Aatish Bhatia
@aatishb.bsky.social
I'm a journalist, teacher and scientist. I make explainers and interactive graphics.
aatishb.com
nytimes.com/by/aatish-bhatia
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Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Franzi Schimmer captured this Grizzly bear in Brooks Falls, Alaska just floating along, tippy-tapping down the river, browsing the salmon.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
February 14, 2026 at 9:47 PM
Franzi Schimmer captured this Grizzly bear in Brooks Falls, Alaska just floating along, tippy-tapping down the river, browsing the salmon.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
Prior to hibernation, up to 40% of a bear's body mass is fat, which is less dense than water (~0.9 g/cm^2), so the murder-monster is also a floaty-boaty.
"We found that using AI assistance led to a statistically significant decrease in mastery. On a quiz that covered concepts they’d used just a few minutes before, participants in the AI group scored 17% lower than those who coded by hand, or the equivalent of nearly two letter grades."
How AI assistance impacts the formation of coding skills
Anthropic is an AI safety and research company that's working to build reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems.
www.anthropic.com
February 14, 2026 at 2:01 PM
"We found that using AI assistance led to a statistically significant decrease in mastery. On a quiz that covered concepts they’d used just a few minutes before, participants in the AI group scored 17% lower than those who coded by hand, or the equivalent of nearly two letter grades."
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
NEW: The F.D.A. refused to accept an application from Moderna for its mRNA flu vaccine.
Its reason: The agency did not think Moderna compared the new vaccine to one of the best flu shots available. The company spent $750M+ on a 41,000 person study.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/h...
Its reason: The agency did not think Moderna compared the new vaccine to one of the best flu shots available. The company spent $750M+ on a 41,000 person study.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/h...
F.D.A. Refuses to Review Moderna Flu Vaccine
www.nytimes.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:12 PM
NEW: The F.D.A. refused to accept an application from Moderna for its mRNA flu vaccine.
Its reason: The agency did not think Moderna compared the new vaccine to one of the best flu shots available. The company spent $750M+ on a 41,000 person study.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/h...
Its reason: The agency did not think Moderna compared the new vaccine to one of the best flu shots available. The company spent $750M+ on a 41,000 person study.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/h...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
I cannot stress this enough: you want to write a book? Write it. Do it now. Don’t wait. There is never a perfect time and you don’t need anyone’s permission. There are always dragons ahead. Not to be dark, but the cliff awaits. Write it in scraps, in voice notes, in a crappy notebook...
February 7, 2026 at 2:31 PM
I cannot stress this enough: you want to write a book? Write it. Do it now. Don’t wait. There is never a perfect time and you don’t need anyone’s permission. There are always dragons ahead. Not to be dark, but the cliff awaits. Write it in scraps, in voice notes, in a crappy notebook...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Graduate Students’ NSF Fellowship Applications Are Being “Returned Without Review” 🧪
eos.org/research-and...
eos.org/research-and...
Graduate Students’ NSF Fellowship Applications Are Being “Returned Without Review” - Eos
Graduate students applying for NSF funding have had their applications returned without review—even though their proposed research appears to fall squarely within the fields of study outlined in the p...
eos.org
February 7, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Graduate Students’ NSF Fellowship Applications Are Being “Returned Without Review” 🧪
eos.org/research-and...
eos.org/research-and...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Don’t forget about Daniel @sadbumblebee.buzz himself, who is a brilliant and compassionate writer, climate reporter, and developer — among many other talents.
Some of my faves of his work:
wapo.st/4rv3WZJ
wapo.st/4a1IIwS
Some of my faves of his work:
wapo.st/4rv3WZJ
wapo.st/4a1IIwS
February 5, 2026 at 10:34 PM
Don’t forget about Daniel @sadbumblebee.buzz himself, who is a brilliant and compassionate writer, climate reporter, and developer — among many other talents.
Some of my faves of his work:
wapo.st/4rv3WZJ
wapo.st/4a1IIwS
Some of my faves of his work:
wapo.st/4rv3WZJ
wapo.st/4a1IIwS
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
The Post was foolish enough to unleash a bevy of the world’s most talented multi-disciplinary journalists out there for their competition to scoop up. These are some of the most hard working and skilled people I know.
