iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Stephen Heard

Chris Martine | Plant People FTW @martinebotany.bsky.social · 14h

Ludwigia fruits are bonkers

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 23h

I mean, I'll be DEEPLY disappointed if the answer is "no" - but I think the risk of that is minimal.

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Erin L. Thompson @artcrimeprof.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I HAVE A COVER! And a pub date - July 6, 2027! If you want six true stories of antiquities fraud, from a California college convinced that Hong Kong tourist trinkets were worth millions, to an entire fake museum, to the titular mummy carved from styrofoam, preorder at www.amazon.com/Styrofoam-Mu...

Cover of the book The Styrofoam Mummy https://www.amazon.com/Styrofoam-Mummy-Tales-Antiquities-Market/dp/1324035870

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Phil Knutson, PhD @philknutson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Lignin chemistry!! I’ve drawn a line tree with the lignin polymer behind it. I’ve drawn it as one single polymer throughout! This messy, highly irregular biopolymer gives plants structural strength and helps protect their cell walls. #sciart #chemsky

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Daniel Bellingradt @dbellingradt.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

This whale had had enough! See this (angry) whale breaking through the 1610 map and coming for you ...

a map from 1610, showing the sea in front of South America, and a whale is breaking through...

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Entomological Society of Ontario @entsocontario.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

On the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, we honour Survivors, their families, and the children who never returned home, while recognizing the lasting impacts of residential schools and colonialism.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The "reverse outline" - a technique for diagnosing, and fixing, organization/structure problems in your paper drafts. Super powerful - and thus I'm slightly embarrassed I don't explain it well in my books. Here you go: scientistseessquirrel.wordpress.com/2026/09/29/t...

scientistseessquirrel.wordpress.com

The “reverse outline”: a useful writing technique I mention, but don’t explain, in BOTH my new books!

In the last year, I’ve published not one but two books on scientific writing: the new edition of The Scientist’s Guide to Writing just last month, and Teaching and Mentoring Writers in the Sciences…

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

David Francey last night at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre, Fredericton, NB. Fabulous concert from one of my favourite folk singer-songwriters (www.davidfrancey.com/) - if he tours near you, see him!

View of a concert on stage. David Francey, centre, is wearing jeans, white shirt, and antique waistcoat, and is singing with eyes closed into a stand mic. At left a woman dressed in black is playing fiddle; at right, a man plays guitar. A mandolin and a bouzouki are on a stand behind.

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Canadian Paintings @canadianpaintings.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The road to reconciliation begins with truth Mishiikenh Kwe ~ Anishinaabe c. 2022

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

This starter pack (which rocks) is going around again, and you could do worse than just follow the whole darned thing! bsky.app/starter-pack...

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I've also cited de Maupertuis... but in a different context from @mcnees.bsky.social! His description of an expedition north to measure the circumference of the Earth is an interesting example of earlier styles in scientific writing.

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ertruitt.bsky.social @ertruitt.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Unboxing day! Over a decade in the making, NECESSARY INVENTIONS: ROGER BACON, THE MIDDLE AGES, AND THE MAKING OF MODERN SCIENCE (PENN Press) is a material object. Thank you to everyone who helped along the way. For sale on October 20. @pennpress.bsky.social

Photo of a box filled with multiple copies of the book. The cover is ochre, and has different images of Bacon, from manuscripts and printed books.

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Anthony (Tony) J. Martin @ichnologist.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Pleased to see I've gained a few more followers through my inclusion in a Bluesky starter pack, 'Scientists Who Write Science Books.' For my followers, check out this list & find your favorite scientist authors who you might not have known are here! go.bsky.app/2LmKSDN

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I was at the La Brea Tar Pits about 30 years ago, and the wall of dire-wolf skulls absolutely blew my mind. The notion that we could have not one specimen of a fossil mammal, or 10, but thousands from a single site...

