I edited @humbertobasilio.bsky.social’s recent story on how Venezuela’s scientists are faring after the US capture of Maduro. A few of them made an important observation: Science is downstream of basic human needs and freedoms. Research cannot thrive when fundamental rights are under attack.

@humbertobasilio.bsky.social did a terrific job reporting out how scientists in Venezuela are responding to the chaos over the past few weeks. One constant refrain: The oil industry once funded a lot of research in related sectors, and researchers in the country are now wondering what comes next.

Maduro’s capture marks a new era for Venezuela. As U.S. oil companies return, national science could revive—and Venezuelan scientists want in. “We can’t leave everything in the hands of foreign companies,” they told me. My story for @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

We assumed that chunks in Roman cement were the mark of poor mixing. Turns out they're the key to the self-healing properties that have made the cement so durable. 🧪 (By @humbertobasilio.bsky.social)

Always thankful for all the advice you gave me @theopennotebook.bsky.social ❤️

Scientists have a whole new understanding of how the overlooked lichen helped plants turn Earth's land green. Which means, ahem! Please lichen subscribe to our excellent news stories!!! 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/this...

The CDC is reportedly ending its monkey research program. The decision will impact infectious disease studies, and the fate of 200-or-so monkeys remains unclear. New on @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/cdc-...

🚨NEW: Iran will move its capital due to an ecological catastrophe. Experts warn the move won’t help the nearly 10 million people living in Tehran, who will continue to face the impacts of corruption and climate change. “We saw this coming,” one source told me. My story @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

The agency this week quietly changed its official language to suggest vaccines may cause autism, a claim that scientists say has no basis in evidence

Halted NIH Clinical Trials List Reveals Slashed Treatments for Cancer, COVID and Minority Health www.scientificamerican.com/article/halt... Sickle cell disease, sleep disorders and lung cancer & much more A dive into the list of NIH's 383 shelved clinical trials, obtained by Scientific American

🚨The CDC quietly revised its vaccine website to echoe vaccine–autism claims promoted by RFK Jr. “It’s a tragedy,” a source told me. “The change signals that truth carries no weight in current or future discussions about vaccines.” My latest with comment from @ameracadpeds.bsky.social 🧪

🚨NEW: A massive new study found no link between exposure to recommended levels of fluoride and IQ decline in children. Over the past year, Health Secretary RFK Junior has claimed that fluoride causes IQ loss, neuro disorders and bone cancer, among other issues. My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

The U.S. is poised to lose its measles elimination status in January, if current outbreaks in Utah and Arizona aren't brought under control. @sipappas.bsky.social recently wrote about what that would mean for @sciam.bsky.social: www.scientificamerican.com/article/meas...

More really cool science news: Scientists have extracted the oldest known RNA! This is a particularly amazing feat because RNA degrades very quickly. (Also, we learned that Yuka here was a male, not a female as previously thought.) 🧪 (by @humbertobasilio.bsky.social for @sciam.bsky.social)

🚨 Newly released emails show that Jeffrey Epstein had ties to prominent scientists and academics — including physicist Lawrence Krauss, who has been accused of sexual misconduct. Other names are Lawrence Summers and Noam Chomsky. @danvergano.bsky.social for @sciam.bsky.social

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)—aka the “mono” virus—can also trigger Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (MECFS) and is a risk factor for Multiple Sclerosis. COVID-19 infection is one of the things that can trigger the reactivation of EBV (others include mold or mycotoxin exposure).

🦠NEW: Scientists just confirmed that the “Mono” virus can trigger and sustain lupus — something researchers had suspected for decades, but only based on anecdotal evidence. My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

🚨BREAKING: Contrary to previous forecasts, the International Energy Agency now says global demand for oil and gas will keep rising until 2025. Weak climate action and energy security fears are driving the surge. My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

🚨UPDATE: China is getting ready to bring its astronauts back to Earth. In my latest for @sciam.bsky.social I explain what that could look like:

Canada lost its official measles elimination status after a year of continuous transmission

🚨 BREAKING: Canada has lost its measles-free status after a year of continuous transmission — meaning the Americas region is no longer measles-free. What does this mean? My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

🚨Three Chinese astronauts couldn’t return to Earth after space junk hit their spacecraft. Scientists warn this could be just the first of more accidents caused by orbital debris. The situation is concerning. “There are a lot of people up there,” one source told me. My story @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

Heck, I'd take a two-bedroom at 1,080 square feet.

Scientists found the world’s largest spiderweb inside a sulfur cave on the Albania–Greece border. It’s about half the size of a tennis court—or, you know, a pretty decent studio apartment in Manhattan 🕷️ 🕸️ My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/worl...

