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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 1d

I had a great time speaking about FIRST CONTACT with @space.com. Read on for more on interstellar objects, E.T. communication, & what alien tropes are GOOD and BAD in my not-humble opinion.
www.space.com/entertainmen...

"First Contact:" A new book looks at humanity's alien obsession

In her new book "First Contact," journalist Becky Ferreira explores the scientific search for alien life, our cultural obsessions with extraterrestrials and why the truth may be more human than we exp...

www.space.com

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

Asif Siddiqi @historyasif.bsky.social · Oct 4

Sputnik was 66 years ago today. I curated a set of about a dozen original Soviet archival sources (translated!) on the origins of the world's first satellite, hosted by The Wilson Center in Washington, DC: www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/ne... #histsci #histtech

New Sources on Sputnik

Documents added to DigitalArchive.org provide a look at the origins of Sputnik, the first Soviet satellite.

www.wilsoncenter.org

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 8d

My fellow Earthlings: My book FIRST CONTACT is out today! It's got prehistoric aliens, monster aliens, savior aliens, super ALIEN aliens, & the skinny on the scientific search for REAL aliens.

The truth is not out there—it's in HERE 👽👇
www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/becky...

First Contact

A narrative and visual exploration of humanity’s age-old search for and fixation with extraterrestrials.First Contact explores the ancient idea—a...

www.hachettebookgroup.com

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 17d

PS. I consider Contact to be the best alien movie of 1997, but it's tough competition with 5th Element, MIB, & Starship Troopers! Did I miss any? What a great year for extraterrestrial star power.

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 17d

If you happen to be cruising around the Hamptons Monday night, come watch Contact at the Southampton Playhouse!

I'll be there talking aliens after the screening, & the 1st ppl to show up will get a signed copy of my book FIRST CONTACT👽
www.southamptonplayhouse.com/movie/contact

CONTACT | Ft. A Post Screening Q+A

Contact: A Special Anniversary Screening Followed by Q&A with Becky Ferreira, New York Times space journalist and author of the new book First Contact A radio astronomer receives the first extr...

www.southamptonplayhouse.com

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

404 Media @404media.co · 22d

The Department of Justice has removed a study showing that white supremacist and far-right violence “continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism” in the United States.

🔗 www.404media.co/doj-deletes-...

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 22d

Just TWO WEEKS until my book FIRST CONTACT will be published! It's got centuries-old UFOs, ruminations on time-distorting aliens (from All You Need is Kill to Outer Wilds), a history of possible biosignatures, EYEBALL PLANETS & lots more. Preorder here! 👽🛸🌌
www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/becky...

First Contact

A narrative and visual exploration of humanity’s age-old search for and fixation with extraterrestrials.First Contact explores the ancient idea—and epic ...

www.hachettebookgroup.com

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 25d

This week on the Abstract @404media.co

- Microbes on ice!
- Microbes in heat!
- microbes on Mars!
- More horrors from USAID cuts
- Welcome to...Jurassic autopsy
- PARTY LIKE IT'S THE BRONZE-IRON AGE TRANSITION
www.404media.co/nasa-rover-f...

NASA Rover Finds ‘Potential Biosignature’ on Mars

Strange “leopard spots” on Mars are the most promising signs of alien life on the planet yet, but they could also have a geological origin.

www.404media.co

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 26d

As a longtime listener of Science Friday, it was so cool to talk about my new book on aliens FIRST CONTACT with Ira!

We covered UFOs, ancient Greek aliens, biosignatures, Klaatu, and Solaris (and more!) Latter half of the segment here ⬇️👽🛸🖖

Science Friday @scifri.bsky.social · 26d

Are we alone in the universe? Turns out humans have been obsessed with aliens for millennia. 👽

The Human Obsession With Aliens Goes Way, Way Back

A new book charts the millennia-old history of our fascination with aliens, and how myth transformed into research.

buff.ly

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · 28d

My latest for @404media.co

upshot: scientists have done a very good science this time.

bsky.app/profile/404m...

404 Media @404media.co · 28d

Scientists have captured the clearest ever gravitational waves—ripples in the fabric of spacetime—a breakthrough that has resolved decades-old mysteries about black holes and the nature of our reality.

🔗 www.404media.co/scientists-j...

Scientists Just Got an Unprecedented Glimpse into the Nature of Reality

“We had promised that gravitational waves would open a new window into the universe, and that has materialized,” one researcher said.”

www.404media.co

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

Leighann Lord @leighannlord.bsky.social · Sep 3

Hey Science Lovers! On Thur., 9/4, 7PM ET, I'm hosting CFI's livestream show, Skeptical Inquirer Presents: Separating Hope from Hype in the Search for Alien Life with science reporter, @beckyferreira.bsky.social!

The event is free. The information is priceless.

skepticalinquirer.org/presents/

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

404 Media @404media.co · Aug 28

The Trump administration is making buying cameras, retro games, board games, skincare, flashlights, sex toys, watches, and anything else from overseas far more complicated, slow, and expensive.

🔗 www.404media.co/trump-tariff...

Trump Tariffs Cause Chaos on Ebay as Every Hobby Becomes Logistical Minefield

Buying cameras, retro games, board games, skincare, flashlights, sex toys, watches, and anything else from overseas just became far more complicated, slow, and expensive.

www.404media.co

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Aug 27

I'm really excited to present an online talk for @skepticalinquirer.bsky.social on the exciting new phase we are entering in the search for aliens. Hope you can join at Thursday, September 4 at 7pm ET. 🤨👽
skepticalinquirer.org/video/separa...

