Leah Shaffer
@leahshaffer.bsky.social
Science writer, mostly puttering about the garden.
she/her
she/her
Hitchin a ride 🦀🦀🦀
My image is up for a Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award! Vote on the 25 nominated images from the >61,000 submitted.
www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/peoples-...
A sargassum swimming crab on an unidentified species jelly in Indonesia that I shot in Nov2024
www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/peoples-...
A sargassum swimming crab on an unidentified species jelly in Indonesia that I shot in Nov2024
February 6, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Hitchin a ride 🦀🦀🦀
50 years from now, we will have a handful of memorials for Mackenzie around the areas she extensively funded Habitat for Humanity. Elsewhere Jeff will also be name checked among the vast warning network to prevent hoarding of resources.
"Bezos Zone Beware"
"toxic wealth will induce brain damage"
"Bezos Zone Beware"
"toxic wealth will induce brain damage"
Peggy Noonan on the mutilation of The Washington Post.
www.wsj.com/opinion/a-la...
www.wsj.com/opinion/a-la...
February 6, 2026 at 2:35 PM
50 years from now, we will have a handful of memorials for Mackenzie around the areas she extensively funded Habitat for Humanity. Elsewhere Jeff will also be name checked among the vast warning network to prevent hoarding of resources.
"Bezos Zone Beware"
"toxic wealth will induce brain damage"
"Bezos Zone Beware"
"toxic wealth will induce brain damage"
Can you imagine how advanced society would be if people like Ms. West, Roz Franklin, pioneering entomologist Charles Henry Turner, were allowed to thrive and so many others who never got a chance to even approach the collective endeavor of science. Imagine that world, and make it so. 🧪 #ScienceSky
No joke: I got angry hate mail today for writing an obituary of a Black woman scientist—because the person felt she did didn’t deserve the recognition.
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Gladys Mae West obituary: mathematician who pioneered GPS technology
She made key contributions to US cold-war science despite facing huge barriers as a Black woman.
www.nature.com
February 6, 2026 at 2:25 PM
Can you imagine how advanced society would be if people like Ms. West, Roz Franklin, pioneering entomologist Charles Henry Turner, were allowed to thrive and so many others who never got a chance to even approach the collective endeavor of science. Imagine that world, and make it so. 🧪 #ScienceSky
#Blacksky
now I gotta dig into this Instagram
now I gotta dig into this Instagram
The Wright Museums Instagram page is HILARIOUS. Think The Office but it's the staff at a Museum for Black History. Better believe this is on my list of places to visit.
Gentle Spades
"I'm a veteran"
Gentle Spades
"I'm a veteran"
February 6, 2026 at 2:12 PM
#Blacksky
now I gotta dig into this Instagram
now I gotta dig into this Instagram
Good morning, cute little exploding sprinkles. 🧪✨🎊
When sprinkles are submerged in liquid nitrogen, they rapidly cool to −196 °C, causing the trapped moisture and air inside them to contract and the sugar structure to become brittle. cen.acs.org/education/Ch...
#CENChemPics #chemsky 🧪
#CENChemPics #chemsky 🧪
February 6, 2026 at 2:08 PM
Good morning, cute little exploding sprinkles. 🧪✨🎊
Misinformation is a pandemic
Measles cases are rising.
A newborn baby died from listeria infection. The mother drank raw milk. Listeria can cause miscarriages & still births.
Pasteurization was invented for a reason.
Misinformation is expensive.
MAHA is making us sicker.
#ImpeachRFKJr
🧪 www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/new...
A newborn baby died from listeria infection. The mother drank raw milk. Listeria can cause miscarriages & still births.
Pasteurization was invented for a reason.
Misinformation is expensive.
MAHA is making us sicker.
#ImpeachRFKJr
🧪 www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/new...
New Mexico warns against drinking raw milk after newborn dies from listeria
The New Mexico Department of Health said officials believe the baby contracted listeria after their mother drank raw milk during pregnancy.
www.cbsnews.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:52 PM
Misinformation is a pandemic
Hell yeah! Got a bounty of print media today. Latest issue of @sciencenews.bsky.social and @404media.co zine!
February 5, 2026 at 10:12 PM
Hell yeah! Got a bounty of print media today. Latest issue of @sciencenews.bsky.social and @404media.co zine!
