It's Thursday and that means I'm putting together the @knowablemag.bsky.social newsletter, which features our new stuff plus other smart takes on what's going on the world of science. If you read/wrote/helped make something especially good recently, let me know!

If you suffer from migraines, or know someone who does, her story is an essential read. Check it out 👇

A warm congratulations to special contributor Amber Dance for her well-deserved recognition at the National Federation of Press Women's 2025 National Communications Contest!

People with good motives may engage in bribery and worse depending on what society expects of them. A political scientist explains. ✍️ Bob Holmes knowmag.org/46q5U4L

“Many people comply with corrupt norms not because they believe in them, but because they fear social exclusion or retaliation or that they will fail to meet familial obligations.” —Political scientist Ina Kubbe to @knowablemag.bsky.social

“Overharvesting and pollution with sediments, sewage and fertilizer have mounted ever since the 1700s, a century after the first English settlement, Jamestown, was established on the James River that feeds into the bay. Today, global warming, sea level rise & acidification pose additional threats.”

If you're an early-career journalist, consider applying for @theopennotebook.bsky.social's paid, mentored fellowship and follow in the footsteps of @katherinejwu.com, @janehu.bsky.social, @sciwriabdul.bsky.social, @1juliarosen.bsky.social, @celiaford.bsky.social and many more! Deadline: 10/31.

If our environment promotes obesity, why do some people stay thin? 🤔 This new popular scientific article by Ute Eberle in @knowablemag.bsky.social delves into this question 👇 1/8 @cbmr.science knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

At bioGraphic, we publish stories that inspire a deep appreciation for life on Earth—and hope for its future. 🌿 📣 To support our work, become a monthly donor and help us reach 100 new Insiders by September 19 You choose the amount, and every little bit helps: give.calacademy.org/campaign/719...

Do you have a kid or teen who either saw or had to actively avoid seeing the Charlie Kirk shooting video on social media? Please DM me if you're willing to discuss it for a Washington Post story I'm working on. Thanks.

Pollen-based products have some way to go before reaching the market, but once they arrive, they could be a game changer. https://bit.ly/4pgCXkk

A lot of people think of pollen, when it’s not fertilizing plants or feeding insects, as useless dust, but it has valuable applications if you know how to work with it. Learn more in our recent story, republished by @jstordaily.bsky.social 👇

Read some great science reporting this week? Make sure @rachelscience.bsky.social knows! We highlight important and interesting stuff in the @knowablemag.bsky.social newsletter every week, and we love recommendations.

One of my duties is helming the @knowablemag.bsky.social newsletter. It features our new stuff, cool #sciart and smart takes on goings-on in science (the bad news & good reads) Tag me if you read/wrote/made something especially good & get our newsletter here! knowablemagazine.org/newsletter-s...

As the world focuses on its billion-plus obese citizens, there remain people at the other end of the spectrum who are skinny, often painfully so, but don’t want to be. This recent @knowablemag.bsky.social article explores the “real enigma” of a condition. knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

the dailup sound was a protection spell the computer said for us every time we went online but we thought we were too good for it. we wanted to be on the phone and the computer at the same time. we wanted to be on the phone and the computer at the same time and now we’re fucked

Interested in knowing more about the teenage brain? 🧠 Sign up today for the Teen Brain Bootcamp, a free science-based email course from @knowablemag.bsky.social that features research and insights from our Co-Executive Director Adriana Galván! Learn more below ⬇️

“The Trump administration is not publicly tracking the bidders of any auctioned USAID goods, which could plausibly end up being a cheap source of supplies for terrorist organizations, as the acting deputy inspector general noted in her letter.” | @theatlantic.com

Associate Dean @leighgoodmark.bsky.social featured in the @knowablemag.bsky.social article "Can a strategy shift reduce intimate partner violence?"

Thrilled to sit among so many wonderful people from Knowable up for recognition! An embarrassment of riches!

Notably my illustration for Amber Dance's article on the evolution of multicellularity. Special shoutout to my AD Lisa Modica for always letting me run with the ball. bsky.app/profile/know...

And a comic written by @bowlerhatscience.org about the physics of crowds. Congrats to all the finalists this year! bsky.app/profile/know...

Aaaah! What great news! This is SUCH a great illustration by @makinaro.com! So happy to hear it's a finalist in the Folio Awards 2025 Illustration > Consumer category! 🥳 Congrats to everyone involved. 🏆

10 @knowablemag.bsky.social entries are finalists for FOLIO awards!! Please explore the work of some of our amazing writers and artists:

Good news for a Friday. Some really great writers and artists are FOLIO: finalists for items they've created for @knowablemag.bsky.social, which makes us very happy. Please explore their fine work!

