MTH
@megt.bsky.social
SFF author. PhD in mass comm, anthro/archaeo, folklore, environment. Freelance writer/editor. Grantmaking and public policy. Operator at defunct farm. Cheesehead 🧀 Badger alum. Reposts not necessarily an endorsement.
web: https://oaklandhillsfarm.com
web: https://oaklandhillsfarm.com
Pinned
MTH
@megt.bsky.social
· Aug 17
A #book is the perfect escape! Want a portal to other worlds? BLACK RIVER can transport you. Like nobledark #fantasy trilogies full of political intrigue, desperate battles and epic journeys? Check out The Enchanter's Web! oaklandhillsfarm.com/novel (Alt txt for deets) #writingcommunity #sff 📚🪐 📚💙
Reposted by MTH
Your electric bill isn't just covering energy costs — it might be funding massages, private jets, and country club perks for utility executives.
Massages and country clubs: Your electric bill may be funding lavish perks
Utility customers sometimes foot the bill for lobbying, advertising and luxurious living, new report shows
floodlightnews.org
November 25, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Your electric bill isn't just covering energy costs — it might be funding massages, private jets, and country club perks for utility executives.
Reposted by MTH
“Meta shut down internal research into the mental health effects of Facebook after finding causal evidence that its products harmed users’ mental health, according to unredacted filings in a lawsuit by U.S. school districts against Meta and other social media platforms.”
Meta buried 'causal' evidence of social media harm, US court filings allege - The Economic Times
Meta reportedly halted internal research into the mental health impacts of Facebook and Instagram after finding causal evidence of harm. Internal documents revealed users reported lower depression and...
m.economictimes.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:46 PM
“Meta shut down internal research into the mental health effects of Facebook after finding causal evidence that its products harmed users’ mental health, according to unredacted filings in a lawsuit by U.S. school districts against Meta and other social media platforms.”
Tomato's been smoking spiders again. You can see it in the eyes.
(there's always that one tomato in the batch trying to turn the others). 🌱
(there's always that one tomato in the batch trying to turn the others). 🌱
November 23, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Tomato's been smoking spiders again. You can see it in the eyes.
(there's always that one tomato in the batch trying to turn the others). 🌱
(there's always that one tomato in the batch trying to turn the others). 🌱
Reposted by MTH
If you're buying gifts for the holidays, maybe consider supporting artists, writers, creators. Gift someone a Patreon, commission an art piece, buy a book, purchase handmade jewelry, etc. Your support means everything.
November 22, 2025 at 8:39 PM
If you're buying gifts for the holidays, maybe consider supporting artists, writers, creators. Gift someone a Patreon, commission an art piece, buy a book, purchase handmade jewelry, etc. Your support means everything.
USGS office in La Crosse (WI) to close as research field eliminated.
The office's main focus is in the Ecosystems Mission area.
The Department of the Interior plans to shutter its entire Ecosystems Mission area by asking for $0 in 2026. It no longer appears on the official organizational chart. 🧪🌎🌿
The office's main focus is in the Ecosystems Mission area.
The Department of the Interior plans to shutter its entire Ecosystems Mission area by asking for $0 in 2026. It no longer appears on the official organizational chart. 🧪🌎🌿
![LA CROSSE [Wisconsin]— The U.S. Department of the Interior has put La Crosse's U.S. Geological Survey office on the chopping block, according to department budget documents.
In the new Department of the Interior budget justification document, USGS officials note the primary area of research conducted in La Crosse will end and the office will close alongside 16 other similar facilities.
According to the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center website, the La Crosse facility employs 86 biologists, geographers and other scientists or specialists.
Officials at the Center did not respond to a request for comment about the closure. It was not immediately clear what would become of the USGS research facility on French Island or whether any La Crosse employees would have the opportunity to relocate and continue their research.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cpbgpplszi6kjfm6cia47vlp/bafkreidaresk4k3k2uhfxdurtliwq3sggdwaep7w63tlgm2j4rp4vijy2e@jpeg)
November 21, 2025 at 8:39 PM
USGS office in La Crosse (WI) to close as research field eliminated.
The office's main focus is in the Ecosystems Mission area.
The Department of the Interior plans to shutter its entire Ecosystems Mission area by asking for $0 in 2026. It no longer appears on the official organizational chart. 🧪🌎🌿
The office's main focus is in the Ecosystems Mission area.
The Department of the Interior plans to shutter its entire Ecosystems Mission area by asking for $0 in 2026. It no longer appears on the official organizational chart. 🧪🌎🌿
Reposted by MTH
New research by @mctd.bsky.social shows the impact of generative AI on authors in the UK. They found over a third of novelists report their income has already been negatively impacted by AI and 85% expect their future income will be negatively impacted.
