I asked my kindergartener if she'd chosen a candle for her "spa bath" and she said "I can't decide between grapefruit and cheddar blossom."

These endangered lemurs don't have babies often. (You won't believe how females keep males from mating with them!) When they do give birth, they raise kids communally. But in today's climate, their patterns are changing. By me, for @biographic.bsky.social: www.biographic.com/investigatin...

Chatted with a grandma at a birthday party, who mentioned she was surprised when one of her grandkids was named Allo. She asked her daughter-in-law if it was after the folk singer, Allo Guthrie, but she just liked the name! And wouldn't you know there are 3 other Allos at his preschool! #boston

Oof. A really good investigation by Sarah Kliff into electronic fetal monitoring, the moms and babies it doesn't help, and the lawyers and corporations it does: www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/h... 🧪

In the treetops of a remote Madagascar rainforest, black-and-white ruffed lemurs are enjoying a baby boom. But what looks like unprecedented fecundity might actually be a sign of scrambled signals from a changing climate. @inkfish.bsky.social reports:

Last month's delightful conversation with Mary Roach is online now! youtu.be/6FUVkG8kieI?... @harvardbookstore.bsky.social 🧪

Huge thanks to everyone who has donated wood to our woodchuck enclosure. We have reached an undetermined percentage of our goal.

I wasn't planning to post pictures of my kids' Halloween costumes BUT my feed is telling me it's #WorldJellyfishDay?! 🧪

Your spooky Lego art for the day: "Pumpkin carving," by my sister @akpresto.bsky.social (On non-spooky days, she makes Lego art about climate, cities and data: aangles.ghost.io)

This year both my kids are jellyfish for Halloween; we made costumes out of clear umbrellas, and I was feeling smug that they were prepared for every possible weather scenario. So of course the forecast for this evening is high wind.

It’s always amazing to me that so many endangered species have the word “common” in their name. Really hammers home how quickly these conservation crises can arise. These animals were common as recently as when we were naming stuff!

Oh. My God. What. Also I literally read this book already; it was called Little Eyes, by Samanta Schweblin, and it was a horror novel.

In my latest newsletter, we get advice from an eel about wriggling into uncomfortable environments (and get a look at my book galleys!!) elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-be-... 🧪

This is giving me life

Advice from an eel about putting yourself out there: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-be-... 🧪

Don't forget allergies!

“I am not interested, nor will I ever be interested. I'm 61, and I hope to be able to remain uninterested in using it at all until I croak. ... The other day, somebody wrote me an email, said, ‘What is your stance on AI?’ And my answer was very short. I said, ‘I'd rather die.’” 🫡

"I'm the real fake Trump." A great story about a Chinese man who does an astonishing impersonation but can't figure out how to monetize his talent: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/w...

"as if the act of dreaming has been rendered obsolete, inefficient" Excellent essay from @cwarzel.bsky.social

When I told my Brazilian neighbor that we were going apple picking and I hoped they still had Empires, she said it's all the same to her because in Brazil there's only one kind of apple, but there are like 10 kinds of bananas. My mind is blown.

On a train full of people coming back from the Boston #NoKings protest and a spontaneous rendition of "If I Had A Hammer" just broke out

“What does it feel like? A little bit like a drowning person is clinging to my shoulders while I’m out for a neighborhood stroll that used to be enjoyable.” By @inkfish.bsky.social Full piece: thebelladonnacomedy.com/im-wearing-t...

MORE WEIGHT! by me, for The Belladonna Comedy:

What a bird with a truly ridiculous mating dance can (and can't) teach us about writing: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-get... 🧪

book bindings on both sides. people keep prying them open from the right side and snooping around. mind your own business

On the anniversary of my newsletter, I consider lessons on stamina and showmanship from a truly ridiculous bird of paradise: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-get... 🧪

This book is delightful! Funny and practical life lessons for adults & kids, from the point of view of sea creatures.

This prize-winning cheese, aged in caves, lost its signature green rind for the same reason that cave fishes and other animals have evolved to be albino: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/09/s... 🧪

I'm teaching an online ESOL class and it's been fascinating to learn what sounds in American English are hardest to make. (Students are mostly speakers of Haitian Creole, and a few of Portuguese or Spanish.) Last night I introduced "stapler" and they thought it was LUDICROUS.

Cheesemakers in Vermont watched their prize-winning cheese rapidly change color as its mold evolved. Scientists solved the mystery thanks to a surprise marriage proposal: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/09/s... By me! 🧪

Strongly recommend stepping away from your news feed, going for a walk, and listening to @samsanders.bsky.social interview @bencollins.bsky.social about the state of media and the world: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

sometimes I just look at instagram and think "why is everyone so mad at crow's feet" they are delicate little lines around the eyes

MW correctly reading the room

Scientists rappelled down cliffs to reach the nests of bearded vultures, which have a diet of bones and paint their feathers red with mud. Inside the nests were perfectly preserved human artifacts from the Middle Ages. By me, for Nat Geo: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti... 🧪

This week I'm taking friendship advice from some very adorable marsupials that poop cubes: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-be-... 🧪

Oh how I yearn to go back in time, put on my Old Noby t-shirt, roll into a Willmart and stare near a lobster tank before going out the exik WHO IS WATCHING THIS MY GOD

Advice for lonely humans from cube-pooping marsupials: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-be-... 🧪

GULP! I hope I am not so STIFF and SPOOKed that I can only speak in GRUNTs and BONK into things when I interview the legendary Mary Roach onstage about her new book REPLACEABLE YOU! See you there?? www.harvard.com/event/mary-r... @harvardbookstore.bsky.social 🧪

classic ’Missed Connection’

Just interrupted my own doomscrolling to read Slate's list of the top 25 picture books from this century, and I recommend you do the same! slate.com/culture/2025... In my household, The Book with No Pictures and (the brilliant) Du Iz Tak? are both all-timers. Also Press Here (for littles).

Oh I love this:

My kids were at a playground birthday party this weekend that included a person in a Pikachu suit (big hit). After meeting Pikachu my 5-year-old came to me and tugged on my shirt. "Mommy?" (with concern) "I looked in the eyes and I didn't see any eyes"

Just got the first blurb for my book, and I suspect my favorite comment of all will be this slightly resentful note that came with it: "I did not really have time, but once I opened and started, could not put it down. So here you go"

Here's the deal folks. We haven't yet hit our fundraising goal. We have one more campaign planned for the year, but the long-term existence of this magazine hinges to a decent degree on readers signing up as recurring donors. If you value what we are making, it would mean a lot if you signed up

This is a feel-good story until you get to the part where 70% of other countries already do this on a national level. 🧪

🚨 NEW: Climate change is already causing 30,000 deaths per year - a global annual economic loss of $100-350B USD - but the true damage is probably 10x higher. Out TODAY in Nature Climate Change: the first systematic look at the science of "health impact attribution" 🔓 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Hello, have you been on the internet too much lately? Here's some advice from nature about foraging wisely, to protect yourself and your loved ones: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-wat... 🧪

Have you been bingeing on horrors lately? We might all take some wisdom from the worker bees: elizabethgpreston.substack.com/p/how-to-wat... 🧪

Often thinking about when I was a very pregnant teacher and my high school sophomores told me if we ever go into lockdown, I should move to the safest corner of the room right away and they would move the bookcase to barricade the door on their own. "You have the baby," they (babies) said.

Wait this is actually beautiful. www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/ter... @mcsweeneys.net