“It may be age-old, but not much has been done to address it. In many places of the world, it’s always been considered an issue to be dealt with behind closed doors. But the availability of data today shows just how serious the issue is.” | via @knowablemag.bsky.social

Some nice news: We are FOLIO: 2025 Awards finalists! Please join us in congratulating the recognized writers and artists, and be sure to explore their excellent work. 🔗 Links are in the thread 🧵 below👇

“We’ve made such important progress in defining and measuring the scope of intimate partner violence. And we know there are ways to prevent it.” — Public health researcher Susan B. Sorenson

See something, say something? From tattling to whistleblowing, a sociologist explores what drives people to tell on one another apple.news/A9M6iHDI8QaG...

Hello! Do you want to tell our algorithmic overlords that you want amazing science journalism?? Then you should add Knowable as a 'preferred source' for Google: www.google.com/preferences/... plz and thank you 🙏

Ahoy everyone --if you like what we at @knowablemag.bsky.social publish, please add us to your preferred sources. I'm about to do it myself! Cheers and thank you. Rosie

Do you prefer your scientific information to be sound and smart? Make sure Google knows (and delivers) by adding Knowable Magazine to your “Preferred Sources.” To use this new feature, you’ll need to be signed into your Google account. From there, it takes just two clicks: (continued in the 🧵)

Working out buffs up the body—and perhaps the mind, too 🧠 New research is revealing how physical activity can reduce and even ward off depression, anxiety and other psychological ailments. Our 2022 report, now available in Spanish via @revistaknowable.bsky.social👇

Hacer ejercicio fortalece el cuerpo —y, quizás, también la mente—. Nuevas investigaciones revelan cómo la actividad física puede reducir e incluso prevenir la depresión, la ansiedad y otros trastornos psicológicos. ✍️ El periodista Bob Holmes lo explica en este reportaje. knowmag.org/47Mxbk3

Public health researchers explain the levers that can reduce — or worsen — this global blight. A bright spot: There are more data than ever on strategies that can help. ✍️ Katherine Ellison

“Across six hours of instruction – two hours less than the average teen spends online each day – students nearly doubled in their ability to locate quality information compared to a control group.” | via @us.theconversation.com theconversation.com/college-stud...

“Academic work on the question of anti-wind farm activism is revealing a pattern: conspiracy thinking is a stronger predictor of opposition than age, gender, education or political leaning.” | Why wind farms attract so much misinformation and conspiracy theory via @us.theconversation.com

Intrigued, but not an expert? Then you might want to start here. :) knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

What have researchers learned about the physiology and genetics of pregnancy at high elevation? This was discussed at a meeting convened last year in Cambridge, England. 👉 Read @timvernimmen.bsky.social's report knowmag.org/4hmhwsU And check out the proceedings from the meeting (quoted below 👇) 🧪

“All this training and then we weren’t allowed to do anything.” | As Measles Exploded, Officials in Texas Looked to CDC Scientists. Under Trump, No One Answered. via @kffhealthnews.org kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

What if every cancer vaccine was made just for you? This article explores how tumor-specific mutations are being used to create fully personalized cancer immunotherapies. 🔗 Read without restriction: arevie.ws/Vac_TIC #CancerResearch #VaccineInnovation #OpenAccess

Wow can’t wait for the next installment in the Machiavelli-verse

Los tetras mexicanos que fueron arrastrados a cavernas completamente oscuras no tenían ningún uso para esos órganos que consumían tanta energía. Perdieron sus ojos de múltiples maneras —pero también ganaron algunas características interesantes—. ✍️ Tim Vernimmen knowmag.org/4mUmtwg

Read in English:

How the cavefish lost its eyes — again and again 👀 Mexican tetras that got swept into pitch-black caverns had no use for the energetically costly organs. They lost their eyes in multiple ways — and gained some nifty traits too. @timvernimmen.bsky.social's recent report is now available in Spanish👇

“You cannot optimize reading for pleasure — even though I know so many adults who try… But when you’re reading because you’ve convinced yourself that reading is a mark of your general achievement as an adult, is it actually for pleasure?”

[“The] liberalization of abortion access in the 1960s and 1970s allowed women greater control over their fertility, resulting in increased educational attainment and earnings. Subsequent state restrictions in the 1980s through 2010s had the opposite effect” | via @annualreviews.bsky.social

“Still standing after thousands of years, libraries remain vital to civic infrastructure. They allow the scent of stored paper to coexist with the glow of a screen.” | How Libraries Stand the Test of Time, via @jstordaily.bsky.social daily.jstor.org/how-librarie...

“For decades, energy-starved countries largely had one default option when they wanted to add new power supply: import coal and gas. Now, for the first time, solar energy is emerging as the cheaper and greener way forward, so there’s no need to sacrifice the environment for development.” | via WIRED