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
Impact of Generative AI on the Novel
A report examining how literary creatives being affected by GenAI and what measures they want see implemented by the government to protect the UK’s literary scene.
www.mctd.ac.uk
November 20, 2025 at 11:57 AM
New research by @mctd.bsky.social shows the impact of generative AI on authors in the UK. They found over a third of novelists report their income has already been negatively impacted by AI and 85% expect their future income will be negatively impacted.
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
www.mctd.ac.uk/impact-of-ge...
In the kitty ER. Why do these things always happen at night? Called five after hours vets over an hour before I could find one who could take him ... 48 miles away.
November 20, 2025 at 5:00 AM
In the kitty ER. Why do these things always happen at night? Called five after hours vets over an hour before I could find one who could take him ... 48 miles away.
I think my male characters fear failure/impotence, both the good guys and the bad guys. Some of the bad guys become good guys because of it. Some of the good guys become bad guys because of it. Overall, they want to control every situation and if they fail, they fail hard. #HorrorWritersChat
Q4 is up. Ten minutes to outro and the promo: I am still working my way through. You're all wonderful busy bees today and I adore you!
This one is a little easier. No archetypes!
#HorrorWritersChat
This one is a little easier. No archetypes!
#HorrorWritersChat
November 19, 2025 at 10:23 PM
I think my male characters fear failure/impotence, both the good guys and the bad guys. Some of the bad guys become good guys because of it. Some of the good guys become bad guys because of it. Overall, they want to control every situation and if they fail, they fail hard. #HorrorWritersChat
They are fully realized people overall. Though one male protag thought himself such a great fighter he "knew" he alone could rescue a hostage from a supernatural power. Ended up possessed/programmed to serve that power's needs, and in the end becomes a pariah. Oops. #HorrorWritersChat
Q3. I'm doing what I can to answer everyone, and repost, so bear with me. So I don't keep you waiting, I'll throw out 3. Interpret this one how you like. I know many queer folks like me do not align masculinity with man shaped. And with horror, we love to subvert our tales.
#HorrorWritersChat
#HorrorWritersChat
November 19, 2025 at 10:19 PM
They are fully realized people overall. Though one male protag thought himself such a great fighter he "knew" he alone could rescue a hostage from a supernatural power. Ended up possessed/programmed to serve that power's needs, and in the end becomes a pariah. Oops. #HorrorWritersChat
I think arrogance/certainty tends to be something my male protags are most likely to find turned to tragedy. Their self-assured decisions cost them, a lot. Sometimes it's merely an injury, often the blood on their hands belongs to those they care for most because: certainty. #HorrorWritersChat
Well then, #HorrorWritersChat. What's an archetype anyway? I jest. We're all writers here... after alllllllll....
November 19, 2025 at 10:13 PM
I think arrogance/certainty tends to be something my male protags are most likely to find turned to tragedy. Their self-assured decisions cost them, a lot. Sometimes it's merely an injury, often the blood on their hands belongs to those they care for most because: certainty. #HorrorWritersChat
I'm M Turville Heitz. My short fic includes psych horror and dark #fantasy. My novels: trend dark fantasy/nobledark. My male protags are in the state of becoming. They are flawed, and tend to want to prove themselves. They grow by failing, but they emerge 'saved' thru change. #HorrorWritersChat
Here we go, #HorrorWritersChat!
Q1 has arrived. It's international men's day today, and I thought actually that's a good topic. Not the easiest one to build questions around, either. So if I do not hit the mark I am sure you will forgive me.
As usual, no links, no pitches, not till the end.
Q1 has arrived. It's international men's day today, and I thought actually that's a good topic. Not the easiest one to build questions around, either. So if I do not hit the mark I am sure you will forgive me.
As usual, no links, no pitches, not till the end.
November 19, 2025 at 10:06 PM
I'm M Turville Heitz. My short fic includes psych horror and dark #fantasy. My novels: trend dark fantasy/nobledark. My male protags are in the state of becoming. They are flawed, and tend to want to prove themselves. They grow by failing, but they emerge 'saved' thru change. #HorrorWritersChat
At least 15 ancient dugout canoes have been found submerged in Lake Mendota in Madison, Wis. offering insight into cultural practice. One recent find is carbon dated @ 5200 years, one of the oldest in the Great Lakes region. 🏺
nativenewsonline.net/currents/sub...
nativenewsonline.net/currents/sub...