Separating Hope from Hype in the Search for Alien Life | Becky Ferreira | Skeptical Inquirer Presents

Science has advanced enormously in the past 500 years, guided by experimental tests of theory and practice. In that same time, science teaching and education—guided primarily by tradition and dogma—h...

skepticalinquirer.org

Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Aug 23

thank you so much! this makes my day

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Aug 21

Move over, Planet Nine. There's a new hypothetical planet in town and it's closer, smaller, and likely to be homegrown—if it indeed exists.

My latest for @404media.co
www.404media.co/a-warp-in-ou...

A ‘Warp’ In Our Solar System Might Be an Undiscovered World: Planet Y

In addition to Planet Nine, the solar system may also contain a closer, smaller world that could be spotted soon, according to a new preprint study.

www.404media.co

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Aug 13

For @technologyreview.com I wrote about the cinematic appeal of Trump's Golden Dome, which it inherits from the beta version space-shield: Reagan's SDI

Read on for a tale of nightmare scenarios, bottled scorpions & fictional special agent Brass Bancroft
www.technologyreview.com/2025/08/13/1...

Why Trump’s “golden dome” missile defense idea is another ripped straight from the movies

President Trump has proposed building an antimissile “golden dome” around the United States. But do cinematic spectacles actually enhance national security?

www.technologyreview.com

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

Sam Cole @samleecole.bsky.social · Aug 7

we obtained footage of an agent in the middle of a raid at a Home Depot wearing Meta's smart glasses, and talked to experts about what that means: www.404media.co/a-cbp-agent-...

A CBP Agent Wore Meta Smart Glasses to an Immigration Raid in Los Angeles

Video obtained and verified by 404 Media shows a CBP official wearing Meta's AI glasses, which are capable of recording and connecting with AI. “I think it should be seen in the context of an agency t...

www.404media.co

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

Katie Drummond @katie-drummond.bsky.social · Aug 7

NASA is fast-tracking a plan to build a nuclear reactor on the moon. Which sounds insane.

Turns out, the idea is "an ambitious but potentially achievable goal that could transform space exploration." From @beckyferreira.bsky.social

Why the US Is Racing to Build a Nuclear Reactor on the Moon

NASA has set a 2030 deadline to build a 100-kilowatt nuclear reactor on the moon. It’s an ambitious but potentially achievable goal that could transform space exploration, experts tell WIRED.

www.wired.com

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Aug 7

I wrote about NASA's new plan to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030 for @wired.com

Could it happen? What would it look like? Why do this anyway? How many elephants are equivalent to one extraterrestial power plant? The important questions🌛⚛️🚀
www.wired.com/story/why-th...

Why the US Is Racing to Build a Nuclear Reactor on the Moon

NASA has set a 2030 deadline to build a 100-kilowatt nuclear reactor on the moon. It’s an ambitious but potentially achievable goal that could transform space exploration, experts tell WIRED.

www.wired.com

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

404 Media @404media.co · Aug 5

Nearly 100,000 ChatGPT Conversations Were Searchable on Google

🔗 www.404media.co/nearly-100-0...

Nearly 100,000 ChatGPT Conversations Were Searchable on Google

A researcher has scraped a much larger dataset of indexed ChatGPT conversations, exposing contracts and intimate conversations.

www.404media.co

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

dissimilator @dissimilator.bsky.social · Aug 3

It's always important to make proper citations.

@beckyferreira.bsky.social via: @404media.co

www.404media.co/scientists-d...

Burrowing animals are disproportionately threatened by the steady march of human land developments (citation: Watership Down). European blind mole rats, for instance, “have long been persecuted, and many species are threatened by extinction as they only exist in a few small and isolated populations,” according to a new study.

A naked mole rat is depicted.

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Jul 30

Scientists found chemosynthetic animals (hi, foot-long tubeworms!) nearly 10 km beneath the ocean surface, deeper than these sunless ecosystems have ever been seen.

my latest for @404media.co 🚫🌞 🌊🪱

www.404media.co/new-deep-sea...

New Deep Sea Creatures ‘Challenge Current Models of Life,’ Scientists Say

Scientists have discovered chemosynthetic animals, which don’t rely on the Sun to live, nearly six miles under the ocean surface—deeper than any found to date.

www.404media.co

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Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Jul 29

AND: I'm also launching the BeX Files, my newsletter about aliens, dinosaurs, alien dinosaurs, & other stuff floating through my noggin.

Subscribe here for more info about FIRST CONTACT, & to follow my work. THANK YOU! 🙏
bexfiles.ghost.io/buy-my-book-...

Buy my book! & subscribe :)

Hi! I’m Becky Ferreira. Welcome to the very first installment of the BeX Files. a newsletter about aliens, dinosaurs, roadside attractions, dead people (and sometimes alive ones), and all other manner...

bexfiles.ghost.io

Becky Ferreira @beckyferreira.bsky.social · Jul 29

It's never aliens? Stick with me & it'll ALWAYS BE ALIENS

That's bc I'm announcing RIGHT NOW that my book FIRST CONTACT: The Story of Our Obsession with Aliens, is coming out on September 30! 👽👾🛸🚀🔭📖

Preorder here: www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/becky...

First Contact

A narrative and visual exploration of humanity’s age-old search for and fixation with extraterrestrials.First Contact explores the ancient idea—a...

www.hachettebookgroup.com

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Reposted by Becky Ferreira

Seb Falk @sebfalk.com · Jul 17

This is a really great write-up of the Song of Wade in @404media.co

www.404media.co/the-800-year...

Thanks for your interest and meticulous reporting @beckyferreira.bsky.social !

The 800-Year-Old Mystery of a Lost Medieval Legend Is Solved, Researchers Say

The Song of Wade was a popular legend that survives in only one enigmatic text. Now, researchers think they have solved a longstanding puzzle about its meaning.

www.404media.co

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