artist! Deadlines are approaching fast — apply today at nyc.gov/artistgrants.
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Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
If you are part of an academic society or a professor of any kind, public statements that you do not condone Drexel cutting off the academy of natural sciences from the public of Philadelphia is very important right now. We need your voices. Urgently.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Trump take salsa 🍅
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Always a good day to do this!
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I'm a bit biased when it comes to @hensbreet.art on account of us being married and all (14 years today!) but I'm being 100% objective when I say that his latest painting kicks some serious fucking ass
A painting of a blue heron in a very green marsh
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
September 30th October 1st
A smiling long-haired Willow from the show Buffy the Vampire SlayerDark Willow from the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer
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maura quint @mauraquint.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Yes every woman has been harassed, many assaulted. But every woman has also experienced invisible loss from moments she avoided harassment. She felt a space becoming unsafe, so she left, while men stayed on. And in leaving, she lost: opportunities, experiences, learning, promotions, even simply fun.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
In the Oval Office is "a deeply divisive authoritarian who is also a white supremacist with open contempt for constitutional rights" Sound familiar? Except it's 1916 & the man is Woodrow Wilson "We've been here before," writes @derfbackderf.bsky.social in his new graphic novel, "but we forgot."
abramsbooks.com
Dissidents Autocrats! Vigilantes! Communists! And Cartoonists!
From the award-winning author of My Friend Dahmer and Kent State comes a timely graphic novel about racism, violence, and political turmoil in the early 20th century, when a handful of cartoonists and...
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
People have speculated about Thomas Jefferson fathering the children of Sally Hemings, an enslaved woman in his household, for more than 200 years. Now, for the first time, DNA evidence from Jefferson's hair connects him to Hemings' descendants 🧪
cnn.com
DNA analysis suggests 99.96% chance that Thomas Jefferson fathered at least one of Sally Hemings’ kids | CNN
Thomas Jefferson’s DNA sheds new light on his relationship with Sally Hemings and supports the longstanding conclusion that he fathered her children.
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Reposted by Mindy Weisberger
NE Ohio Regional Sewer District @neorsd.org · 30/09/2026
ok leaving this up on the conference room whiteboard
“they don’t know” meme but the man wears a NEORSD hat and stands waist deep in water with otters swimming around him. he says “they don’t know this river burned 13 times”
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Saw this today at the NJIT library, I wholeheartedly support this message
A sign showing an image of the two astronauts, gun and Earth meme, text reads: "wait so the secret to beating brain rot is reading books?"

"always has been"

Text next to the image reads: "Are you worried about your brain going stale already?

READ BOOKS
READ BOOKS
READ BOOKS!!!