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Dr. Heather Hinam 🍁 🇨🇦 @secondnaturemb.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Spent a fun morning mucking about in the forest before the rain, enjoying all of the mushrooms that are popping up all over the place. Found some gorgeous Amanita mushrooms. Hours tend to be more yellow than red, but they are still majestic. 🌿🍄

Two beautiful Amanita mushrooms, growing side-by-side. Both caps are yellow around the outside with an orange Centre and dotted with white speckles. The stems are white coming out of a round bowl and they have a little skirt on them just under the cap.

A beautiful yellow Amanita mushroom growing out of the forest floor. It’s white stem has a little skirt around it just underneath the cap.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Your occasional reminder that I have a couple of resources for those interested in, or learning, scientific writing. - curated list of writing resources: scientistseessquirrel.wordpress.com/writing-reso... - starter pack of folks who write or post about scientific writing: bsky.app/starter-pack...

scientistseessquirrel.wordpress.com

Writing Resources

Writing is a huge part of any career in science, and for many writers – no, for most writers – it’s a daunting challenge. But it’s not a challenge that you have to tackle alone. That’s a lesson I w…

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

As a kid I thought that "evergreen" trees kept their needles indefinitely. Not so for white pine - needles have fairly short (but >1 year) lifetimes, and in fall these trees drop needles/leaves just like deciduous trees do. They just don't drop *this year's* leaves. Botany in my back yard!

A small white pine illuminated by sun from the right. The needles at the ends of the branches are green, but those deeper into the branches are yellow.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I was just writing about the Rau quaggas!

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

"Polson said many of the critics did not appear to have actually read his full works" - well, no s**t, Sherlock, that's kind of part of the problem. Science doesn't need 200 preprints (+ 14 books) in a year from anybody, even if he actually wrote them (and it's obvious that he didn't).

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Can bacon go bad? A scientific study. Introduction: Gosh, it's cured, you'd think no, that's the whole point. Methods: Look. Sniff. Cook. Sniff. Taste gingerly. Results: Ick! Discussion. Yes, bacon can go bad, via rancidity of fats. This is consistent with prior investigation of granola bars.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Bumblebees are absolutely loving the Joe Pye weed around now. As I took pictures they were crawling and flying from bloom to bloom with great enthusiasm.

A large head of the lilac-to-purple flowers of Joe Pye Weed, against a background of green leaves (shot looking down). A bumblebee is foraging at the top of the shot.

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Donna Giberson (Elbows UP!) 🇨🇦🇺🇦 @donnag.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

ebook currently on sale at Kobo!

A screen capture from the Kobo books website, with an image of the cover of Charles Darwin's Barnacle and some text describing it, showing the book on sale for $1.99.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

It's really nice to see a "Bestseller!" label on your book. I'm going to focus on that, and not think too hard about what it means to be a bestseller in "Biological Taxonomy and Systematics" - which, despite its great importance, isn't a major focus for Stephen King or James Patterson... 1/2

Amazon listing for 'Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider", showing it as #1 Bestseller in Biological Taxonomy and Systematics

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

"But the trouble with all of these additions and applications piled atop the humble research article is that they’re new solutions to a comprehensively solved problem." Excellent from @jbyoder.org

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Saw this post. Thought about how good Montreal bagels are. Started salivating. Thought "Darn, they got me". Well played, Pavlovian Society!

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Mark Marley @markmarley.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

LPL alum honors Weird Al.

Newspaper screen shot of article, headline “UA grad helped name asteroid after Weird Al' Yankovic”

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

If you want a feel for just how diverse insects are - here's @ceiseman.bsky.social on the 5 different species of tiny moths he found feeding as leafminers in a single leaf. At least one (but probably two or more) is an undescribed species.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Excellent from Terry McGlynn Terry McGlynn: what it takes for a strategic plan to work, and why university ones are so often "hooey malarkey".

scienceforeveryone.science

Unstrategic planning

A plan isn't good unless it's realistic.