Save this one and reshare it please! 📊
Save this one and reshare it please! 📊
February 5, 2026 at 10:16 PM
The Post was foolish enough to unleash a bevy of the world’s most talented multi-disciplinary journalists out there for their competition to scoop up. These are some of the most hard working and skilled people I know.
Save this one and reshare it please! 📊
Save this one and reshare it please! 📊
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Today I was one of the many laid off from the Post. It is a dark day for news. For now I am going to take some time with my family before figuring out where I go from here.
In the meantime, please consider supporting my colleagues. Any contribution helps: www.gofundme.com/f/standing-t...
In the meantime, please consider supporting my colleagues. Any contribution helps: www.gofundme.com/f/standing-t...
Donate to Washington Post 2026 layoff fund, organized by Rachel Siegel
On Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, The Washington Post laid off hundreds of journalists. We ar… Rachel Siegel needs your support for Washington Post 2026 layoff fund
www.gofundme.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:52 PM
Today I was one of the many laid off from the Post. It is a dark day for news. For now I am going to take some time with my family before figuring out where I go from here.
In the meantime, please consider supporting my colleagues. Any contribution helps: www.gofundme.com/f/standing-t...
In the meantime, please consider supporting my colleagues. Any contribution helps: www.gofundme.com/f/standing-t...
"The secret fear of the morally depraved is that virtue is actually common" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Minnesota Proved MAGA Wrong
The pushback against ICE exposed a series of mistaken assumptions.
www.theatlantic.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:51 PM
"The secret fear of the morally depraved is that virtue is actually common" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
This is an incredible performance and worth four minutes of your time www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l2R...
"There's Nothing I Enjoy More Than Acting In The Theater" - Ian McKellen EXTENDED INTERVIEW
YouTube video by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
www.youtube.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:38 PM
This is an incredible performance and worth four minutes of your time www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l2R...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
America: where you can sell a random “wellness” drink at CVS, claim it “may” somehow “reinforce” your immune system, and literally call it “The Flu Shot.”
February 5, 2026 at 1:56 AM
America: where you can sell a random “wellness” drink at CVS, claim it “may” somehow “reinforce” your immune system, and literally call it “The Flu Shot.”
When kids have the moral clarity that many adults lack
Opinion | ICE Took Their Classmate. They Started Writing Letters.
www.nytimes.com
January 31, 2026 at 2:59 PM
When kids have the moral clarity that many adults lack
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Best Data Visualization Projects of 2025, a.k.a. my favorites flowingdata.com/2025/12/31/b...
Best Data Visualization Projects of 2025
Many data things were made this year. These are my favorites.
flowingdata.com
December 31, 2025 at 9:54 PM
Best Data Visualization Projects of 2025, a.k.a. my favorites flowingdata.com/2025/12/31/b...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
My favorite evidence that congestion pricing in New York has reshaped peoples’ behavior: we can see a surge of people trying to enter the zone before the price kicks up at 5 a.m., and after it decreases at 9 p.m.
January 5, 2026 at 5:12 PM
My favorite evidence that congestion pricing in New York has reshaped peoples’ behavior: we can see a surge of people trying to enter the zone before the price kicks up at 5 a.m., and after it decreases at 9 p.m.
Brilliant piece. The Upshot doing what it does best, a clear and comprehensive look at the data.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
27 Million Fewer Car Trips: Life After a Year of Congestion Pricing (Gift Article)
How life has changed in the New York area, according to data on traffic, transit and the responses of 600 readers.
www.nytimes.com
January 6, 2026 at 5:07 AM
Brilliant piece. The Upshot doing what it does best, a clear and comprehensive look at the data.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Happy new year! My all sky camera imaged the sky every 15 seconds and this picture shows what happened in the sky in 2025. It shows the length of the night and day with the hourglass shape, the monthly lunar cycle with the diagonal bands, the elevation of the Sun at local noon, and lots of clouds.
January 1, 2026 at 8:54 PM
Happy new year! My all sky camera imaged the sky every 15 seconds and this picture shows what happened in the sky in 2025. It shows the length of the night and day with the hourglass shape, the monthly lunar cycle with the diagonal bands, the elevation of the Sun at local noon, and lots of clouds.
