Catherine Schmitt
@coastcompanion.bsky.social
85 followers 210 following 150 posts
science writer & author of THE PRESIDENT'S SALMON and other books - TREES OF ACADIA coming April '26 catherineschmitt.com
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coastcompanion.bsky.social
And why existing forested areas need protection and restoration - and science.
northernwoodlands.org/articles/art...
coastcompanion.bsky.social
not just any cauliflower, its a romanesco.
Reposted by Catherine Schmitt
marspidermonkey.bsky.social
As a primatologist, Jane Goodall was a huge inspiration to me. I admired the way she describes chimpanzee behavior with such detail and empathy, and she’s inspired so many people and advocated for chimpanzee conservation and welfare.

However, I'm dismayed at what her narrative leaves out (1/10)
Photo of Jane Goodall in the center, signing a book, with three women standing slightly hunched behind her. A very young Michelle is to the right, smiling.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
is it because of the truths you are telling?
coastcompanion.bsky.social
today I learned about an insect that looks like a stick, breathes through a snorkel at one end of its body, grasps prey with "raptorial" appendages and kills with venom. there it was, just hanging out in Jordan Pond with the leeches, frogs, and minnows.
a brown stick with six legs swims through murky water
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Part of the Miyawaki method is using local/regional species. But its true the focus on fast growth is not supportive of biodiversity - which is why planting is only a part - another is preserving and expanding existing trees and forests.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
not all the trees are meant to survive. the density is so there's enough to achieve a semblance of canopy relatively quickly. all of these plantings need to be managed and monitored. we'll see in a few years, but at least folks are trying.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Be specific.
irisvanrooij.bsky.social
There is absolutely no good faith reason to use the term “AI” for any technology one is selling.

It serves only for dazzling people into thinking the technology has capabilities that it doesn’t.

If one wants a technology to be trustworthy, just use a transparent, informative term without hype.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
"ChatGPT Plus had a fondness for using the word “groundbreaking.”"

Gee, I wonder why.
shiplives.bsky.social
In 2024, a team of science writers at AAAS ran a long-term experiment to see if ChatGPT could cut it writing news items about scientific research. Here's what they learned. Worth a look. 🧪 #scicomm
www.science.org/content/blog...
Can ChatGPT help science writers?
www.science.org
coastcompanion.bsky.social
1. tomatoes still warm from the sun
2. eating a juicy peach over the sink
3. cicadas reminding you its still summer
4. afternoon coffee
5. waking up, alive again on a beautiful planet
mattzollerseitz.bsky.social
Battle doomscrolling by posting 5 small pleasures in life:

1. Cold side of a pillow
2. Autumn in New York City, sweater-weather temperature
3. Crocs (the shoe, not the reptile)
4. Finding stuff after thinking you lost it
5. Cats
Reposted by Catherine Schmitt
martinespadapoet.bsky.social
24 years ago, 43 members of HERE Local 100—workers at Windows on the World—were among the 2,753 killed on 9/11. Most were immigrants, many undocumented, invisible in life, even moreso in death. Alabanza—praise. www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47868/...
Reposted by Catherine Schmitt
ramiismail.com
"Political violence" is a term that exists to suggest a moral distinction between "violence against politicians" and "violence by politicians" - so that one can be condemned while the other can be normalized. Obviously, no such distinction exists in reality: violence is violence.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Why condemn "political violence" and not just "violence"?
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Monarchs are always stunning, especially during migration.

#stunday #AcadiaNationalPark
a saturated photo of a monarch butterfly on seaside goldenrod with a blurry golden bokeh background
coastcompanion.bsky.social
"This is what a failing colonial empire does to people whom they are afraid will rise like a full moon if we are given the chance to think about something more than survival."

Thank you for sharing this.
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Dont ever think your work, your art, wont make a difference.
bengoldfarb.bsky.social
A couple snippets from an essay I recently received, by a couple who read EAGER and were so profoundly beaver-pilled that they set up meetings with city officials to advocate for non-lethal coexistence. Many such cases! #BeaverBelievers
Reposted by Catherine Schmitt
robinince.bsky.social
“As a disabled writer, it is clear to me there is a specific problem not just with counterfactual content being presented as truth, but counterfactual information about illness being presented as credible health advice.”
Worth reading

lithub.com/nature-is-no...
Nature is Not Going to Cure You: On Raynor Winn’s Fabricated Memoir
Like many writers, I have been following the unfolding revelations about Raynor Winn and The Salt Path with great interest, and a degree of self-interest. I am a memoirist and nature writer, and I …
lithub.com
coastcompanion.bsky.social
Nothing is more #shiny than a chrome guitar under barroom lights.

#BlueSkyArtShow