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Reposted by Stephen Heard

Asher Cutter @asherdcutter.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Come to @romtoronto.bsky.social and EEB in Toronto! ROM is seeking entomologist/arachnologist curator who would also be faculty in EEB at UofT royalontariomuseum.applytojob.com/apply/mdMTpA...

royalontariomuseum.applytojob.com

Curator of Insects & Arachnids - Royal Ontario Museum - Career Page

Apply to Curator of Insects & Arachnids at Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, ON, Canada.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

good heavens, a *lot* of book clubs are just *so* sincerely interested in featuring 'The Scientist's Guide to Writing' - what better for "The Cozy Book Nook Club"? <scam scam scam scam. If some actual human wants me to talk to other actual humans about the book, hit me up!>

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Sometimes two skeets arrive together in my timeline and sometimes the whole is definitely more than the sum of the parts. @danielbolnick.bsky.social @whysharksmatter.bsky.social @swordznsorcery.bsky.social

Two skeets consecutive in timeline. First reads "Remembering the time, as an early assistant prof, I had to adjudicate an authorship dispute between two more senior colleagues, both very burly guys, who were nearly in a fist fight over who would take charge to write a working group paper.
The paper was never written by either."

The second reads "One of them used to be Conan O'Brien, which might help if I could remember which one."

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

"the USDA...determined that ESF’s blight-tolerant Darling 54 genetically modified chestnut is unlikely to pose a threat to other plants". Wait - don't we WANT it to pose a threat to other plants? Don't we want it to be a big part of our forests again? That means displacing something, right?

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

"Riding the Wind II" - public art by Gary Crosby at the Fredericton Botanic Garden. It's that time: our monarchs are on their way south, heading for their overwintering sites in the mountains of central Mexico. Looking forward to seeing their grandchildren next summer!

A sculpture standing in an open grassy area with a walking path in the background. It's made from a tepee-shaped structure of what looks like weathered wood, with about 20 monarch butterflies perched on it. Each butterfly is about a two feet in wingspan, and they seem to be crawling up the structure, waving their wings to take flight.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Whenever I give an interview, I ask how long a piece the journalist is aiming for. Then I TRY to keep myself to reasonable length....but I often fail, because nature and science are SO COOL. Thanks @elisecutts.bsky.social for making me feel better about it!

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Minor revisions! A really cool paper on ambrosia beetles, led by one of my students (@ilesha.bsky.social), coming your way very soon - exciting!

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

My PhD advisor. This all rings true to me; especially the part about Bob being kind and gracious. That counts for a lot.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Just a few of the fall fungi growing now in Odell Park, Fredericton, NB. (Also many, many lovely boletes, which if my photos are the evidence, have DNA sequences causing them to be extremely blurry).

A cluster of five nearly-white puffballs, each about 1-1/2 inches in diameter, on the moss-covered shoulder of an old tree root.

A cluster of puffballs growing on the cut end of a stump. The puffballs are stalked, brown, and covered with small spiky elements. Each is 2-3 inches tall.

A tight cluster of about 8 yellowish-brown mushrooms growing on a moss-covered log. They are flattish, without much stalk, and look rubbery and almost wet.

A single pure white mushroom growing from a forest floor covered in dead leaves. It's a very solid mushroom, about 6 inches high, with a stalk about an inch thick - although it has very obvious feeding damage where it's been rasped half-way through by slugs.

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Gwen Pearson @bug-gwen.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

There is a clear reason* I fell in love with Sesiid moths during my PhD. They are spectacular. Is it a wasp? Is it a 80's gal with leg warmers gone wild? Why not both? (*Sesiidae, clear-wing moths)

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Long shot ask here - does anyone have contacts at Taibah University, in Medina, Saudi Arabia? I did some admin work for them; they promised an honorarium; they never paid and now my only contact there isn't replying to my emails. I need a new point of contact... Thanks.

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Stephen Heard @stephenbheard.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

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