A collection of some of my (Kelly's) favorite fun, but not always flattering, random photos captured by Riverside in 2025. :)

Asking for some help. I'm working with someone who is designing a pilot to study the uptake of PFAS chemicals by mushrooms for purposes of remediation. Does ANYONE have a contact for a mycologist or someone who knows about mushrooms? If so, can you point them my way? Many thanks.

Are you a faculty member at a two-year college? Are you interested in experiencing life aboard a research vessel? Do you want to see Alaska, & sail underneath the Golden Gate Bridge? Please apply to join me + 3 coleaders on the 2nd STEMSEAS 2YC faculty professional development cruise - in May! ⚒️🌊

Daniel, Kelly, and Katrine chat about how mosquitos find us, and the science and ethics behind new tools we have for controlling mosquito populations. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

We're thrilled to welcome @scottsolomon.bsky.social back on the show! This time around we chatted with Scott about ancient hominid species, and how we learn about them. PS - Scott has a podcast too! Check it out: @wildworldshow.bsky.social www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Reading @weinersmith.bsky.social and @zachweinersmith.bsky.social’s terrific A City on Mars on the train and I might die laughing before getting to my destination. Just got to the (first?) hadrosaur. I love it! Such a necessary book. #science #histsci

Daniel and Kelly chat with Dr. John Hawdon about how parasites like hookworm, malaria, and schistosomes hide from our immune system. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

So excited for this #scicomm seminar course this Spring! Such a great lineup! Featuring @danielwhiteson.bsky.social @peterhotezmdphd.bsky.social @weinersmith.bsky.social and more! Open to all @riceuniversity.bsky.social students!

Howdy friends - I have a budding scientific illustrator looking for advice. For example, what classes should she take outside of biology? Any advice appreciated! Thanks!

New Book Day! Please tell the world. Read a comic about it here: www.smbc-comics.com/comic/sawyer... Or if you just want to buy it: us.macmillan.com/books/978037... Thanks everyone! It took me over a year to write, but I think you and/or your kid(s) will have many laughs together.

OK bluesky hivemind - WTF just happened to my Maytag range? I was cooking, & heard an electrical kind of noise (like this: www.youtube.com/shorts/5hoEX...). I opened up the oven, & saw light & smoke coming up from a slat in the metal at the bottom of the oven. It wasn't burning food. What happened?!

Daniel and Kelly are joined by the amazing Dr. @catbohannon.bsky.social, who answers questions about whether we can shorten gestation, superhuman feats of strength, and whether viruses are ever good for us. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Finally getting round to reading @weinersmith.bsky.social @zachweinersmith.bsky.social City On Mars book. It’s very good but it turns out I’m also what they call a Space Bastard. I prefer Astrobastard, personally. Might change my job title.

Would aliens describe the Universe the same way we do? Many physicists think "obviously, yes!", but that confidence is built on lots of untested assumptions. My book, "Do Aliens Speak Physics?" unpacks those assumptions and makes a lot of dad jokes. Here's what Sean Carroll thought of it:

I'm thrilled to have been interviewed for the @financialtimes.com podcast Tech Tonic about Mars settlement. All 3 episodes in the series are available now. :) www.ft.com/tech-tonic

On today's episode, Daniel and Kelly chat about the development of the polio vaccine. And now seems like a great time to remind folks to get a flu vaccine, if you're able! www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Absolutely loving A City on Mars by @zachweinersmith.bsky.social and @weinersmith.bsky.social but feel the need to point out an error in the text: Kelly and Zach appeared to have accidentally reversed the axis on this figure

Thanks so much to @blackiebooks.bsky.social for publishing @smbccomics.bsky.social and my book A City on Mars in Spanish! blackiebooks.org/producto/kel...

A new listener questions episode is up! *Pinworms lay eggs on your anus @ night, but how does a pinworm know it's nighttime? *A proton is made of up & down quarks which are light, how much would I weigh if my protons were made of top quarks? *Why does eating too many carrots turn your skin yellow?

Ethan ( @startswithabang.bsky.social ) was a really fun guest to have on the show! I wish we did video in addition to audio, because he also had the absolute best kilt.

How might aliens perceive the Universe? Daniel and Kelly talk about how aliens might experience the Universe and how it might shape their science, a topic from Daniel's new book "Do Aliens Speak Physics?" www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Daniel and Kelly get answers to listener questions about why we age from Dr. Venki Ramakrishnan, author of "Why We Die: The New Science of Aging and the Quest for Immortality". www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

We were delighted to host @weinersmith.bsky.social today in the Geology Lab to give us a talk on the 563 major downsides to settling outer space. ⚒️ 🔭

📖🌌 Ayer por la noche comencé "Una ciudad en Marte" de @weinersmith.bsky.social y @zachweinersmith.bsky.social. Más que recomendable! 🔍 "Abandonar una Tierra 2°C más calurosa para instalarse en Marte sería como renunciar a una habitación desordenada para irse a vivir a un vertedero contaminado".

