Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Mindy Weisberger @laminda.bsky.social · 21d

I thought that pelicans stretching their pouches over their own necks was the absolute weirdest they could look, I stand corrected

Brett "Solidarity 2025" Banditelli @banditelli.org · 22d

Shits tense right now. Here's a pelican for comic relief. 🪶

Stretching its neck and it's extremely long . I honestly can't explain this, I guess if you imagine a pelican's head almost straight in the air with a beak fully extended.

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Bethany Brookshire @beebrookshire.bsky.social · 21d

I was on a de-extinction panel at @dconscitrack.bsky.social with @dmos150.bsky.social and other amazing ppl called "We have wolves at home"

And now people send me MORE stuff from Colossal, like "hey saw this and thought of u"

The equivalent of "here, this tastes TERRIBLE! Try it!" 😂🤮

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · 21d

Did you attend our Fiber Arts Unraveled panel, or wish you had? I highly recommend this video on the science of knitting that goes into both the science of knitting, and the history of how "women's work" has intersected with the sciences www.youtube.com/watch?v=5btQ... #fiberarts

I Remade the SciShow Knitting Video (with accurate SCIENCE)

YouTube video by Evie Unraveling

www.youtube.com

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Ryan Consell @stealingfromwizards.com · Sep 2

Science v Movies 2025 is finished. Time to start collecting clips for DragonCon 2026.

Feel free to send your "recommendations"

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Ryan Consell @stealingfromwizards.com · Sep 3

Some folks missed the quiz we had up before Science v Movies at DragonCon and wanted it.

Here you go! Enjoy the nonsense and the learning. Let me know what you get!

stealingfromwizards.com/familiar-quiz

Familiar Quiz — Stealing from Wizards

stealingfromwizards.com

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Sadie Witkowski, PhD @sadiewit.bsky.social · Sep 2

As per usual, @dragoncon.org was incredible and the @dconscitrack.bsky.social killed it! Thanks for letting me geek about sleep, indigo dye, and so much more!

See y’all next year🐉

Photo of DragonCon badge with ribbons and assorted swag

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 2

DragonCon Science Track: wow, these nerds have got some real zingers

Jenna Routenberg @jennaroutenberg.bsky.social · Sep 2

Wow, these nerds have got some real zingers lol

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Liz Decolvenaere @tallakahath.bsky.social · Sep 2

More Dragon Con notes: everyone needs to appreciate this slide from @tkingfisher.com from her talk on the four sexes of white-throated sparrows at the Solve for X variety show in the Science track ( @dconscitrack.bsky.social )

A PowerPoint slide shown on a projector. The slide shows a busty cartoon woman in the left, with a white-throated sparrow's head (white-striped), and a female gender marker. On the right are two white-throated sparrows indicated as male, one white-striped, one tan-striped. The two male sparrows have voice bubbles saying "would" and "oh yeah".

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Bethany Brookshire @beebrookshire.bsky.social · Sep 2

Hello new followers and THANK YOU for coming to my panels at DragonCon, telling me you liked my panels, and in general being amazing.

If you can please do tate and review us in the app, and make sure Science Track gets all the bigger rooms it deserves!

Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Aug 30

Did you think Monstererotica Biology was a fake panel? It is actually a completely real panel that is starting right now! #dragoncon

Photo of five people on a panel at dragoncon

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Bethany Brookshire @beebrookshire.bsky.social · Sep 2

1. I loved this panel.

2. I was the person who live-skeeted it...and remembered just how much I love doing that.

Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Aug 31

Welcome to “How to Build a Sec Unit” where we answer all your questions about human/bot constructs and their existential angst.

Panelist @anisotoph.bsky.social brought his original Murderbot helmet signed by THE Martha Wells.

A white man with a white helmet signed by author Martha wells

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Oh, and did you get turned away from a panel you wanted to go to because the room filled up too quickly? Please add a comment in the ratings in the app to let DragonCon know. This could help us get a bigger room in the future so that we don’t have to turn anyone away.

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Did you attend a Science Track panel this weekend that you loved? Go in the DragonCon app and rate those panels! Your ratings and comments help us to know what types of panels you love and we should do more of in the future!

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Reposted by Dragon Con Science Track

Bethany Brookshire @beebrookshire.bsky.social · Sep 1

I can’t believe the final panel on @dconscitrack.bsky.social was packed. Thank you everyone for coming to learn about sleep.

Also putting me on this panel was a personal attack 😂

Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

The final panel of 2025 Science Track is about to start! — Go the *!#% to Sleep: Effects of Sleep Deprivation (a perfect panel for DragonCon Monday)

Photo of five people on a panel in the DragonCon science track room

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Oh, and did you get turned away from a panel you wanted to go to because the room filled up too quickly? Please add a comment in the ratings in the app to let DragonCon know. This could help us get a bigger room in the future so that we don’t have to turn anyone away.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Did you attend a Science Track panel this weekend that you loved? Go in the DragonCon app and rate those panels! Your ratings and comments help us to know what types of panels you love and we should do more of in the future!

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Here’s a description of that study! www.livescience.com/real-time-co...

Lucid dreamers can hear and answer questions while still asleep, scientists find

It's like communicating with an astronaut on another world.

www.livescience.com

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Panelist @sadiewit.bsky.social’s lab teaches people to lucid dream. Then, they can ask them questions while they are in REM sleep and the sleeping subjects are able to answer via their eye movements.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

The difference between light sleepers and heavy sleepers is more about the timing that you go into deeper sleep cycle stages. Some people go into those deep sleep stages quicker than others, but everyone goes through lighter and heavier sleep phases every night.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Don’t worry too much about your sleep tracker data. There is a big disconnect between reported amounts of sleep and actual amounts of sleep. Your subjective feeling of being well-rested is a better measure of your sleep quality than what any tracker may say.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Why is it so hard for some of us to get up in the morning?
This may actually be differences in sleep rhythm, not amount of sleep. You may be waking at a time that is too early for you. Or, it could be conditioning — some people need more time to actually get out of bed in the morning.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Another way to help you fall asleep is to make sure you are waking up at the same time every day. If your sleep patterns are extremely different on weekends, it causes the equivalent of jet lag when you have to get back to your regular schedule on Monday.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

One of the best ways to fall asleep is to make sure your bed is only used for sleeping and uhhh… adult activities. That way your body will associate your bed with sleep, which helps you feel sleepier every night when you get in bed.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

My apologies if I seem to be skipping out on live-posting some sections of this panel. It’s Monday of dragoncon — even here on science track we can only manage so much.

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Dragon Con Science Track @dconscitrack.bsky.social · Sep 1

Melatonin probably doesn’t do much to help people sleep — but if you feel like it works well for you, that’s because the placebo effect can work extremely well for sleep! Though melatonin has side effects and interactions with some medications, so please be careful if you take it.

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