Submerged Canoes in Lake Mendota Offer New Insights Into Ancestral Waterways
Four years after discovering a 1,200-year-old dugout canoe in Lake Mendota, archaeologists with the Wisconsin Historical Society and regional First Nations continue to uncover new details from one of ...
nativenewsonline.net
November 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
At least 15 ancient dugout canoes have been found submerged in Lake Mendota in Madison, Wis. offering insight into cultural practice. One recent find is carbon dated @ 5200 years, one of the oldest in the Great Lakes region. 🏺
nativenewsonline.net/currents/sub...
nativenewsonline.net/currents/sub...
It's not just #authors getting scammed. In a time of ever-shrinking budgets, news editors are falling for AI pitches and stories that fabricate people and their quotes. This article follows how one editor's hunch collapsed a scammer's house of cards. #journalism
"Every media era gets the fabulists it deserves." This
@nickhunebrown.bsky.social
piece about journalism grifters in the age of AI slop is fantastic, bonkers & sad on so many levels thelocal.to/investigatin...
@nickhunebrown.bsky.social
piece about journalism grifters in the age of AI slop is fantastic, bonkers & sad on so many levels thelocal.to/investigatin...
Investigating a Possible Scammer in Journalism’s AI Era | The Local
A suspicious pitch from a freelancer led editor Nicholas Hune-Brown to dig into their past work. By the end, four publications, including The Guardian and Dwell, had removed articles from their sites.
thelocal.to
November 19, 2025 at 6:10 PM
It's not just #authors getting scammed. In a time of ever-shrinking budgets, news editors are falling for AI pitches and stories that fabricate people and their quotes. This article follows how one editor's hunch collapsed a scammer's house of cards. #journalism
Reposted by MTH
Iceland Climate Minister Johannsson: "It is a direct threat to our national resilience and security. (This) is the first time a specific climate-related phenomenon has been formally brought before the National Security Council as a potential existential threat."
www.reuters.com/sustainabili...
www.reuters.com/sustainabili...
Iceland deems possible Atlantic current collapse a security risk
Iceland has designated the potential collapse of a major Atlantic Ocean current system a national security concern and an existential threat, enabling its government to strategize for worst-case scenarios, the country's climate minister told Reuters.
www.reuters.com
November 18, 2025 at 10:52 AM
Iceland Climate Minister Johannsson: "It is a direct threat to our national resilience and security. (This) is the first time a specific climate-related phenomenon has been formally brought before the National Security Council as a potential existential threat."
www.reuters.com/sustainabili...
www.reuters.com/sustainabili...
Reposted by MTH
No, we didn't "lose our mission" & we didn't focus too much on identity diversity at the expense of viewpoint diversity, & no one knows the right amount of that (bsky.app/profile/mcop...) & no amount of granting the premises warrants the lawless authoritarian assault on American universities.
November 18, 2025 at 10:15 PM
No, we didn't "lose our mission" & we didn't focus too much on identity diversity at the expense of viewpoint diversity, & no one knows the right amount of that (bsky.app/profile/mcop...) & no amount of granting the premises warrants the lawless authoritarian assault on American universities.
Good 🌎 news. "It became one of the leading facilities that transfers coal from rail to ships on the Great Lakes .... [T]he facility set a record loading 22 million short tons of coal in 2008" but shift from coal-fired plants led to 75 percent reduction.
www.wpr.org/news/wiscons...
www.wpr.org/news/wiscons...
Wisconsin coal terminal to close after 50 years as clean energy saps demand
Midwest Energy Resources Company, a subsidiary of DTE Electric Company, will not renew its 50-year lease with Koch Industries as of June 30 next year.
www.wpr.org
November 18, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Good 🌎 news. "It became one of the leading facilities that transfers coal from rail to ships on the Great Lakes .... [T]he facility set a record loading 22 million short tons of coal in 2008" but shift from coal-fired plants led to 75 percent reduction.
www.wpr.org/news/wiscons...
www.wpr.org/news/wiscons...
"USDA scientists ... found virus spewing out of the exhaust fans on farms with infected birds and said more should be done to fully assess the risk of airborne spread. But ... concluded it couldn’t say with certainty whether airborne transmission played a role." 🧪⚕
www.propublica.org/article/bird...
www.propublica.org/article/bird...
What the U.S. Government Is Dismissing That Could Seed a Bird Flu Pandemic
Egg producers suspect bird flu is traveling through the air. After a disastrous Midwestern outbreak early this year, we tested that theory and found that where the wind blew, the virus followed. Vacci...
www.propublica.org
November 18, 2025 at 9:59 PM
"USDA scientists ... found virus spewing out of the exhaust fans on farms with infected birds and said more should be done to fully assess the risk of airborne spread. But ... concluded it couldn’t say with certainty whether airborne transmission played a role." 🧪⚕
www.propublica.org/article/bird...
www.propublica.org/article/bird...