life is full of propaganda but this one is serious!!! evidence-based!!! reading is good for your brain and helps you build empathy and stuff!!"
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I'll be honest, I haven't been following Fat Bear Week as closely as I usually do because LIFE, and I figured that this year's winner Backpack got his name because 🍑
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
There were some very legitimate guesses proposed for these image results, but the search term was "online hate speech" 🤷‍♀️
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I spent some time on a stock photo site today and jesus christ, are ALL search engines everywhere now completely useless? Try to guess the search term that returned these two options
Two photos, stacked one on top of the other. The top photo shows a person with upswept purple hair, wearing clown makeup and a black mesh shirt, sitting at an open laptop. The bottom photo shows a person in what appears to be a white nun's habit, also sitting at an open laptop.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Please take a moment to appreciate that there are currently two young bears wrassling live on @explore.org's Kat's River View camera at Katmai National Park www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTsj...
Two bears wrestle in a field next to a road.Two bears wrestle in a field next to a road.Two bears wrestle in a field next to a road.
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The Xylom @thexylom.com · 28/09/2026
BREAKING: Ukrinform, the state news agency of Ukraine, reports that a Russian drone has struck the National Academy of Sciences in central Kyiv, causing a fire. Last month, we reported on a visit to one of the research groups housed within the complex, which studies fungi across the country.
thexylom.com
Ukrainian Mycologists Are Not Giving Up
As the Russo-Ukrainian war continues, Ukrainian mushroom scientists struggle in their quotidian work.
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Reposted by Mindy Weisberger
Assigned Media @assignedmedia.org · 28/09/2026
Check it out: Not one but TWO Democratic governors recently spoke out against the party abandoning trans rights. Plus Cheryl Reeve continues to be a stand out ally at the WNBA and a lawsuit confronts the impact of Trump's discriminatory policies in HIV/AIDS care. assignedmedia.org/breaking-new...
assignedmedia.org
Democratic Governors, WNBA Coach Defend Trans People in Sport - Assigned Media
Leading Off: Reagan appointed judge defends trans Americans, WNBA coach Cheryl Reeve defends trans athletes, and Governors Gretchen Whitmer and Andy Beshear both spoke out in favor of Democrats contin...
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Arienne Childrey @ari4ohio.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Pay attention Dems. Gov Beshear won twice, in a deep red state, and never threw trans people under the bus. He led with compassion rather than the fear and cowardice we've seen from some of our Ohio candidates and party leadership.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
For years, a group of scientists in Copenhagen fed their research into Anthropic's AI models to write code and draft manuscripts. @carlzimmer.com reports that among their work were findings about new enzymes—which Anthropic recently "discovered" independently, according to an announcement last week
nytimes.com
Did Anthropic’s A.I. Really Make a Scientific Discovery on Its Own? (Gift Article)
An expert at the University of Copenhagen said his team had been sharing its research with the company’s A.I. model, Claude, and that its new finding matched their work.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Pre-nor'easter sky tonight was utterly ridiculous
A parking lot at dusk, the sky overhead is alight in shades of flaming orange and pink.
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New York Attorney General Letitia James @newyorkstateag.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Ahead of this weekend's Nor'easter, I'm reminding businesses that they cannot overcharge for essential goods like water, gasoline, and generators.   I encourage all New Yorkers to stay safe and if you see price gouging, report it to my office.
ag.ny.gov
File a complaint: Consumer issues
Click to read more.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Roses are red Some blooms love the dark
blog.pensoft.net
New “devil flower” species discovered in Thai national park | Blog
Researchers have described a new species of plant in western Thailand, and its otherworldly appearance has earned it a dramatic name: Thismia daemona, the “devil flower”.
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Reposted by Mindy Weisberger
AP Stylebook @apstylebook.com · 23/09/2026
Artificial intelligence systems do not think, feel, want or understand. Avoid language that gives them human characteristics.
apnews.com
https://apnews.com/article/openai-safety-ai-framework-089e75b95bc935af092da7b79d92706d
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
It's opening night of the New York Art Book Fair today. It will be crowded so if you don't like crowds come on a different day. Visit our table (Sojourners for Justice Press) if you do come.
nyabf2026.printedmatterartbookfairs.org
NYABF 2026
cargo.site
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
GET IN, BUG NERDS, FLAT MANTIS JUST DROPPED
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
How your latest email finds me
"Creative taxidermy" at the Natuurhistorisch Museum Rotterdam. A bug-eyed creature with a bald head and no nose. Its body is covered with fur and it has four birdlike feet.
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Reposted by Mindy Weisberger
Scott Nover @scottnover.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
BREAKING: TV pool will not be providing coverage of presidential events until further notice b/c of CNN's ban, pool chair and FOX News Washington Bureau Chief Bryan Boughton said. It's effectively a boycott by the fellow members — ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX: www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
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Ian Coldwater 🧊🚫 @lookitup.baby · 20/09/2026
Amtrak didn’t tell us about this exposure, so heads up: if you took an Amtrak train last week through Chicago or anywhere on the Southwest Chief, Coast Starlight, or California Zephyr routes like we did, you may have been exposed to measles! Please let the train people in your life know about this
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Heba Gowayed هبة جويد @hebagowayed.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
I say this over and over again. It’s trans rights. It’s immigrant rights. It’s Palestinian lives. It’s always been Black and indigenous lives. No one is free until everyone is free is a warning, not a mantra!
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Please join me in appreciating how these coffee grounds vaguely resemble a fanged cyclops demon fish, if you are so moved feel free to offer your thoughts on what this predicts for my future
A hand holds up a nearly-empty coffee cup, showing grounds at the bottom. They form a shape resembling a weird deep-sea fish with long fangs and one enormous eye.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Please join me in appreciating how these coffee grounds vaguely resemble a fanged cyclops demon fish, if you are so moved feel free to offer your thoughts on what this predicts for my future
A hand holds up a nearly-empty coffee cup, showing grounds at the bottom. They form a shape resembling a weird deep-sea fish with long fangs and one enormous eye.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that strong visuals do a lot of heavy lifting in scicomm, and basic design is a great skill for researchers to add to their toolbox
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Reporters! If perchance you're looking for an expert who can weigh in on the latest discourse about "extinction-level threats" from AI, DM me to connect with NJIT's David Bader, distinguished professor of data science
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
AAAHHH, Brooklyn Books & Booze Author Book Fair No. 2 is tomorrow! Come for the books, stay for Dawn of the Cicada Sex Zombies, my 2pm chat with @nicholaskaufmann.bsky.social. We'll talk about my book Rise of the Zombie Bugs and pop culture zombies. And yes, cicada sex zombies are very real 📚🍺🧟‍♀️
scientificamerican.com
Prepare for ‘Sex, Drugs and Zombies’—Brood XIV Cicadas Are Coming
As 17-year cicadas emerge this spring, a zombifying fungus is waiting for them
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Considering that in 2021 New Zealand's "Bird of the Year" was a long-tailed bat, I'm actually pleasantly surprised to find that NZ voters picked a penguin and not a tuatara or wētā as "Penguin of the Year"
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Ryan H. @ryan.blacksky.app · 17/09/2026
This absolutely lovely interview with Lori Stratton for @pulp.aadl.org is out! So grateful for the chance to share about my exhibit, and hoping it leads to more artistic opportunities 🙏🏾🥰 #a2council
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Gail Drakes @gaildrakes.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
As someone who believes popular education is a big part of how we all get free… These Norwegians made my day!! Watch this - full screen and landscape mode! And yeah, IT’S FUNNY BECAUSE IT’S TRUE!
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
A Dutch school spent 200,000 euros on a special roof to house protected bats, which are currently roosting in the attic of an old school building scheduled for demolition. But the bats were unimpressed & are quite happy where they are, holding up the school's scheduled demolition & reconstruction 🦇
rtvdrenthe.nl
Experts sluiten schoolgebouw Eext af voor vleermuizen: sloop moet dit najaar beginnen
Vleermuizenexperts zijn begonnen aan het dichtmaken van openingen in het oude gebouw van de Prins Willem Alexanderschool in Eext.
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Swara A.S. ☀️🍉🌊🧿 @spiderswarz.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
H/T @falconwizard.bsky.social
Ed Sheeran alone and sad on his tour bus
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Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
i'm not sure if robert kraft quite grasps what he started
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Marc Fischer @marc-fischer.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Librarians! Zine-Makers! This new Temporary Services zine (made with @doormouse12.bsky.social) is for you! We interviewed 4 public librarians that maintain zine collections and the result is a beautiful 44 page booklet. See and learn how they do it! $10.00 (or $3.00 PDF) from www.halfletterpress.com
From the front and back cover of the booklet:

