I really enjoyed teaching another beginner #needlefelting sesh at Village Beads Petone - 1 of 3 bauble classes I'm running pre-christmas! Everyone makes a pudding (so I can teach them basic techniques) and then they can do whatever they want for their second bauble. This group were extra creative 🤩

Calling all native bird fans in AoNZ: We just saw a Kārearea attempt to catch a blackbird in our garden in the middle of Petone, Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai!! So exciting 😁 (please don't tell me it's a bad sign) #nz #birds

I don’t want to be that guy but I am boycotting Israel at the moment and mindfully choose and boycott products based on this stance. #SecretSantaAoNZ

If things go to plan, my giftee will receive a lil box of items that fit into all five of these categories! #secretsantaaonz

I managed to make a mini version of my original idea, and it turned out ok ☺️ I wish I could have managed the whole thing, but my work and life calendar between now and shipping day scuppered that! Is it just me or is the timeline for #secretsantaaonz is extra short this round? Excited nonetheless!

My latest article for @forbes.com is on the disproportionate impact of *uphill* urban expansion on biodiversity 👩‍🔬🧪⚛️ www.forbes.com/sites/laurie...

I think this is the earliest I've ever put up my Christmas tree* and I am DELIGHTED. It feels so festive. Delta approves too 😅 (*today was my only free weekend day until 20th Dec. No fricken way I was waiting til then to decorate!)

My latest article for @forbes.com has just gone live 🧪👩‍🔬⚛️ www.forbes.com/sites/laurie...

Oh no. I just had an idea for something I could make my #secretsantaaonz giftee. It'll take me AGES and I'm a bit time-poor at the mo. But I think they'd really like it.... 😬

I'm happy with my giftee for #secretsantaaonz! They post on here pretty often, which is great. They don't seem to have an obvious "hook" / passion that I could work off, but after some sleuthing, I feel like I have a good sense of who they are. Now to come up with ideas for their gift - exciting!

If you don't already listen to @20k.bsky.social podcast, you're missing out. The latest episode is all about the sound recording for #Wicked - an utterly fascinating insight into what it took to produce the movie(s) share.google/wWHlhA60Q1xz...

This govt seems set on doing one really shitty thing after another

I was back on RNZ today talking about science. For some unknown reason we had a slight delay on the call, but it's hopefully still a good listen. Three stories (language learning, fossil fuels, iron deficiency). Ten minutes. Go! 🧪👩‍🔬⚛️ #nz www.rnz.co.nz/national/pro...

Sign up for #secretsantaaonz - a genuinely delightful project based entirely on kindness - closes TODAY. So if you're in Aotearoa and want to spread (& receive) some joy, now's your chance!

One of the few good things about living in New Zealand is that you can look at the Labour Party and if you are like “wow I’m way more progressive than/left of them”, then you simply don’t have to give your party vote to them and move on with your life guilt free and vote for Greens 🤷🏽‍♀️

It's 2025! People like this are unfit to govern in Aotearoa. www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3608...

Māori Mermaid has some beautiful t-shirts available to pre-order orders open until 23 Nov, 11:59pm maori-mermaid.myshopify.com

Resharing this because it (& the reply to it) contains some potentially useful hints / info for my Santa, when they're assigned. I can't wait to start searching & plotting for my giftee! #secretsantaaonz

It’s baby octopus season 🐙🦑 Saw this little guy last night with the Salish Sea School in Anacortes, WA as part of their free community dock walk I volunteer as an interpreter for. We can tell it is a giant pacific octopus from the single line of chromatophores on each arm.

“You can’t separate the conditions in which people live from their health. They’re completely interwoven, and I absolutely feel a deep sense of responsibility and commitment to addressing those wider determinants.” — Dr Corina Grey, Director of Public Health. #nzpol e-tangata.co.nz/korero/corin...

Our beloved Alice Wong has joined the ancestors. It was one of the great honors of my life to call Alice my friend, co-author & co-conspirator. She was a true genius, a force of nature the likes of which the world has never seen before. I love you, Alice, and am equal parts grateful and devastated

F*cking hell. Dictators despise science, indeed.

