iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Kelly Weinersmith

Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

An Extraordinary asked if animals ever make mistakes, and @weinersmith.bsky.social knew just who to ask! On today's show we chat with Kelly's PhD advisor, Dr. Andy Sih, about what animals know, how that use that information, and whether or not they make "mistakes". www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Daniel, Kelly, and Katrine take on the origins of life. They discuss competing definitions for "life", whether it's even helpful to have a definition, the oldest evidence we have for life, and how we think life got started. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Next Sunday I'm going to be at @caveatnyc.bsky.social w/@joshgondelman.bsky.social the Comedians Interview Experts series! We're going to be talking about scientists who have purposefully infected themselves with parasites, and why the heck they would do that! caveat.nyc/events/comed...

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Rice launched their Center for Science Communication and Public Engagement (SCOPE), and I'm excited to be a fellow! I'll be giving the Keynote at the Symposium on Science Communication and Public Engagement on Sept 10th naturalsciences.rice.edu/scope-events

naturalsciences.rice.edu

SCOPE Events

Alumni Awards for the Wiess School of Natural Sciences

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

I got an early copy of this book. It is SO GOOD. I learned a bunch about the history of forensic science. Once I started reading it, I had to figure out how to strike stuff from my schedule so I could keep reading! I'm not a fast reader, but I read it in 2 days because I couldn't put it down. <3

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Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 07/08/2026

Story time! Six years ago, my first book, The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking), came out. It was fun to write! I got to share all my cosmology fun facts and dig deep into all the ways the universe might end. I had SO much fun with it, I thought, "maybe I should write another book?" 1/?

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

I'm super excited to share that I co-hosted a BBC Earth documentary called Cosmic Vistas, which airs on Friday night! I don't appear in every episode, and I'm one of a group of scientists recruited for the show. But still, this was a super fun dream come true! bbcearth.ca/shows/cosmic...

bbcearth.ca

Cosmic Vistas: A New View - BBC Earth

Cosmic Vistas, Season 1, is an 8-episode documentary series that examines contemporary advancements in the realm of space exploration. Each episode looks at three different stories, using groundbreaki...

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Medical parasitology question: Multiple parasites cause diarrhea (e.g., species of cryptosporidium, cyclospora, giardia, entamoeba), but as far as I can tell - only Giardia intestinalis is described as producing greasy and foul-smelling diarrhea. What is giardia doing differently?

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

Daniel and Kelly chat with Dr. Chelsea Wood about rat lungworm - a particularly unpleasant nematode parasite that is spreading way outside of its native range. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-... Chelsea's book, Netherworld, is available for pre-order now: www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/chels...

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Arnaud 🎮 @grumpyarno.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

That's one of the many topics explored by @zachweinersmith.bsky.social and @weinersmith.bsky.social in their excellent book "A City on Mars" 💙

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Dr Lindsey Fitzharris @drlindseyfitz.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

If you're in the UK, you can now get SIGNED DEDICATED copies of SLEUTH-HOUND - about Joseph Bell, the "real Sherlock Holmes" - from @foxlanebooks.bsky.social! This is the only place offering personalized dedications, and it's a great way to support an indie bookshop: shorturl.at/IU6yN

A screenshot of Lindsey's book, with a bold black and red cover featuring fingerprints and a poison bottle.

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Professor John R. Hutchinson @johnrhutchinson.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Come for the questions, stay for the cheese-- and my lame jokes.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

On Tuesday at 1PM eastern I'm going to be on a panel w/some truly amazing experts & executives to talk about whether we're ready to settle Mars. This panel arose from the "2025-2026 Beyond Earth Report: On To Mars Readiness Assessment". Sign up to watch here: www.tickettailor.com/events/beyon...