Public Librarians Discuss Zine  Collections

We asked librarians at four public libraries to talk about their library’s zine collection. What advice can they share with zine makers that want to get their work into a public library, or librarians that want to start a collection at their library? Was it hard to convince others that zines are a resource that the library should collect? What collecting models did they follow? How did they build the collection?  

Interviewees:

Tim Devin / Somerville Public Library 
 (Somerville, MA)
Angi Brzycki & Ziba Pérez / 
Los Angeles Public Library 
(Los Angeles, CA)
Alicia Tate / Multnomah County Library 
(Portland, OR)
Alina Josan / The Free Library of Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA)
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
What can you expect from my "Dawn of the Cicada Sex Zombies" panel with @nicholaskaufmann.bsky.social on 9/19 2pm ET at @bklynbooksbooze.bsky.social? Lots of zombie science! We'll talk about zombifying fungi, wasps, worms & viruses, & how parasites manipulate insects, spiders, snails...and us??? 🧟‍♀️
A poster with two headshots — a woman and a man — next to an image of a chalkboard. 

Text reads: Brooklyn BOOKS & BOOZE Author Book Fair #2
Books! Authors! Publishers! Agents! Publicists! Free!
Saturday, September 19th
11:00AM - 5:00PM
2pm - M.B. Weisberger & Nicholas Kaufmann
DAWN OF THE CICADA SEX ZOMBIES!
Industry City, Building 6, 86 34th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232
BROOKLYNBOOKSBOOZE.COM
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
A still-scruffy but nearly-recovered Bloödcheëp showed up on today's livestream from a bird feeder in Gettysburg, PA! Gettysburg livecam: www.youtube.com/live/y9t1g8I... Comic by @rosemarymosco.com, Matron of Bloödcheëps
A cardinal perched on a birdfeeder, almost fully re-feathered after molting. Its head is mostly covered, though it still has a bald spot at the very top where its crest would normally be.A comic in four panels, illustrating different variations of northern cardinals: Juvenile, Adult Male, Adult Female, and Bloödcheëp, Frightful Molt-Demon of the Cursed Abyss. Bloödcheëp has a feathered body and a very naked head.
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Alejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 14/09/2026
Cis people do not understand how much trans people's rights have regressed in just 5 years. 5 years ago, there were none of these restrictions. 19 states banned legal recognition 21 states have bathroom bans 8 states ban gender marker changes on DLs 25 ban gender affirming care for trans youth
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Do you like booze, books and zombies? My upcoming conversation with @nicholaskaufmann.bsky.social at @bklynbooksbooze.bsky.social (Sept 19, 2pm ET) may be just what you're looking for 🍺📚🧟‍♀️
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
A man in Bangladesh harbored an eel in his colon for more than a day, after it swum into his rectum while the man was fishing. He held off on seeking medical attention immediately, hoping the fish would find its own way out. Reader, it did not.
livescience.com
Diagnostic dilemma: Fisher's colon punctured by eel that snuck in through his rectum
A man's intestines were perforated in an "exceedingly rare" medical case involving a live eel.
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
For those of us who even as adults maintain an enduring childlike wonder and big love for weird extinct animals
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Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Just flew back home from the Netherlands after an emotional visit for my mother-in-law's funeral, and it's uncanny how perfectly these British Airways caution signs capture my mental state right now
Three triangular yellow-and-black caution signs, each showing a person in different stages of spectacularly tripping and falling.
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