"Describing the research process, Baek compared it to repeatedly building and discarding ideas.
“You keep holding on to hope, then breaking it, and moving forward by picking up ideas from the ashes”"
m.koreaherald.com/article/1064...
“You keep holding on to hope, then breaking it, and moving forward by picking up ideas from the ashes”"
m.koreaherald.com/article/1064...
Six-decade math puzzle solved by Korean mathematician
A Korean mathematician has won international recognition for solving a geometry puzzle that had resisted proof for nearly six decades. US magazine Scientific Am
m.koreaherald.com
January 6, 2026 at 4:46 AM
"Describing the research process, Baek compared it to repeatedly building and discarding ideas.
“You keep holding on to hope, then breaking it, and moving forward by picking up ideas from the ashes”"
m.koreaherald.com/article/1064...
“You keep holding on to hope, then breaking it, and moving forward by picking up ideas from the ashes”"
m.koreaherald.com/article/1064...
Loved this
How I Turned Frustration Into Creative Success | Joshua Schachter | TED
YouTube video by TED
m.youtube.com
January 5, 2026 at 4:13 AM
Loved this
"We're not going to get a better internet by waiting for platforms to become less extractive. We build it by building it."
The Case for Blogging in the Ruins
In 1751, Denis Diderot began publishing his Encyclopédie, a project that would eventually span 28 volumes and take more than two decades to complete. The French government banned it twice. The Catholi...
www.joanwestenberg.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:51 AM
"We're not going to get a better internet by waiting for platforms to become less extractive. We build it by building it."
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
Last night I set up my telescope so we could all watch the planets while waiting for the new year to arrive.
After the fireworks had subsided, I attached my camera and captured my first astrophoto of the year featuring Jupiter and its moon Europa. #astrophotography
Happy New Year everyone!
After the fireworks had subsided, I attached my camera and captured my first astrophoto of the year featuring Jupiter and its moon Europa. #astrophotography
Happy New Year everyone!
January 1, 2026 at 8:35 PM
Last night I set up my telescope so we could all watch the planets while waiting for the new year to arrive.
After the fireworks had subsided, I attached my camera and captured my first astrophoto of the year featuring Jupiter and its moon Europa. #astrophotography
Happy New Year everyone!
After the fireworks had subsided, I attached my camera and captured my first astrophoto of the year featuring Jupiter and its moon Europa. #astrophotography
Happy New Year everyone!
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
ye shall soon be initiated into certain facts hitherto pretty generally unknown
January 2, 2026 at 3:47 AM
ye shall soon be initiated into certain facts hitherto pretty generally unknown
I love how well every step is explained here. m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ol_Q...
How to Master the Omurice Omelet
YouTube video by ChefSteps
m.youtube.com
December 28, 2025 at 8:55 AM
I love how well every step is explained here. m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ol_Q...
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
New York City was bracing on Friday for its biggest snowfall in more than three years. The area in and around the city was expected to get 6 to 9 inches of snow over the weekend, with up to 10 inches predicted in some areas.
How New York Is Preparing for Its First Major Snowstorm in Years
Streets were brined, plows were ready and flights were canceled as the metropolitan region braced for up to 10 inches of snow.
nyti.ms
December 26, 2025 at 9:03 PM
New York City was bracing on Friday for its biggest snowfall in more than three years. The area in and around the city was expected to get 6 to 9 inches of snow over the weekend, with up to 10 inches predicted in some areas.
Reposted by Aatish Bhatia
maybe don't replace your office workers with LLMs, one just called me to tell me to bring "a valid photo Idaho" to my appointment tomorrow
December 22, 2025 at 6:01 PM
maybe don't replace your office workers with LLMs, one just called me to tell me to bring "a valid photo Idaho" to my appointment tomorrow
This is pretty amazing: poloclub.github.io/transformer-... A basic language model (GPT-2 small) that runs in the browser, with all of its calculations visualized.
Transformer Explainer: LLM Transformer Model Visually Explained
An interactive visualization tool showing you how transformer models work in large language models (LLM) like GPT.
poloclub.github.io
December 20, 2025 at 6:10 PM
This is pretty amazing: poloclub.github.io/transformer-... A basic language model (GPT-2 small) that runs in the browser, with all of its calculations visualized.