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Jessica Luther @jessicawluther.com · 11/07/2026

Hello! I‘m listening to the audiobook of A CITY ON MARS and it’s both chock full of reasons that settling anywhere in space is not, in any way, a straightforward or simple thing and very funny. We aren’t living on the Moon or Mars, folks. Not any time soon.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Anyone have access to this PDF, & care to send it to me? :) Syphilization: Human Experimentation in the Search for a Syphilis Vaccine in the Nineteenth Century By JOAN SHERWOOD Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, V 54, Issue 3, July 1999, Pages 364–386, doi.org/10.1093/jhma...

academic.oup.com

Syphilization: Human Experimentation in the Search for a Syphilis Vaccine in the Nineteenth Century

JOAN SHERWOOD; Syphilization: Human Experimentation in the Search for a Syphilis Vaccine in the Nineteenth Century, Journal of the History of Medicine and

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Of lice and men Daniel and Kelly explore what lice can teach us about human evolution, and the role lice have played in some of humanity's most devastating wars. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-... (Link contains audio and transcript)

"This 2006 photograph depicted a dorsal view of a male body louse, Pediculus humanus var. corporis. Some of the external morphologic features displayed by members of the genus Pediculus include an elongated abdominal region without any processes, and three pairs of legs, all equal in length and width. The distal tip of the male’s abdomen is rounded, whereas, the female’s (PHIL# 9202) is concave. Body lice are parasitic insects that live on the body, and in the clothing or bedding of infested humans. Infestation is common, found worldwide, and affects people of all races. Body lice infestations spread rapidly under crowded conditions where hygiene is poor, and there is frequent contact among people. Note the sensorial setae, or hairs that cover the louse’s body, which pick up, and transmit information to the insect about changes in its environment such as temperature, and chemical cues. The dark mass inside the abdomen is a previously ingested blood meal. Janice Harney Carr" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_louse#/media/File:Body_lice.jpg

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Neat! 500 per 1,000 men during the Boer War were admitted for STIs. The solution? Not shame, but "health education, increased temperance, better leisure facilities within barracks, and improved treatment methods "for both sexes under conditions to which no penal stigma (was) attached.""

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Kevin Kretsch (DrKev) @kevinkretsch.com · 23/06/2026

Ok, so that's a really truly a viral tweet (quite a way to wake up!) so I will take this opportunity to say buy @weinersmith.bsky.social and @zachweinersmith.bsky.social 's excellent book "A City on Mars" to understand the MANY MANY reasons why *nobody* right now will succeed at living on Mars.

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BobbyGvegas™ … Heretic ☑️ @bobbygvegas.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

FYI: A total ass-whup of a book by @weinersmith.bsky.social & @zachweinersmith.bsky.social … a dispositive Bezos & Musk slapdown. You will probably break a rib laughing in places. @karaswisher.bsky.social @jlswishmd.bsky.social @neildegrassetyson.com @brianklaas.bsky.social z

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Roy Edroso @edroso.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

👍🏻

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Typos I've made when trying to write "Best, Kelly" at the end of my emails - both of which I think are better than "best": Rest, Kelly Beast, Kelly I think I'm going to start going with "Beast, Kelly" :)

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

It's book release day for @zachweinersmith.bsky.social! Sawyer Lee wants to stay home - but keeps getting pulled into adventures. Will he eventually prevail in his quest for relaxation? Check out Sawyer Lee and the Quest to Just Stay Home to find out. (8-12 yos) 1/n us.macmillan.com/books/978037...

us.macmillan.com

Sawyer Lee and the Quest to Just Stay Home

From New York Times-bestselling and Hugo Award-winning author Zach Weinersmith comes a cartoon-illustrated middle grade novel starring a ferociously inactiv...

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

.@danielwhiteson.bsky.social, @scottsolomon.bsky.social, and I often get asked questions about how to go about writing a pop science book. So we recorded an ~hour long video chat on book publishing where we answered the most common questions we get. Hope this helps! www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWMh...

youtube.com

The Ins and Outs of Pop Sci Publishing

YouTube video by Daniel and Kelly

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Luis Esteban Rubio @luixer.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

En días como hoy, fundamental leer la premiada obra "Una ciudad en Marte" de @zachweinersmith.bsky.social y @weinersmith.bsky.social. Para que no te la cuelen.