In some states, more than 90 percent of wetlands could be excluded from safeguards provided by the Clean Water Act. www.eenews.net/articles/tru... 🧪🌿
Trump plan waives protection at +80% of wetlands
In some states, more than 90 percent of wetlands could be excluded from safeguards provided by the Clean Water Act.
www.eenews.net
November 18, 2025 at 9:50 PM
In some states, more than 90 percent of wetlands could be excluded from safeguards provided by the Clean Water Act. www.eenews.net/articles/tru... 🧪🌿
Reposted by MTH
In Central America, scientists found a spike in malaria cases after the fungus arrived. As frogs died, there were fewer tadpoles to eat mosquito larvae; more mosquitoes resulted in a fivefold increase in malaria cases: wapo.st/3LHtdAj (gift). We allow extinctions at our peril. 🌎
First, the frogs died. Then people got sick.
An emerging area of research is uncovering hidden links between nature and human health.
wapo.st
November 16, 2025 at 2:36 AM
In Central America, scientists found a spike in malaria cases after the fungus arrived. As frogs died, there were fewer tadpoles to eat mosquito larvae; more mosquitoes resulted in a fivefold increase in malaria cases: wapo.st/3LHtdAj (gift). We allow extinctions at our peril. 🌎
Holiday gifts have you stumped? Give the gift of escape into someone else's problems! Explore new worlds of intrigue and wonder, salted with peril, magic, epic journeys, and maybe even a little romance with a #book! Shameless plug attached. #readers #books #fantasy 📚🪐 💙📚 #sff
A #book is the perfect escape! Want a portal to other worlds? BLACK RIVER can transport you. Like nobledark #fantasy trilogies full of political intrigue, desperate battles and epic journeys? Check out The Enchanter's Web! oaklandhillsfarm.com/novel (Alt txt for deets) #writingcommunity #sff 📚🪐 📚💙
November 16, 2025 at 3:05 PM
It was so warm today I opened the windows after it being closed for a couple of weeks. Oh, the disturbance in the force when it came time to close it again. How *dare* I! #caturday 🐈🐈⬛
November 15, 2025 at 11:18 PM
It was so warm today I opened the windows after it being closed for a couple of weeks. Oh, the disturbance in the force when it came time to close it again. How *dare* I! #caturday 🐈🐈⬛
Mid-November
November 15, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Mid-November
Reposted by MTH
But apparently, according to some poli sci shithead who works for a tobacco thinktank, people under 30 can't have noticed climate change because (checks notes) we use a 30-year average to define "normals."
If I am elected Empress of the World, all MBAs will be exiled to somewhere in the Antarctic.
If I am elected Empress of the World, all MBAs will be exiled to somewhere in the Antarctic.
November 15, 2025 at 7:14 PM
But apparently, according to some poli sci shithead who works for a tobacco thinktank, people under 30 can't have noticed climate change because (checks notes) we use a 30-year average to define "normals."
If I am elected Empress of the World, all MBAs will be exiled to somewhere in the Antarctic.
If I am elected Empress of the World, all MBAs will be exiled to somewhere in the Antarctic.
It's 66F in mid November in Wisconsin, with a drought that started months ago ... such that turtles are crossing the road (one smashed near this one I scooted off) and the ponds that were full of waterfowl all summer are now dry, complete with dead fish and exposed turtles. 🌎🌿
November 15, 2025 at 6:53 PM
It's 66F in mid November in Wisconsin, with a drought that started months ago ... such that turtles are crossing the road (one smashed near this one I scooted off) and the ponds that were full of waterfowl all summer are now dry, complete with dead fish and exposed turtles. 🌎🌿
Reposted by MTH
🔐 Account Security Thread 🔐
We're seeing an increased number of phishing and social engineering attempts targeting Bluesky users. While we're working hard to protect you, here are essential steps YOU can take to secure your account and stay safe. 1/10
🧵👇
We're seeing an increased number of phishing and social engineering attempts targeting Bluesky users. While we're working hard to protect you, here are essential steps YOU can take to secure your account and stay safe. 1/10
🧵👇
November 14, 2025 at 8:00 PM
🔐 Account Security Thread 🔐
We're seeing an increased number of phishing and social engineering attempts targeting Bluesky users. While we're working hard to protect you, here are essential steps YOU can take to secure your account and stay safe. 1/10
🧵👇
We're seeing an increased number of phishing and social engineering attempts targeting Bluesky users. While we're working hard to protect you, here are essential steps YOU can take to secure your account and stay safe. 1/10
🧵👇