Gay soccer players in love
Cleated Rivalry
Cleated Rivalry
A competition to make the creamiest mac and cheese:
Velveeted Rivalry
Velveeted Rivalry
The two savviest fuel-gatherers in Scotland desperate to warm each other up:
Peated Rivalry
Peated Rivalry
February 5, 2026 at 9:49 PM
Gay soccer players in love
Cleated Rivalry
Cleated Rivalry
Cat's schedule is set by the movement of the sun beam from kitchen to the laundry room.
February 5, 2026 at 9:15 PM
Cat's schedule is set by the movement of the sun beam from kitchen to the laundry room.
Oh, Thune out there promising us the bestest of times, oooh, keep up the sweet talk, honey.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday that demands made by Democrats for new restrictions on federal immigration officers are “unrealistic” and warned that the Department of Homeland Security will shut down next week if they do not work with Republicans and the White House.
Homeland Security shutdown grows more likely as Republicans rebuff Democratic demands for ICE
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday that demands made by Democrats for new restrictions on federal immigration officers are “unrealistic” and warned that the Department of Homeland Secu…
trib.al
February 5, 2026 at 8:58 PM
Oh, Thune out there promising us the bestest of times, oooh, keep up the sweet talk, honey.
Here we go.
Thread about why this crypto crash might be “the big one” 🧵
February 5, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Here we go.
Can't wait for the future where we grow all our stuff in tanks of microbes. And then throw our waste back into the goo to make new stuff. And repeat. #CircularEconomy #AgSky #ScienceSky #ChemSky 🧪
Susie named the bioreactor Shrek, which is a great name!
engineering.missouri.edu/2026/lab-gro...
Susie named the bioreactor Shrek, which is a great name!
engineering.missouri.edu/2026/lab-gro...
Lab-grown algae removes microplastics from water
Professor Susie Dai has created a new kind of algae that grows in wastewater and can turn microplastics into biomass that is easy to collect and remove.
engineering.missouri.edu
February 5, 2026 at 7:32 PM
Can't wait for the future where we grow all our stuff in tanks of microbes. And then throw our waste back into the goo to make new stuff. And repeat. #CircularEconomy #AgSky #ScienceSky #ChemSky 🧪
Susie named the bioreactor Shrek, which is a great name!
engineering.missouri.edu/2026/lab-gro...
Susie named the bioreactor Shrek, which is a great name!
engineering.missouri.edu/2026/lab-gro...
The best way to celebrate our 250th is keep up the "whistle revolution." www.standwithminnesota.com
February 5, 2026 at 5:57 PM
The best way to celebrate our 250th is keep up the "whistle revolution." www.standwithminnesota.com
Good convo going on in comments, if you got developer skills, join in and connect! I want to pay one fee, for Flaming Hydra, 404, the Handbasket, Defector etc..
We want to bundle and help indie journalism benefit from economies of scale. Get in! We're rebuilding a functional journalism industry!
We want to bundle and help indie journalism benefit from economies of scale. Get in! We're rebuilding a functional journalism industry!
whoever figures out a way to bundle independent journalism subscriptions will be a hero
i know that this is an unpopular take, but everyone starting their own newsletter as a revenue stream is not a sustainable model for writing and reporting or for people who love and want to pay for media.
February 5, 2026 at 4:55 PM
Good convo going on in comments, if you got developer skills, join in and connect! I want to pay one fee, for Flaming Hydra, 404, the Handbasket, Defector etc..
We want to bundle and help indie journalism benefit from economies of scale. Get in! We're rebuilding a functional journalism industry!
We want to bundle and help indie journalism benefit from economies of scale. Get in! We're rebuilding a functional journalism industry!
Unions keep institutions more honest. Even the best of institutions need empowered unions. The guild ensures the jewel that is propublica is not inevitably shattered like the post.
1/ READY TO STRIKE: More than 80% of our members signed a pledge saying we are prepared to strike unless @propublica.org agrees to a fair contract.
www.propublicaguild.org/updates/the-...
www.propublicaguild.org/updates/the-...
The ProPublica Guild is Ready to Strike for a Fair Contract — ProPublica Guild
The ProPublica Guild is prepared to strike. We have shown up and compromised at the bargaining table for more than two years, but our newsroom’s management has slow-walked negotiations , offering w...
www.propublicaguild.org
February 5, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Unions keep institutions more honest. Even the best of institutions need empowered unions. The guild ensures the jewel that is propublica is not inevitably shattered like the post.