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Scott Solomon, PhD @scottsolomon.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

Thinking of joining in on the SpaceX IPO? You might want to check the fine print. @weinersmith.bsky.social and I wrote a piece about an important detail disclosed in the company's paperwork and why it's something potential investors should be wary of. www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outl...

houstonchronicle.com

SpaceX investors beware: Here’s why Elon Musk’s plans for Mars won’t work

SpaceX incentivizes Musk to create a million-person colony on Mars. But in his lifetime, that’s not realistic.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

.@scottsolomon.bsky.social & I wrote an Opinion piece for the @houstonchronicle.com abt SpaceX's IPO. It massively incentivizes Musk to get 1 million people on Mars in ~30 years. We won't know if it's safe for 1 million people to be on Mars on that timeline www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outl...

houstonchronicle.com

SpaceX investors beware: Here’s why Elon Musk’s plans for Mars won’t work

SpaceX incentivizes Musk to create a million-person colony on Mars. But in his lifetime, that’s not realistic.

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Dan McCrum @mccrum.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

For all would-be SpaceX investors, reading "A City on Mars" is a strong recommend. Very funny on the many ways space is terrible, uneconomic, and the decades/centuries of (boring, non-phallic rocket related) research needed to make settlement even a vaguely realistic proposition.

A City on Mars: Can we settle space, should we settle space and have we really thought this through?

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

On SpaceX's IPO day I'd like to remind folks that @zachweinersmith.bsky.social & I wrote "A City on Mars"* abt the problems & perils of settling Mars. A million people on Mars can't safely be done in Musk's lifetime. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/639449... *Hugo & Royal Society Book Prize winner

A image of the book cover of our book, A City on Mars, with a huge city built underground.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Scott was an amazing guest! And here is a photo of Euderus set, the beautiful wasp he describes in the episode (photo by Andrew Forbes).

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

In A City on Mars, @zachweinersmith.bsky.social and I tell the story of how Frank Borman attempted to go 2 weeks without pooping because he really did want to poop in a small space with his fellow astronaut. I hadn't realized just how small the spacecraft was,... (½)

A screenshot of a page from A City on Mars. Here is the text: "Nobody liked this. In fact, during Gemini 7, Commander Frank Bor- man, who had a reputation for being, shall we say, anal retentive, decided he would attempt not to poop for the entire two-week orbit. This quest was somewhat facilitated by NASA’s use of what are called “low-residue foods.” But, fourteen days is a lot of time to accumulate residue. By day 9, Borman had to face the inevitable. He turned to his lone crewman, Jim Lovell, and said “Jim, I think this is it.” Lovell, known for his calm demeanor and sense of humor, joked back, “Frank, you have only five more days left to go here.” Frank did not make it fififive days. Incidentally, this is how big a Gemini was:" There is then an illustration of the Gemini sapsule, with a cartoon Frank Borman thinking "Just five more days....". The illustration notes there is no curtain separating the men in the capsule, and it has only 2.55 cubic meters of habitable volume (for reference, it notes that a Tesla Model 3 has an interior volume of 3.2 cubic meters).

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Hey Extraordinaries! I (Kelly) had the incredible privilege of being on a panel with @elakdawalla.bsky.social and Matt Shindell at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. Video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrV6... There was a dinner beforehand - and holy cow - check out my dinner view!!!!!! 😍

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Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️‍⚧️ Uranus Expert @elakdawalla.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Had a great time last night at Air and Space on a panel about Mars exploration with @weinersmith.bsky.social moderated by Matt Shindell. It was super fun. I think we should take this show on the road. But only if we can bring the goats with. www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrV6...

youtube.com

Our Future on Mars? (Exploring Space Lecture)

YouTube video by Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

@elakdawalla.bsky.social and I are chatting about Mars at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum tonight! If you're in DC you can snag tickets and join us, or you can watch it live here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrV6...

youtube.com

Our Future on Mars? (Exploring Space Lecture)

YouTube video by Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

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Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️‍⚧️ Uranus Expert @elakdawalla.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Will you be in the Washington, D.C. area on Wednesday, June 3? Come see me and @weinersmith.bsky.social discuss "Our Future on Mars?" at The National Air and Space Museum! airandspace.si.edu/whats-on/eve...

airandspace.si.edu

Our Future on Mars?

