MIT Graduate Program in Science Writing

This is going to be fantastic

3/ We still have several months of work to do on the main feature, which means we have several months to develop extra elements for the package. So here is where I'm reaching out to you, dear readers:

What do you want to know? What questions do you have? What can I pay someone to find out for you?

Research reset: Covering promising paths to better health AHCJ’s 2025 fall summit, “Research reset: Covering promising paths to better health,” will take place from Nov. 13-14 in NYC.

🚨 Maternal mortality in the U.S. remains one of the most urgent health crises. At the AHCJ Fall Summit, explore how research funding (or lack of it) shapes what we know — and what we don’t.
Join us: healthjournalism.org/training-eve...

Drought has hit the Panama Canal hard – can it survive climate change? A severe drought exacerbated by climate change and a lack of updated infrastructure have led to some ships waiting more than a month to cross one of the world's most important waterways

Congratulations to @jamesdinneen.bsky.social, '22, for winning a 2025 NASW Science in Society Journalism Award in the Science Reporting category! You can read the award-winning story here: www.newscientist.com/article/2416...

DEAL ALERT: Take advantage of early bird rates for #SciWri25! For writers, editors, authors, journalists, institutional writers, communications managers, students, and anyone working to translate science for the non-scientist. Join us.

Early bird rates end tomorrow, Oct. 1

sciencewriters2025.o...

In New England, a tree-killing worm may spell the end of autumn’s yellow hues - The Boston Globe As a parasite infects beech forests in the Eastern United States, a team of researchers is trying to fight back — before it’s too late.

You can also read her award-winning @bostonglobe.com Magazine feature on the scientific war against Beech leaf disease here: www.bostonglobe.com/2024/06/12/m...

Congratulations to @hartleys.bsky.social, '24, for winning the John M. Collier Award for Forest History Journalism from @foresthistory.bsky.social. Read more about Sophie's win on our website: sciwrite.mit.edu/news-events/

@alexip718.com created the most comprehensive map of H-1B workers at research institutions for @thexylom.com. This is an impressive and vital resource:

For the first time, more kids are obese than underweight The year child malnutrition flipped, in one chart.

On the GPSW website today: @pratik-p.bsky.social's story for @vox.com on a historic flip in child malnutrition: www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Special thanks to The Commonwealth Fund for supporting AHCJ’s career-changing reporting fellowships. 🙌
Applications are open now through Oct. 10.
📅 Info webinar: Sept. 24
Details + apply: healthjournalism.org/event/2025-h...

A bunch of bears eating salmon

Reminder that there are giant bears eating salmon right now and you can watch them fur free explore.org/livecams/bro...

For the first time, more kids are obese than underweight The year child malnutrition flipped, in one chart.

INBOX: For the first time in world history, children worldwide are now more likely to be obese than underweight, according to @unicef.org’s new Child Nutrition Report.

Read the full story by fellow @mitsciwrite.bsky.social graduate @pratik-p.bsky.social:

Fellow members of @dcswa.bsky.social @sejorg.bsky.social @sciencewriters.org @jhuaap.bsky.social and my friends who write and report on the environment and #nature, check out this FREE opportunity from @factcoalition.bsky.social and UNICRI:
unicri.org/Agenda-Train...

Roundtable: How to Cover Science During Sociopolitical Disruption - The Open Notebook Since the second Trump administration took office, news on how the nation’s leaders are systematically dismantling the practice of science in the U.S. has arrived in a daily deluge. In this roundtable...

“My inbox is flooded with [potential news] items every day—which is part of the administration’s “flood the zone” strategy. They are overwhelming us intentionally.” – @hayleysmith.bsky.social. Five reporters share what it means to cover science in the U.S. right now.

Death, Grief, and Cicadas: How a Mother is Helping Others Navigate Loss In 2004, Kim Hieftje’s six-year-old son died from heart complications. She’s using that experience and her expertise in video games to help other parents.

Death, Grief, and Cicadas -- Eva Cornman, '24, reports on how one mother is helping others cope with grief with virtual reality tech. Written for the Yale School of Medicine:

medicine.yale.edu/news-article...

