Faye Flam
@fayeflam.bsky.social
Journalist with a background in science. I write columns for Bloomberg Opinion. I've also written for Science, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The New York Times, Sky and Telescope, Psychology Today and others.
1/ For this @opinion.bloomberg.com column, I looked at Trump's executive order to restore a gold standard in science. After talking to @briannosek.bsky.social and others devoted to reform, it became clear this order will not help the us get better quality science. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
This Isn’t How You ‘Restore Gold Standard’ Science
President Trump’s executive order is really about giving government officials the power to reject any scientific evidence they disagree with.
www.bloomberg.com
June 8, 2025 at 1:42 PM
1/ For this @opinion.bloomberg.com column, I looked at Trump's executive order to restore a gold standard in science. After talking to @briannosek.bsky.social and others devoted to reform, it became clear this order will not help the us get better quality science. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
A number of private startups hope to profit from geoengineering schemes - from darkening the skies with particles to altering the chemistry of the ocean. Experts say the public is right to be wary: My latest from @opinion.bloomberg.com www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
Geoengineering’s Risks Need to Be Studied More
Even some of the best-sounding ideas could have unintended consequences.
www.bloomberg.com
April 25, 2025 at 5:18 PM
A number of private startups hope to profit from geoengineering schemes - from darkening the skies with particles to altering the chemistry of the ocean. Experts say the public is right to be wary: My latest from @opinion.bloomberg.com www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
1/ In my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column I look into that much ballyhood claim that dire wolves were resurrected after 13,000 years of extinction. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
'Dire Wolf' Pups Are Cute, But Not the Real Thing
Colossal Biosciences created a new, not ancient, animal. That’s still an impressive scientific achievement.
www.bloomberg.com
April 13, 2025 at 11:43 PM
1/ In my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column I look into that much ballyhood claim that dire wolves were resurrected after 13,000 years of extinction. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
In one of my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com columns I look at scientific explanations for our ideological rift - or why people who disgree with you seem so reprehensible. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...?
We Used to Disagree. Now We Don’t Talk to Each Other.
Five years after Covid, America's greatest threat is our divided reality.
www.bloomberg.com
April 6, 2025 at 9:57 PM
In one of my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com columns I look at scientific explanations for our ideological rift - or why people who disgree with you seem so reprehensible. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...?
1/2 For a recent @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into claims that scientists would resurrect the woolly mammoth. They might make something that looks sort of mammoth-like but......
Got $10 Billion? Don’t Blow It Cloning a Woolly Mammoth.
Sure, it sounds cool. But think of the life-changing problems that could be solved with that kind of investment.
www.bloomberg.com
March 28, 2025 at 5:19 PM
1/2 For a recent @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into claims that scientists would resurrect the woolly mammoth. They might make something that looks sort of mammoth-like but......
1/2 For this @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into claims that Covid vaccines are causing most cases of long covid. This was based on a misinterpreted Yale study.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
How a Yale Study Got Twisted Into an Anti-Vaccine Talking Point
Despite what anti-vaxxers say, new research doesn’t prove Covid shots debilitated millions of Americans.
www.bloomberg.com
March 3, 2025 at 9:59 PM
1/2 For this @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into claims that Covid vaccines are causing most cases of long covid. This was based on a misinterpreted Yale study.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
My latest piece for @opinion.bloomberg.com delves into a new Yale Med School study that's been misinterpreted to claim most cases of long Covid might be "Post Vaccine Syndrome".
My latest piece for @opinion.bloomberg.com delves into a new Yale Med School study that's been misinterpreted to claim most cases of long Covid might be "Post Vaccine Syndrome".
How a Yale Study Got Twisted Into an Anti-Vaccine Talking Point
Despite what anti-vaxxers say, new research doesn’t prove Covid shots debilitated millions of Americans.
www.bloomberg.com
March 3, 2025 at 6:39 PM
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
My latest piece for @opinion.bloomberg.com delves into a new Yale Med School study that's been misinterpreted to claim most cases of long Covid might be "Post Vaccine Syndrome".
My latest piece for @opinion.bloomberg.com delves into a new Yale Med School study that's been misinterpreted to claim most cases of long Covid might be "Post Vaccine Syndrome".
1/3 For my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into the quickly-diminishing odds of a city-killing asteroid striking Earth in 2032. I'd written about asteroid strikes 20 years ago and was amazed to learn how much the science has advanced. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
An Asteroid Doomsday Is Getting Less Likely
NASA’s early detection program will probably bring more false alarms, but it could also save us.
www.bloomberg.com
February 25, 2025 at 12:38 AM
1/3 For my latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column I looked into the quickly-diminishing odds of a city-killing asteroid striking Earth in 2032. I'd written about asteroid strikes 20 years ago and was amazed to learn how much the science has advanced. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
My latest column for @opinion.bloomberg.com examines some scary claims that there's enough plastic in your brain to make up a plastic spoon. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
You Might Have Plastic in Your Brain. Don’t Panic — Yet.