Explore the challenges and potential scientific rewards of human exploration on the Red Planet.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

I'm not surprised, but holy cow - @drandrewthaler.bsky.social is an amazing podcast interviewee. Loads of fascinating facts delivered in a delightfully entertaining way. Gonna definitely need to find excuses to bring him on the show again!

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Dr Lindsey Fitzharris @drlindseyfitz.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

1/ COVER REVEAL 🧵 I'm thrilled to share the US and UK covers for SLEUTH-HOUND: THE CASE OF THE REAL SHERLOCK HOLMES, the untold story of Dr. Joseph Bell—the Victorian surgeon who inspired Arthur Conan Doyle to create the world's greatest detective. Pre-order here: shorturl.at/fdGnV

1) The US and UK covers side by side. The US cover (left) features a striking image of Bell, and has a silhouette of Holmes. The font is very ornate, and it looks very “Sherlockian.” The UK cover (right) is striking in its reds, blacks, and whites. It features a silhouette of a poison bottle, and has fingerprints all over the cover.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

I really enjoyed researching this episode!

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

I'm SUPER excited about this event. It's at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in DC on June 3rd in the evening. It's open to the public and free, but you have to register beforehand. airandspace.si.edu/whats-on/eve...

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Our Shetland flock is growing, and we got to meet the amazing folks at Half Channer Croft (@cartogriffi.bsky.social).

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Cartogriffi @cartogriffi.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

We've brought our fleeces to the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival for many years - but this will be the first time we bring some sheep! Very exciting. Attending is Quercus and her twins, Birch and Willow. Plus Mrs. Frisby, who is getting shorn as part of the Sheep to Shawl contest.

Shot is of a very large barn at the county fairgrounds. There are blue pens laid out, and our yearling sheep Birch can be seen peeking out of on of these. Next to this is a small display, including a tri-fold poster with information on Shetland sheep.

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Kelly Weinersmith @weinersmith.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Overheard at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival: Kid: “that sheep has tiny udders” Adult: “nope. That sheep has huge testicles”

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Phil Plait @philplait.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Hey, I'm not just a Scientific American freelance science writer, I'm now an *award winning* Scientific American freelance science writer! solarnews.aas.org Thanks, Solar Physics Division of the AAS! I'm honored.

solarnews.aas.org

Home Page - SolarNews

SolarNews The Electronic Newsletter of the AAS Solar Physics Division Sherry Chhabra, SolarNews Editor (solarnews.editor@aas.org)

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Zach Weinersmith @zachweinersmith.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Available now! www.kickstarter.com/projects/wei... Thanks for your support, everyone!

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Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Happy "The Story of Birds" Publication Day to @stevebrusatte.bsky.social ! Steve recently came on the show to talk about his new book, and we had a great time! The episode is live now. (PS - you can still catch Steve on the tail end of his US book tour!) www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

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Thomas Shahan @tshahan.bsky.social · 07/02/2024

!!! initially thought they were an oribatid beetle mite... then freaked out upon taking a few photos - realizing they were BAEUS - a *tiny* (~600µm) parasitic wasp! Lost them after trying to stop lens down for a bit more depth of field! Underneath a log, NE Oklahoma

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Erin E. Worrel @erinerex.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

In light of the recent Artemis II mission, I cannot recommend this book enough - A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space and Have We Really Thought This Through by @zachweinersmith.bsky.social and @weinersmith.bsky.social

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Ypsilanti District Library @ypsilibrary.org · 10/04/2026

SATURDAY: Join New York Times bestselling author Dr. Kelly Weinersmith at our downtown branch to talk "A City on Mars," the research-backed, unexpectedly funny case for slowing down before we blast off. 🚀 Free & open to all | 3-5PM | YDL-Michigan

Event flyer for A City on Mars, part of the Ink Drinker Reading Series at YDL-Michigan. NYT Bestselling Author Dr. Kelly Weinersmith appears Saturday April 11, 3-5PM at 229 W. Michigan Ave, Ypsilanti.

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