Alan Burdick
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alanburdick.bsky.social
Alan Burdick
@alanburdick.bsky.social
95 followers 44 following 42 posts
Editor and occasional reporter with the NYT science desk. Author of "Why Time Flies" and "Out of Eden." Lapsed futurist. Minor planet #9291. More at www.aburdick.com.
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alanburdick.bsky.social
@carlzimmer.com on what engineers have learned from the natural world: nyti.ms/4otNQyl
How Inventors Find Inspiration in Evolution (Gift Article)
Soft batteries and water-walking robots are among the many creations made possible by studying animals and plants.
nyti.ms
November 10, 2025 at 3:43 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
"I don’t know why my fellowship was terminated. I suspect that it has something to do with studying a species that doesn’t fit the binary." #lost-science

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/s...
He Studied Why Some Female Birds Look Like Males
www.nytimes.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:15 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Avast, ye deep-sea mateys!

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/s...
Armed With Anemones: How Some Young Fishes Survive in the Sea
www.nytimes.com
October 16, 2025 at 3:28 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Joshua Plotnik, who studies elephant cognition, is the latest focus of our Lost Science series, which documents the work of researchers who have lost their jobs or funding after cuts by the Trump administration. Share your story with us! www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/s...
He Studied Elephant Behavior to Save Lives
www.nytimes.com
October 16, 2025 at 3:15 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
A new NYT as-told-to series, "Lost Science," documents the work of researchers who have lost their jobs or funding after cuts by the Trump administration. Share your story with us!

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/c...
Has Your Scientific Work Been Cut? We Want to Hear.
www.nytimes.com
October 9, 2025 at 3:32 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Beware the fallvinder, o Viking archaeologist! nyti.ms/47m8YRp
To Study Viking Seafarers, He Took 26 Voyages in a Traditional Boat
An archaeologist in Sweden spent three years traveling in vessels built like those from 1,000 years ago. He discovered lost sea routes, hidden trade harbors and new respect for Viking seamanship.
nyti.ms
August 11, 2025 at 3:05 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
I learned a lot about Fresnel lenses for this amazing series of lighthouse photographs by Michal Siarek: nyti.ms/41qkFCN
A Voyage to Bring Norway’s Lighthouses Into the 21st Century
More than 2,000 navigational beacons, big and small, oversee the nation’s 60,000-mile-long coast. Now they need an upgrade.
nyti.ms
August 5, 2025 at 4:21 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
They do things a little differently in Denmark. But hardly shocking when you stop to think about where pet food comes from. nyti.ms/4mtD2Ps @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social @emilyanthes.bsky.social
A Zoo in Denmark Wants to Feed Your Pets to Its Predators
A Danish zoo is asking owners of companion animals nearing life’s end to instead donate them as food for captive lynxes, lions and other carnivores.
nyti.ms
August 5, 2025 at 4:17 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Kid at lemonade stand today: “Want some lemonade? We take Apple Pay.”
August 2, 2025 at 3:50 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Not just one but four radioactive wasp nests were found at the Savannah River nuclear facility in S.C., @emilyanthes.bsky.social reports: www.nytimes.com/2025/08/01/s...
‘Hot Wasps’ Found at Nuclear Facility in South Carolina
www.nytimes.com
August 1, 2025 at 6:05 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
You say potato, @alexaroblesgil.bsky.social says tomato: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/s...
What’s a Potato? A Nine-Million-Year-Old Tomato.
www.nytimes.com
July 31, 2025 at 3:29 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Don'r miss the fourth and final installment of "Math Revealed," the extravaganzaesque NYT series by @stevenstrogatz.com !
June 30, 2025 at 6:31 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Part 2 of the terrific "Math, Revealed" series by @stevenstrogatz.com and the superb visual team at @nytimes.com features Leonardo da Vinci and bellybuttons.
June 16, 2025 at 12:24 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Astonishing and moving story by @susandominus.bsky.social nyti.ms/406oDzM about a family looking to sidestep mortality with the help of A.I.
A.I. Avatars and the Brave New Frontier of Life After Death (Gift Article)
After Peter Listro was diagnosed with blood cancer, his family decided to make a virtual avatar they can talk to after his death.
nyti.ms
June 15, 2025 at 2:04 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Thrilled to reveal "Math Revealed," a weekly four-part math-appreciation series by the incomparable @stevenstrogatz.com in collaboration with The Times's ace visual team!
stevenstrogatz.com Steven Strogatz @stevenstrogatz.com · Jun 9
My new #math series in the New York Times, "Math Revealed," is aimed at everyone, whether you love math or not. Have a look! You can read it here for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
In Taxicab Geometry, Pi Equals 4 and Circles Aren’t Round (Gift Article)
In the world of taxicab geometry, even the Pythagorean theorem takes a back seat.
www.nytimes.com
June 9, 2025 at 2:59 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Visually stunning archaeological work being done by NOAA on Lake Ontario