Big Changes, Small Newsrooms | Solutions Journalism Network We've heard from many small newsrooms (and not-so-small ones!) that they struggle to help their communities make sense of new government cuts and reforms. One way to be useful with your reporting is t...

Reporters—check out today's webinar with @soljourno.bsky.social at 2 p.m. ET: www.solutionsjournalism.org/events/big-c...

Trump Is Dismantling Climate Science at a Dangerous Pace The White House has blocked efforts to measure, respond to and fight global warming. That puts all Americans at risk.

I know there's a lot of news rn but @eroston.bsky.social, @zhirji.bsky.social and I wrote a full accounting of the Trump administration's war on climate science and clean energy. Putting it all in one place was a lot!

National Geographic Book of Magic and the Occult: A Visual History A Visual History

Personal news: I wrote ~3/8 of a book, and that book is out today! If you want a visually rich, historically grounded look at magic though the millennia, this book's for you. The National Geographic Book of Magic and the Occult is available wherever books are sold:
bookshop.org/p/books/nati...

Image of a man wearing a blue shirt and the following quote: What really stands out about TON is its unwavering belief that everyone can be a better science writer, and a firm moral stance that “everyone” truly means everybody. Alex Ip. Science journalist and founder of The Xylom (Atlanta).

As we celebrate our 15th year, we are truly celebrating everybody. Thank you, @alexip718.com and @thexylom.com, for sharing what TON means to you. Science journalism matters. Community matters.

Help us celebrate another 15! #TON15
www.theopennotebook.com/15thannivers...

Georgia Tech Is Teaching Other Universities a Fundraising Lesson A strategy for wooing corporate partners offers a blueprint for schools confronting budget shortfalls after federal cuts to science research.

NEW: As the Trump administration overhauls the way the government funds academic research, universities reshaping their budgets are turning to Georgia Tech for advice www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...

DUE TOMORROW: Need a little financial aid to make the trip to Chicago Nov 7-9 or to participate in the virtual portion of #SciWri25? Apply for a Community Support Grant NASW membership not required to apply

Learn more and apply: sciencewriters2025.o...

Deadline to apply: Aug 28

Residents Know When Floods Happen, But Data Must Catch Up - Eos Federal flood measurements often don’t match what people see in their communities. Scientists have created a hyperlocal solution.

Grace Van Deelen, '22, reports on new methods of flood detection for @eos.org

eos.org/articles/res...

Incredible work by @carolynyjohnson.bsky.social

"What I would simply say is cancer can't wait." --Richard Schlueter, a 56-year-old metastatic cancer patient whose therapy was delayed due to terminations at NIH.

The Trump administration is trying to claw back $7 billion in rooftop solar subsidies this week.

However, our reporting at my home town shows that money is no silver bullet: even without means testing or quotas, a just transition requires policy clarity and political leadership.

Pitch slam for early-career international science journalists. Join us!

🚨 Last chance! Advance registration for AHCJ’s Rural Health Journalism Workshop in Atlanta closes TODAY.

Don’t miss your shot to dig into rural health challenges with top experts and fellow reporters.

📅 Workshop: August 21
📍 Atlanta, GA
🎟️ Register now: healthjournalism.org/event/rural-...

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@carolynyjohnson.bsky.social
takes a totally fascinating look at how new research shows that one single gene reveals clues to why humans thrived and Neanderthals didn’t www.washingtonpost.com/science/2025...

The Magic Rat and His Slick Machine - Beaker Street

You know you need to take a look at a photo (in the wild!) of a glow-in-the-dark (at least, glow under UV light) marsupial:

The Biggest US LNG Exporter Is Claiming a Massive Tax Credit for Using Its Cargo as an ‘Alternative’ Fuel - Inside Climate News Critics say the claim relies on a dubious interpretation of a law intended to promote natural gas and other fuels. An Inside Climate News analysis put the potential windfall at more than $140 million.

Is a 1000-ft tanker a motorboat? That may be a $140 M question as Cheniere, the largest exporter of US LNG, seeks tax credits that leave shipping experts and tax specialists baffled. insideclimatenews.org/news/3107202...
My latest, w/ @peteraldhous.com
Additional analysis by @datadesk.bsky.social