Kind of crazy that evidence is mounting that the world is run by a group of rapists, pedophiles, and men convinced of women’s inmate natural inferiority, and the pundit class is trying to convince us that the real social crisis is that men are victimized and lonely because women have too many jobs.

There were 159,000 written submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill (on top of over 23,000 submissions last year) - numbers that are second only to the Treaty Principles Bill in NZ’s history. More than 98% of public submissions were opposed. There’s a word for this, but it’s not democracy.

It's lovely when people ask to buy multiple copies of your book to give away at an event they want you to speak at. It's less nice when they do that instead of offering a fee. Peeps. An author might get ~NZ$2 per copy. And they won't receive it til their next royalty cheque. PAY YOUR SPEAKERS.

The NZ School Boards Association has launched a petition calling on the Minister of Education Erica Stanford to reverse her ill-informed, hostile decision to remove the obligations of boards to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi in NZ education. Boost pls our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/pr...

An important thread to read from someone who really knows this area

The goal of an advisory panel is to help you, which sometimes requires criticism or redirection. The goal of the LLMs in this article are to retain users, which usually requires affirmation and flattery. The path in this article doesn't give you wise advisors, it gives you embarrassing flunkies.

Today, my second book-baby turns four! I'm still so proud of Sticky; all the stories, science, and people it featured, and of all the doors it opened for me. Happy birthday lil book ❤️ ....Maybe it's finally time to start working on book #3?

A visit I've been chasing for A YEAR is finally gonna happen next week (barring any emergencies). I'm so excited!

The Wiki Science photo competition is running until mid-December! Be in to win cash prizes by donating your science photos for use in Wikipedia. Categories include people in science, microscopy, wildlife and nature, and astronomy. commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons...

🎵🎶 It's the most wonderful time of the year...... Secret Santa NZ! 🎶🎵 I've just signed up. Have you? (Only open to people in Aotearoa New Zealand) #secretsantaaonz

some more excellent bird moment for a Monday

Uncontrolled wildfires in Aotearoa and it's not even REMOTELY summer yet. I'm sure that's a good sign. #nzpol

As the owner of an independent bookstore, I must ask all of y'all to do the opposite of this forever and ever, amen.

Watson and Crick elucidated the structure of DNA. Stop saying that they discovered DNA! This was done by another guy you probably haven't heard of! And therein lies a story. academic.oup.com/genetics/art...

Many tellings of her story imply her only involvement was involuntary and without her permission (via the infamous 'Photo 51'). In fact she was MUCH more involved than this, including absolutely bodying one of Watson and Crick's first models because it was chemically inept.

Hey folks, as news of Watson's demise spreads, please don't set aside his weighty legacy of misogyny and racism. He was truly among the worst of us. www.vox.com/2019/1/15/18...

F*cken hell Rūaumoko, I've only just gotten back! #eqnz

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! #SecretSantaAoNZ

The cat is out of the bag. The secret is out. Hear ye hear ye secret Santa doth cometh Sign ups start 10th November and you need to be registered by the 19th. Spread the word and don’t miss out. It’s open to Bluesky and Madison this time.

Everything this government does is just so pathetic www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n... #nz #kikorangi

Just passed thru security at Dublin Airport and I cannot stop crying. I've had the best trip, spent loads of quality time with my wonderful family and friends, and delivered talks & workshops that I'm proud of. I can't wait to get home to my love & our doggo. But f*ck me, I'm so sad 💔

Just home from giving a talk followed by a clockmaking activity with year 2 students. Lots of teachers, teaching assistants, and parents in attendance who told me how interesting they found it. “Time“ is central to our lives, but many people know little about it. The easiest book I’ve written:

🐧 SUPER SPECIAL PIN DROP: I've partnered with World Wide Fund For Nature NZ...bringing you the cutest Kororā pin just in time for the holidays! Celebrating 50 years in Aotearoa <3 25% of sales donated to WWF NZ to support their work advocating for our wildlife! DIVE IN: pepperraccoon.com #birds

if lore is to be believed, fred astaire used to dance and glide around his tailor's workshop before taking a suit home to make sure the collar always stayed glued to his neck

Farewell London, my old friend. I hope we get to see each other again soon.

We have progressed from data collection to data analysis.