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leebillings.bsky.social
Lee Billings
@leebillings.bsky.social
2.1K followers 460 following 110 posts
CHNOPS in ferruginous saline. Multicellular aerobic chemoheterotroph; symbiont of photosynthetic autotrophs. Descendant of stardust; aspiring good ancestor. Senior Editor, Scientific American. Signal: @lee_billings.81
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Reposted by Lee Billings
maxkozlov.bsky.social
Read my full story here!

Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance

www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
The Make America Healthy Again summit, attended by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr and vice-president JD Vance, gave a sense of what’s driving US health policy.
www.nature.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
scalzi.com
After reports that Grok says that Elon Musk is smarter than Einstein and could take Mike Tyson in a fight, I am pleased to report there is one thing on this planet Grok thinks is better than Elon Musk.
Which has better mouthfeel, a high-end serving of butterfat-laden lavender ice cream, or Elon Musk High-end lavender butterfat ice cream wins in a 900-point blowout. Ice cream mouthfeel profile (actual 20%+ butterfat, properly churned): Silky, almost liquid-velvet drag across the palate Slow, luxurious melt that coats every millimeter of your tongue Tiny ice crystals so small you can’t detect them Floral lavender top-note that blooms in the retronasal cavity like a French perfume Lingering fatty film that makes you involuntarily close your eyes and go “mmmm” Elon Musk mouthfeel profile (hypothetical, day-6 no-shower edition): Initial texture: surprisingly dry and slightly papery (too much time in air-conditioned factories) Mid-palate: faint gritty residue of Martian regolith simulant he absent-mindedly licked off his fingers Finish: sharp metallic tang of rocket-grade kerosene, followed by the unmistakable mouthfeel of someone who has been stress-eating Flamin’ Hot Cheetos while debugging flight software Aftertaste: existential dread and a faint electric tingle, like you just licked a Tesla battery terminal that’s questioning your life choices One is crafted by master artisans to be the single most hedonistic substance legally allowed in the Northern Hemisphere. The other is a man who once said sleep is a “weakness” and whose natural aroma is currently classified by the EPA as “aspirational.” There is no competition. The ice cream is sensual perfection. Elon is an experience best appreciated from a minimum safe distance of five feet and through a layer of spacesuit-grade HEPA filtration.
November 21, 2025 at 1:12 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: A machine-learning breakthrough in detecting ancient biomolecules could lift the veil on Earth’s early history—and supercharge the search for alien life.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/ai-u...
AI Uncovers Oldest-Ever Molecular Evidence of Photosynthesis
A machine-learning breakthrough could lift the veil on Earth’s early history—and supercharge the search for alien life
www.scientificamerican.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
jetjocko.bsky.social
Now up in Scientific American: Me, trying to think about getting messages from the past and sending them to the future...and also my grandmother's invisible library. www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-...
The Internet Is Disappearing. How Do We Save What’s Important?
When written knowledge is more ephemeral than ever, how can we pass on what’s important?
www.scientificamerican.com
November 17, 2025 at 8:02 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
rincewind.run
Paul Krugman only reads blogs and that is why he, unlike everyone else who has been in punditry for decades, has never lost his mind
getwired.com Wes Miller @getwired.com · 12d
If you need me, tap me on the shoulder. I’ll be happily working all day listening to this on a loop.
November 15, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
markharris.bsky.social
I got an actual "Your silence on this subject is deafening" message this AM, so, super-quick: Nobody here owes anyone commentary about anything. This is a public park. It's full of interesting people. We hang out here, make friends, and chat, and then we leave to do whatever it is we do. That's it!
November 15, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
elisecutts.bsky.social
If you don't already know about the Quiet Posters feed, it's great.

It specifically prioritizes posts from people ~you follow~ who do not post frequently. So you don't miss those gleaming but infrequent nuggets of wisdom
November 14, 2025 at 6:58 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: NASA’s presumptive next leader, Jared Isaacman, wants to outsource more of the space agency’s interplanetary science. The newly launched ESCAPADE mission to Mars offers a sanity check for those plans.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-...
Can NASA Outsource Its Space Science? This Mars-Bound Mission May Show the Way
NASA’s presumptive next leader wants to outsource more of the space agency’s interplanetary science. The newly launched ESCAPADE mission to Mars offers a sanity check for those plans
www.scientificamerican.com
November 14, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
astrowright.bsky.social
I've summarized the truth about Loeb's 10 "anomalies" about 3I/ATLAS in one post.

Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Loeb’s 3I/ATLAS “Anomalies” Explained
Avi Loeb continues to claim that 3I/ATLAS has many anomalous behaviors that lead to the conclusion that it “might” be an alien spacecraft.  He carefully hedges the probability that it is a spacecraft ...
sites.psu.edu
November 10, 2025 at 12:22 AM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: In his new book, The Giant Leap, NASA astrobiologist @calebscharf.bsky.social says the fate of life on Earth may hinge on leaving our planet behind.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-s...
Is Space the Place for Earth’s Next Evolutionary Leap?
In a new book, NASA astrobiologist Caleb Scharf says the fate of life on Earth may hinge on leaving our planet behind
www.scientificamerican.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:24 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: Reflect Orbital’s plan to deliver “sunlight on demand” using thousands of giant orbital mirrors is just the latest in a growing list of disruptive commercial activities in space. By @raminskibba.bsky.social. 🧪🔭

www.scientificamerican.com/article/alar...
Giant Mirrors, Orbital Data Centers and Space-Based Advertisements Could Soon Clutter the Night Sky
Reflect Orbital’s plan to deliver “sunlight on demand” using thousands of giant orbital mirrors is just the latest in a growing list of disruptive commercial activities in space
www.scientificamerican.com
November 6, 2025 at 1:29 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
🔭 🧪
November 6, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
andrewjonesspace.bsky.social
Tianwen-1 Mars orbiter successfully observed the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS in early October at a distance of ~29 million km, CNSA has just announced. www.cnsa.gov.cn/n6758823/n67...
November 6, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Reposted by Lee Billings
meadekrosby.bsky.social
The speed with which salmon have returned to the Klamath - like the Elwha - after dam removal is overwhelmingly hopeful. And in both cases thanks to decades of tireless advocacy by local Tribes.
bengoldfarb.bsky.social Ben Goldfarb @bengoldfarb.bsky.social · 19d
Grateful to spend two days on the Klamath watching chinook, liberated by dam removal, return to streams from which they’d been precluded since the Titanic sank. Fish are everywhere, in numbers that stagger the mind & locations that biologists figured would take years to repopulate. Too beautiful.
November 5, 2025 at 11:03 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
unamandita.bsky.social
🚨new shape just dropped🚨 (by @dodecalemma.bsky.social with graphics by me) www.scientificamerican.com/article/math...
This New Shape Breaks an ‘Unbreakable’ 3D Geometry Rule
The noperthedron has a surprising property—which disproves a long-standing conjecture
www.scientificamerican.com
October 29, 2025 at 4:00 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: Astronomers are agog over this all-day gamma-ray burst.

A cosmic explosion known as GRB 250702B is by far the longest gamma-ray burst astronomers have ever seen—if it’s even one at all.