Some of you reached out after seeing this post and it has led to some promising leads! A re-up for this week in case someone with louse samples hasn't seen it yet! Many thanks and I'm happy to answer questions! 🧪

Locality and causality! Very important ideas in physics, but not things that usually get the podcast treatment. I hop on @danielwhiteson.bsky.social and @weinersmith.bsky.social's Extraordinary Universe to do something different.

Daniel and Kelly talk about the science behind the "zombie ants". www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Daniel and Kelly shine a light on the inner workings of one of the crucial parts of the scientific process: peer review. How does it work? Who are these peers? Can peer-reviewed papers be wrong, & does that mean that all of science is questionable? www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

So what I glean about this Mars announcement is that chemicals were found on Mars that on Earth are due to life, and no one knows any other way to make them on Mars. However, this is very far from knowing they *were* made by life. Reminds me of phosphine on Venus; "we don't know" doesn't mean life.

How long will Moore's Law continue boosting computing power? (featuring Dr. Adam Becker) Daniel and Kelly discuss the future of computing and talk to @adambecker.bsky.social about what it all means. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

He did.

🎧 Listen to the podcast! Scientist @weinersmith.bsky.social and cartoonist @zachweinersmith.bsky.social spoke with @mina-kim.bsky.social about colonizing Mars and the nuanced logistics of living in space. 🔗:

🚀FRI at 10AM: Elon Musk wants to colonize Mars. NASA renews its push for interplanetary travel. Scientist @weinersmith.bsky.social and cartoonist @zachweinersmith.bsky.social join to discuss the nuanced logistics of living in space. ❓What Q's do you have about expanding human life beyond Earth?

I'm signing books at the @barnesandnoble.com store in Glen Allen Virginia for the next few hours! Come say "hi". :D

I really enjoyed this interview! I learned so much!

We have signings coming up this weekend in Virginia! This Sat @zachweinersmith.bsky.social & I will be at the @barnesandnoble.com in Charlottesville. On Sunday I'll be in Glen Allen, and I'll be bringing stickers signed by Zach as well, so your book can still get both signatures. :)

Po dłuższej przerwie, recenzja dla Mądrych Książek @jagiellonskiuni.bsky.social. Duża dawka zdrowego rozsądku (i kubeł zimnej wody) ws podboju Marsa oraz fascynujące rozważania nad prawem kosmicznym od @weinersmith.bsky.social @zachweinersmith.bsky.social www.madreksiazki.uj.edu.pl/aktualnosci/...

Thanks, @weinersmith.bsky.social and @zachweinersmith.bsky.social for creating this - it is pure perfection from @smbccomics.bsky.social #statsmeme #statsjoke

Over 100,000 people are on the organ transplant waitlist in the United States. Unfortunately, many of these people will not get an organ in time. Daniel and Kelly talk about the science and ethics behind using transgenic pigs to fill the shortfall. www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

Edinburgh Book Festival Day 2: a joy to host @weinersmith.bsky.social for her Royal Society Prize event! Will we settle space? Should we? How will it actually work? To find out, read A City on Mars, by Kelly & @zachweinersmith.bsky.social ! One of the most fun & original pop science books.

Come see @helenlpgordon.bsky.social , @danzep.bsky.social ‬, & I at @edbookfest.bsky.social today at 16:45! Helen writes beautifully about meteorites, & Dan is an actual explorer (unlike the Weinersmiths!). This will be a really fun conversation! Tickets here: www.edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival...

Come see @stevebrusatte.bsky.social and I TODAY at the @edbookfest.bsky.social! We'll be talking about A City on Mars, and the @royalsociety.org is going to announce their 2025 Book Prize short-list during the session! Tickets available here: www.edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival...

The @edbookfest.bsky.social is on! And if you're in Edinburgh tomorrow (Tues Aug 12), join me as I host @weinersmith.bsky.social , winner of the Royal Society Book Prize, to talk about her masterpiece of pop science, A City on Mars. Tickets available: www.edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival...

There's a 'lost chapter' from @zachweinersmith.bsky.social / @weinersmith.bsky.social's "A City on Mars" book that covers advanced nuclear reactors (from pebble-beds to molten salt!) and Project Orion , published here: smbc-comics.com/soonish/lost...

I am happy to be featured on this episode in this fun and insightful podcast. @weinersmith.bsky.social and @danielwhiteson.bsky.social are really great in answering absurd questions!

For a weird coincidence five minutes ago I was just reading this page from a City on Mars by @zachweinersmith.bsky.social and @weinersmith.bsky.social.

I had so much fun with the flamingo question!

Excited to see @weinersmith.bsky.social and @zachweinersmith.bsky.social’s book ‘A City on Mars’ being highlighted at the front of my local @barnesandnoble.com store! It’s their non-fiction book of the month!

I'm going to be at @edbookfest.bsky.social next week! On Tues, Aug 12th (18:30-19:30), I'll be talking about A City on Mars, & the @royalsociety.org will announce which books made the 2025's Royal Society Science Book Prize shortlist! Hope to see you there! www.edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival...

[email protected] and I will be at the Fairfax, VA Barnes & Noble tomorrow for a book signing. :)