It’s unsettling, but the amount is probably less than the plastic spoon’s worth grabbing the headlines.
www.bloomberg.com
February 21, 2025 at 4:34 PM
My latest column for @opinion.bloomberg.com examines some scary claims that there's enough plastic in your brain to make up a plastic spoon. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
1/3 My latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column delves into the bird flu threat and why it's spreading so fast now. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
Bird Flu Is a Big Threat. The US Needs to Start Acting Like It.
Scientists suspect a new strain is spreading via dust from bird droppings, carried by the wind.
www.bloomberg.com
February 15, 2025 at 12:27 PM
1/3 My latest @opinion.bloomberg.com column delves into the bird flu threat and why it's spreading so fast now. www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
Reposted by Faye Flam
The strange paradox of modern science denialism
"What’s interesting to me about this stream of science denial is the weird contradiction lying right at the heart of the enterprise."
Astronomer Adam Frank on some responses to his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast 🧪
bigthink.com/13-8/the-str...
"What’s interesting to me about this stream of science denial is the weird contradiction lying right at the heart of the enterprise."
Astronomer Adam Frank on some responses to his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast 🧪
bigthink.com/13-8/the-str...
The strange paradox of modern science denialism
Astronomer Adam Frank reflects on a handful of responses to his recent appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast.
bigthink.com
January 27, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The strange paradox of modern science denialism
"What’s interesting to me about this stream of science denial is the weird contradiction lying right at the heart of the enterprise."
Astronomer Adam Frank on some responses to his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast 🧪
bigthink.com/13-8/the-str...
"What’s interesting to me about this stream of science denial is the weird contradiction lying right at the heart of the enterprise."
Astronomer Adam Frank on some responses to his appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast 🧪
bigthink.com/13-8/the-str...
I was fortunate to get to talk with @dornhaus.bsky.social , who is not just a world authority on ant behavior but also a subject in a fascinating experiment that compared teamwork capability in ants and humans. She had quite an inside view. For @opinion.bloomberg.com
1/ My latest for @opinion.bloomberg.com In ants, intelligence can emerge and grow with group size. In humans the same thing can happen, but more often than not adding people to a task makes us less effective.
What Longhorn Crazy Ants Can Teach Us About Groupthink
There’s a reason we often fail to accomplish anything in staff meetings or settle on a less effective solution.
www.bloomberg.com
January 27, 2025 at 12:46 PM
I was fortunate to get to talk with @dornhaus.bsky.social , who is not just a world authority on ant behavior but also a subject in a fascinating experiment that compared teamwork capability in ants and humans. She had quite an inside view. For @opinion.bloomberg.com
This column for @opinion.bloomberg.com represents my recent thinking about all the changes happening now and which ones are most likely to have irreversible consequences that will be felt for decades or even centuries to come.
My column for @opinion.bloomberg.com this week is about elders of the natural world, and why protecting 1000-year-old trees, 200-year-old fish or 120 year old whales is a good investment.
Who Will Speak for the Trees?
If President Trump abandons efforts to curb carbon emissions, then preserving old trees will be our next best strategy for mitigating climate change.
www.bloomberg.com
January 27, 2025 at 12:43 PM
This column for @opinion.bloomberg.com represents my recent thinking about all the changes happening now and which ones are most likely to have irreversible consequences that will be felt for decades or even centuries to come.
Reposted by Faye Flam
January 25, 2025 at 9:25 PM
My column for @opinion.bloomberg.com this week is about elders of the natural world, and why protecting 1000-year-old trees, 200-year-old fish or 120 year old whales is a good investment.
Who Will Speak for the Trees?
If President Trump abandons efforts to curb carbon emissions, then preserving old trees will be our next best strategy for mitigating climate change.
www.bloomberg.com
January 25, 2025 at 10:34 PM
My column for @opinion.bloomberg.com this week is about elders of the natural world, and why protecting 1000-year-old trees, 200-year-old fish or 120 year old whales is a good investment.
At about 30 minutes into this podcast @mtosterholm.bsky.social starts talking about a possible new epidemiology for H5N1 bird flu. He suspects transmission from "viral clouds" of dust mixed with bird droppings, moved around by the wind. Fascinating and important.
Episode 175: Drinking From a Fire Hose: Are We Drowning?
In "Drinking From a Fire Hose: Are We Drowning?" Dr. Osterholm and Chris Dall discuss recent actions taken by the Trump administration, most notably the decision to leave the World Health Organization...
www.cidrap.umn.edu
January 25, 2025 at 6:43 PM
At about 30 minutes into this podcast @mtosterholm.bsky.social starts talking about a possible new epidemiology for H5N1 bird flu. He suspects transmission from "viral clouds" of dust mixed with bird droppings, moved around by the wind. Fascinating and important.
1/ My latest for @opinion.bloomberg.com In ants, intelligence can emerge and grow with group size. In humans the same thing can happen, but more often than not adding people to a task makes us less effective.
What Longhorn Crazy Ants Can Teach Us About Groupthink
There’s a reason we often fail to accomplish anything in staff meetings or settle on a less effective solution.
www.bloomberg.com
January 23, 2025 at 7:49 PM
1/ My latest for @opinion.bloomberg.com In ants, intelligence can emerge and grow with group size. In humans the same thing can happen, but more often than not adding people to a task makes us less effective.