By @whereisyvette.bsky.social.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/long...
These Cosmic Outbursts Normally Last for Minutes. This One Went on for Hours—And Nobody Knows Why
A cosmic explosion known as GRB 250702B is by far the longest gamma-ray burst astronomers have ever seen—if it’s even one at all
www.scientificamerican.com
November 5, 2025 at 9:02 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
Now on @sciam.bsky.social: After a leaked memo and a dust-up with NASA’s interim chief, Jared Isaacman’s renomination to lead the space agency portends potentially profound changes for U.S. space science and exploration. By @danvergano.bsky.social.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa...
Rejected NASA Chief Pick Jared Isaacman Renominated to Head Agency
Ahead of Jared Isaacman’s renomination for the position of NASA’s administrator, a dispute between him and its acting chief Sean Duffy spilled into the open, with potentially profound consequences for...
www.scientificamerican.com
November 5, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
cherylrofer.bsky.social
Terry Wallace's Facebook post continued.
Post continued (4): On October 28, President Trump announced that the U.S. would restart nuclear weapons tests: “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately.” Although his statement lacked clarity regarding what “immediate testing” would entail, it was widely assumed he meant explosive testing of weapons, thus breaking the 33-year moratorium. This assumption stemmed from the first Trump administration’s suggestion in 2019 that such testing was necessary. In January 2025, the Heritage Foundation released a paper titled “America Must Prepare to Test Nuclear Weapons” (Figure 2 shows a screenshot of the report cover). It is important to note that the Heritage Foundation is behind Project 2025, which the Trump Administration has followed closely. The worldwide response to Trump’s announcement was uniform and best described as “outraged.” Moreover, U.S. experts stated that preparing for a safe underground test would require 18 to 36 months. However, this elicited a response from the Heritage Foundation, suggesting, “the President may order the above-ground testing of a nuclear weapon... And while the United States leaving the [Nuclear] Test Ban Treaty may not be optimal and may indeed have negative downstream effects, doing so may be necessary to stave off further adversarial escalation.” Today, the Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, attempted to downplay the idea of explosive testing but could not clearly define what Post conclusion (5): Today, the Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, attempted to downplay the idea of explosive testing but could not clearly define what “immediate testing” would entail beyond the current activities of the U.S. government. Nevertheless, given that public statements from the Trump administration continue to assert that Project 2025 is not necessarily “their” policy plan while simultaneously carrying out its implementation, there is growing concern about how even statements regarding testing will be perceived by Russia and China. Above-ground nuclear tests have been outlawed by international treaty since 1963, and even the suggestion of an atmospheric test is exceedingly troubling—such testing is unnecessary and presents a significant risk of radioactive fallout affecting U.S. citizens, not to mention the inevitable tit-for-tat responses from other nuclear nations. I cannot fathom the extent of harm the Trump administration has inflicted on the environment and science, but nuclear testing is beyond the pale. An atmospheric test of U.S. weapons would produce fallout three to ten times larger than that produced by Baneberry; however, this would not be an accident but an intentional contamination of our country. The implications of coal use, removal of EPA regulations on emissions, and radiation present a dystopian distain for America.
November 4, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
cherylrofer.bsky.social
This needs to be shared more widely. It's on Facebook, which AFAIK doesn't allow direct links to its posts. Terry clearly wants it to be shared, so I don't feel bad about posting it in multiple screenshots.

Terry Wallace was the director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
A brown cloud arising from an underground nuclear test in Nevada. Dry Nevadan hills are in the background. The scientific encampment to control the test and take data is in the lower right. This is the Baneberry nuclear test, and it is not how underground nuclear tests should look. Screenshot of a Facebook post: Terry Wallace On December 18, 1970, a nuclear weapons test was conducted in an underground shaft at the Nevada Test Site. The test, code-named Baneberry, was detonated at a depth of about 900 feet. Baneberry was a relatively small weapons test and was conducted at Yucca Flats (a large playa) in alluvial soil derived from surrounding deposits of volcanic tuff. Within the alluvium, there were intermittent seams of montmorillonite clay that were saturated with water. The drill hole was filled with a concrete plug and sorted materials; the procedure for plugging the hole was consistent with previous tests at Yucca Flats, which aimed to fully contain the radioactive products within a cavity produced by the nuclear explosion. In the case of Baneberry, the detonation seemed normal until about 3 ½ minutes after the “boom,” when a large fissure opened up a few hundred feet from the test shaft, and a boiling cloud of radioactive debris rose above the Nevada desert (Figure 1 is an image of the Baneberry release). The cloud rose about 10,000 feet above the test and was visible in Las Vegas, 100 miles away. The cloud spread radioactive dust across a broad area, contaminating 86 workers at the test site. The total radioactive release was 6.7 megacuries (for comparison, Chernobyl released 200 megacuries), including 80,000 curies of iodine-131. Two of the workers who were contaminated died in 1974 from myeloid leukemia. The accident resulted in a six-month suspension of nuclear weapons testing, and a root cause analysis revealed three geological issues that combined to create the release: an unrecognized fault in the alluvium, a buried escarpment between the alluvium and limestone, and the structural weakness of the water-saturated clay. Post continues (2) the structural weakness of the water-saturated clay. The summary conclusion of the root cause analysis indicated that a thorough geological analysis was needed for all future nuclear tests, and it recommended the establishment of a containment evaluation panel (CEP) for the approval of any tests. This panel required that “successful containment means no radioactivity detectable offsite, and no unanticipated release of activity onsite.” Of the 200+ tests that occurred after the creation of the CEP, only four tests had releases—the worst of which was a test called Diagonal Line, detonated about a year after Baneberry, and resulting in a release of 6,000 curies. I started my career at Los Alamos National Laboratory as an undergraduate student in 1975 employed by the J Division, which was responsible for providing the containment package for LANL nuclear tests. My first project involved modeling the small earthquakes that occurred after an explosion. Once an explosion is detonated, it creates a cavity by vaporizing and compressing the surrounding materials. This cavity is expected to collapse over the following days or weeks to create a porous chimney that traps the gases produced in the explosion. This containment strategy is unique to the geology of the Nevada Test Site and is not applicable to other testing environments, especially crystalline rock (like the North Korean Test Site). Over the three years I worked as a student at LANL, I analyzed data from more than 70 tests, which initiated my career in forensic geophysics and eventually led to my becoming the 11th Director of LANL. On September 23, 1992, the U.S. conducted its final explosive nuclear Post continues (3): On September 23, 1992, the U.S. conducted its final explosive nuclear test, code-named Divider (a LANL test). Shortly after the test, President Bush announced a test moratorium that was extended indefinitely by President Clinton. This ushered in a new era in which nuclear weapons were evaluated not through explosions but by scientific tools that verified material properties through dynamic testing and advanced computer simulations that encapsulated the complex physics of nuclear reactions and explosions along with the material properties derived from non-explosive experiments. The Directors of Los Alamos, Livermore, and Sandia are required to write an annual stockpile assessment letter that assures the nuclear stockpile's reliability; this letter is finalized after a yearlong assessment of the safety, reliability, and performance of both the nuclear and non-nuclear components of all weapon types in the U.S. arsenal. The letters are highly classified and closely held, but no letter has indicated that the U.S. needs to return to nuclear testing. This is hugely significant not only for the U.S. but also for the world—the moratorium on testing represents a small step toward a world that recognizes that nuclear weapons are not weapons of war, but rather instruments of deterrence. On October 28, President Trump announced that the U.S. would restart nuclear weapons tests: “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I
November 4, 2025 at 7:15 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
On Sunday, humans marked 25 years of continuous presence in Earth orbit, via the International Space Station. For @sciam.bsky.social, @astrojonny.bsky.social looks at the surge of commercial space stations that might keep this trend going to 2050.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...
After a Quarter-Century of Hosting Humans, the International Space Station Is Approaching Its End. What Comes Next?
Humans have been in space onboard the ISS continuously for 25 years. As the station nears its end, new commercial habitats are lining up to take its place
www.scientificamerican.com
November 3, 2025 at 2:32 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
drfunkyspoon.bsky.social
A personal reflection on the destructive erosion of ethics, norms and respect for law at NASA:
🧪🔭