The internet was a mistake. But this kind of chaos-making tool reminds me that the internet is a delightful miracle AND a mistake.
A new tool lets you search the Epstein files for mentions of your LinkedIn contacts. Tried it out, does work. Outputs a report with links to the material on the DOJ website.
www.404media.co/this-tool-se...
www.404media.co/this-tool-se...
This Tool Searches the Epstein Files For Your LinkedIn Contacts
EpsteIN—as in, Epstein and LinkedIn—searches your connections on the social network for names that match those in the released files.
www.404media.co
February 5, 2026 at 4:13 PM
The internet was a mistake. But this kind of chaos-making tool reminds me that the internet is a delightful miracle AND a mistake.
Today I learned Dumas' mother was Haitian.
For this Black History Month, given the regime’s vile smearing of Ohio’s Haitian population, I think it’s a good time to remember a literary giant of Haitian descent, Alexander Dumas, père
He gave us the Three Musketeers, the Count of Monte Cristo & so much more
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexand...
He gave us the Three Musketeers, the Count of Monte Cristo & so much more
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexand...
Alexandre Dumas - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
February 5, 2026 at 3:05 PM
Today I learned Dumas' mother was Haitian.
Skyline cleanse
February 5, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Skyline cleanse
#Missouri #STL Fred talking with my favorite local newsie. I think he should get Ann Wagner's job and I hope he does.
While masked government agents roam our streets and the cost of living becomes impossible for working people we can’t sit back and pretend about what we face. It’s time to stop elect fighters. Listen to the entire show now. www.stlmag.com/podcasts/314...
The 314 Podcast: Fred Wellman Takes On Ann Wagner | St. Louis Magazine
In this episode of The 314 Podcast, host Sarah Fenske talks with Fred Wellman, who is running against six-term U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Ballwin). A U.S. Army veteran, political consultant, and podcast ...
www.stlmag.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Helpful tracker! Please share widely.
🚨 New: We built a visual tracker of the warehouses ICE is targeting across the US.
Working off an idea from @actualkatherine.bsky.social, we’ve mapped active searches, canceled deals, and linked state property records.
Explore the map here: tinyurl.com/ICEWarehouse...
Working off an idea from @actualkatherine.bsky.social, we’ve mapped active searches, canceled deals, and linked state property records.
Explore the map here: tinyurl.com/ICEWarehouse...
February 5, 2026 at 2:45 PM
Helpful tracker! Please share widely.
I know we're all bundles of fear and rage but I am begging some of y'all to "touch grass" and by, touch grass, I mean volunteer as an election judge or with local Dems or league of women voters, FFS. YOU have power. Use it. It will make you feel less scared.
one thing i have noticed is a lot of folks do not seem to understand the difference between a presidential election and 435+ legislative elections. i have seen any number of people say that you could subvert the outcome this november by targeting “swing states,” which does not make any sense.
February 5, 2026 at 1:37 PM
I know we're all bundles of fear and rage but I am begging some of y'all to "touch grass" and by, touch grass, I mean volunteer as an election judge or with local Dems or league of women voters, FFS. YOU have power. Use it. It will make you feel less scared.
Really enjoying Colbert's final season of "fuck it, we're going down swinging" tour.
Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue
#Pinks #ProudBlue
February 5, 2026 at 1:33 PM
Really enjoying Colbert's final season of "fuck it, we're going down swinging" tour.
I recall running into a bunch of em around the SuperValu campus. The headquarters had extensive trails surrounded by trees. Next thing I know, I am being menaced by a gang of wild turkeys at a corporate business park. 🦃
The free-roaming turkeys of Saint Paul, Minnesota:
- are enormous
- don’t know where they’re going
- have no plans or motivations
- don’t understand roads
- or anything at all, really
- are enormous
- don’t know where they’re going
- have no plans or motivations
- don’t understand roads
- or anything at all, really
February 5, 2026 at 12:33 AM
I recall running into a bunch of em around the SuperValu campus. The headquarters had extensive trails surrounded by trees. Next thing I know, I am being menaced by a gang of wild turkeys at a corporate business park. 🦃