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/23/s...
Historic Shipwrecks Come to Light in the Great Lakes
www.nytimes.com
May 23, 2025 at 7:17 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
A little something that @emilyanthes.bsky.social and I whipped up: www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/s...
9 Federally Funded Scientific Breakthroughs That Changed Everything
www.nytimes.com
May 16, 2025 at 7:11 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Friends, Brooklynites, book-lovers: Join us tonight at @greenlightbklyn.bsky.social in Brooklyn, where fab @susandominus.bsky.social will talk about her new book, "The Family Dynamic: A Journey into the Mystery of Sibling Success," with equally fab @emilynussbaum.bsky.social. Curly hair alert!
May 8, 2025 at 6:17 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Delighted beyond delighted at the publication at last of "The Family Dynamic: A Journey Into the Mystery of Sibling Success," by the phenomenal @susandominus.bsky.social !! It's an intimate, thoughtful and delightful exploration of the inner mechanics of families and the science of achievement.
May 6, 2025 at 5:53 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
My two cents: "The Trump administration is trying to change what counts as science."
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/25/b...
Trump vs. Science
www.nytimes.com
April 25, 2025 at 6:46 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
April 23, 2025 at 2:03 AM
alanburdick.bsky.social
“I’m not screaming, ‘aliens!’” said Nikole Lewis, an exoplanetary scientist at Cornell University. “But I always reserve my right to scream ‘aliens!’”
carlzimmer.com Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · Apr 16
120 light years from Earth, there's a planet that may be covered in a living ocean. Here's my story on a tantalizing hint of life beyond the Solar System. Gift link: nyti.ms/3GbrEaZ 🧪
Astronomers Detect a Signature of Life on a Distant Planet (Gift Article)
Further studies are needed to determine whether K2-18b, which orbits a star 120 light-years away, is inhabited, or even habitable.
nyti.ms
April 17, 2025 at 1:59 PM
alanburdick.bsky.social
Wild, sad follow-up on last year's octopus sensation, by @emilyanthes.bsky.social.

“'It’s unfortunately not that storybook of an ending. Fairy tales leave out a lot of details.'” www.nytimes.com/2025/04/13/s...
A Cautionary Tale of 408 Tentacles
One pet octopus suddenly became more than four dozen. They went viral. Then it all went south.
www.nytimes.com
April 13, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Reposted by Alan Burdick
rosariolebronentomology.com
Symphypleona, or globular springtails, are ridiculous little creatures. They have this weird lever-like structure called a furcula that lets them spring off the ground and launch themselves into the air to escape danger. Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXeS... 🌿 #Collembola #虫 #macrophotography 🪲🪳
Extreme close-up of a reddish-brown globular springtail (Symphypleona) on a beige, gritty surface. The springtail’s bulbous body is covered in fine hairs, and one antenna is raised forward. Its head is clearly visible with clustered ocelli, and the background is heavily blurred, emphasizing the subject. A bright orange globular springtail stands alert on a patch of moist, mossy ground. Its dark ocelli are prominent against its rounded head, and delicate antennae extend forward. The rough texture of the substrate contrasts with the smooth, semi-translucent body of the springtail. Another angle of an orange globular springtail, climbing a shimmering, textured rock surface. The springtail's rounded abdomen catches the light, and its legs and antennae are slightly spread as it navigates the incline. A dark-colored globular springtail, nearly black, emerges from a crevice in damp, earthy surroundings. Its spherical body is covered in tiny white setae, and its pale head and reddish appendages are partially visible as it moves through the environment.
April 12, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Reposted by Alan Burdick
tjalamont.bsky.social
Here is your Saturday Sunlit Snail.

#invertebrates 🌿🐙📷
A macro photo of a the front of a garden snail, with only a small portion of the shell visible on the left. The snail is backlit by the early morning sun, making it glow orange and brown. Its right eye stalk is in focus, extended straight out in front of it to the right.
April 12, 2025 at 4:08 PM