🧵
October 31, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
hbhammel.bsky.social
I recommend this article by @meghanbartels.bsky.social and @leebillings.bsky.social for folks who are looking for *factual* information about why 3I/ATLAS is of interest to planetary astronomers: www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...
The Race to Study an Interstellar Comet from Deep Space
Astronomers are hustling to use interplanetary spacecraft to study the interstellar comet dubbed 3I/ATLAS while the sun is hiding it from Earth
www.scientificamerican.com
October 31, 2025 at 7:15 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
NASA: o hey u guys are back early
astronomer: galaxy's haunted
NASA: what?
astronomer: *loading a pistol and going back to the telescope* galaxy's haunted

This is my summary of @philplait.bsky.social's latest spooktacular column for @sciam.bsky.social.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-...
Happy Halloween from the Haunted Heart of Our Milky Way Galaxy
Huge eruptions from the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole in the distant past may have sterilized much of the inner galaxy
www.scientificamerican.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:13 PM
leebillings.bsky.social
100% seconding this. Like, yeah, "that 'blue' thing's not actually blue!" can be a cool way to communicate various complexities of the physics and perception of color. But most of the time it's comes off as snarky, in a "well akshully" smarty-pants way that's a huge turn-off for the average person.
bobgooday.bsky.social Bob Gooday @bobgooday.bsky.social · 25d
I hate this factoid. If they "appear blue to the human eye", they're blue. That's what blue IS. How the hell else can you define a colour?
annaghughes.bsky.social Anna Hughes 🍁 @annaghughes.bsky.social · 25d
"[Karen Gosse of The Rock Wildlife Rescue] said blue jays have a few unique features — including the fact that they’re not actually blue and only appear so to the human eye." 🐦
October 31, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Reposted by Lee Billings
scavamungus.bsky.social
If you're interested in our exciting new arms race, there's no better follow than @armscontrolwonk.bsky.social. His podcast is great too. I was going to say it was too infrequent, but since the policy is "launch a missile, get a pod [about your country]" let's hope it doesn't get any more frequent.
October 30, 2025 at 7:30 PM