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of a ritual-based site that may have been built long before the rise of Maya rulers

Last week I traveled across southern Mexico, visiting several Maya archaeological sites. Just when you think the pyramids rising from the jungle are the most impressive sight, archaeologists uncover something even as extraordinary underground My story for @sciam.bsky.social 🧪

www.scientificamerican.com/article/arch... "Archaeologists Uncover a Monumental Ancient Maya Map of the Cosmos" -- exciting news from Aguada Fénix, Tabasco! 🏺

My interview with @humbertobasilio.bsky.social @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-...

Trump's FDA wants to study the safety of aluminum in vaccines, despite decades of evidence showing it's not only safe but also essential to the efficacy of many vaccines. By @humbertobasilio.bsky.social @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-...

A quarter of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff is gone after the Trump administration’s latest reductions in force and earlier layoffs

Surgeons in China transplanted part of pig liver into a patient with an incurable cancerous tumor, and it functioned for more than a month

New research shows how microbes use napping viruses to vaccinate themselves

The “Great North American Eclipse” of April 2024 was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study how birds and other wildlife respond to total solar eclipses

NASA’s Perseverance rover has found that particular parts of the rock are enriched with elements and minerals that — on Earth— can indicate microbes at work, @humbertobasilio.bsky.social reports in @sciam.bsky.social #astro #astronomy

they're bricks. they get hot. and they could be the climate movement's next big thing @humbertobasilio.bsky.social for @atmosmag.bsky.social on why heat batteries could be the next trillion-dollar industry 🧪🌎

NEW: a first-ever study has directly tied heatwaves to the world's biggest climate polluters each of these "carbon majors"—including Shell, ExxonMobil, and BP—has made between 16 and 53 otherwise impossible heat waves since 2000 possible. @humbertobasilio.bsky.social for @atmosmag.bsky.social 🧪🌎

In the middle of the “second space race,” NASA scientists say we may be looking at the closest evidence yet of ancient life on Mars 🔭🧪 My story for @sciam.bsky.social with edits from @leebillings.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...

Now on @sciam.bsky.social: The Mars rock that made headlines last year is still worth getting excited about. A new study says the case remains strong for potential biosignatures in the "Cheyava Falls" rock studied and sampled by the Perseverance rover. www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...

🚨 An environmental injustice we already knew but data confirms: children from marginalized communities in the U.S. attend the schools most exposed to heat waves. They’re often the same kids without air-conditioning at school — and very likely at home too, sources say My story for @sciam.bsky.social

An ancient hybrid of tomatoes and potato-like plants may have given rise to the modern spud, a new study suggests. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/s...

NEW: The Trump administration's dismantling of USAID is fueling a black market of HIV medication in Zimbabwe. Desperate nurses are plundering PrEP and PEP pills from the hospitals where they work, and selling them to sex workers well-funded by their Asian clients, worsening the country's HIV crisis.

SPUN is featured in @science.org in a piece written by @humbertobasilio.bsky.social. Learn where some of the most unique fungal communities exist, such as West Africa’s Guinean forests, Tasmania’s temperate rainforests, and Brazil’s Cerrado savanna. Read here: www.science.org/content/arti...

Once a surfer's paradise, a string of deadly attacks made Réunion Island synonymous with one word only: sharks. But a team of scientists turned this tiny island into a hub of lifesaving research. For @science.org, I wrote about this fascinating place. www.science.org/content/arti...

Studying the AHA! moments. This story about insight by @humbertobasilio.bsky.social is truly inspiring. Take on the test within to see if you feel it, too. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

NEW: The US government has collected DNA from over 100,000 migrant children—including a 4-year-old—and uploaded their genetic profiles into a national biometric database meant for sex offenders and violent criminals. www.wired.com/story/cbp-dn...

A principled student said in a grad speech that the “only appropriate thing to say in this moment” is to acknowledge the “atrocities” currently being committed in Palestine. In response, NYU is withholding their diploma + apologizing to the community for the trauma the audience was “subjected to.”

Just published: US scientists who received renewals from the NIH over the past four decades produced more novel research than those who didn’t, study finds You can then imagine what happens when scientists are shut out of renewals by Trump's NIH Article by the talented @humbertobasilio.bsky.social

Jon Lee Anderson profiles Alexandre de Moraes, the crusading Brazilian jurist who took on the Bolsonarist insurrection—and Elon Musk.

Sarah Stillman investigates a crisis of care in county jails: a scandal involving, at its worst, state-sponsored homicides of the country’s most vulnerable citizens.