Kathryn Hulick

Imagine and draw an alien being Kids tried this activity at my book launch for The UFO Files

One alien sees black holes. Another smells with its hair. Check out what kids imagined at my book launch for The UFO Files on Sunday! And try the activity yourself - link in my Substack. @anunlikelystory.bsky.social @quartokids.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...

How to design artificial intelligence that acts nice — and only nice Today’s bots can’t turn against us, but they can cause harm. “AI safety” aims to train this tech so it will always be honest, harmless and helpful.

2. How to design artificial intelligence that acts nice — and only nice
www.snexplores.org/article/arti...

Want your own AI double? Digital clones could bring big benefits — and risks People are using AI to mimic their own voice, likeness and personality. Some are excited about these new digital clones. Others worry, what could go wrong?

I wrote about similar ideas in two of my stories for teens published in @snexplores.bsky.social
1.
Want your own AI double? There could be big benefits — and risks
www.snexplores.org/article/ai-d...

We need a new ethics for a world of AI agents The deployment of capable AI agents raises fresh questions about safety, human–machine relationships and social coordination.

Important article summing up many of the risks of AI agents. "The world is at a pivotal moment: the foundational architecture of AI agents — and the infrastructure that governs them — is being imagined and built right now." 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/d41...

I’m at the Barnes & Noble in Natick signing books this afternoon! Look for the alien. @barnesandnoble.com @quartokids.bsky.social

I'll be at An Unlikely Story in Plainville for a book launch celebration (with snacks! And a drawing activity for kids!) on Sunday at 3pm. Get free tickets here: www.eventbrite.com/e/kathryn-hu...
@anunlikelystory.bsky.social @quartokids.bsky.social

LitLinks: Imagine your own alien, an easy STEM + literacy lesson  - Patricia Newman Use a science fiction story with nonfiction sidebars about AI, rocket science, and more to inspire students to create their own aliens.

Here’s an activity to go with my book The UFO files. 🛸 Kids imagine, draw, and write about alien beings. 👽 Find it on
#LitLinks patriciamnewman.com/?p=12919

#mystery #scienceforkids #stemforkids #STEM #literacy

@patricianewman.bsky.social @quartokids.bsky.social

At 17, Hannah Cairo Solved a Major Math Mystery | Quanta Magazine After finding the homeschooling life confining, the teen petitioned her way into a graduate class at Berkeley, where she ended up disproving a 40-year-old conjecture.

This is such a cool story about a teenage math prodigy. I wish I could understand the solution she discovered! 🧪 www.quantamagazine.org/at-17-hannah... At 17, Hannah Cairo Solved a Major Math Mystery | Quanta Magazine

That feeling when an idea you had at age 8 becomes a real book... Happy book birthday to The UFO Files!

Today’s the day! The UFO Files is out in the world. It’s a kids graphic novel with aliens, mystery, and unknown language, and more, all based on realistic science and technology. kathrynhulick.substack.com/p/that-feeli...

Zombies are real! Some parasites worm their way into other creatures’ brains and alter their victims’ behavior. Meet zombie ants, spiders, cockroaches, fish and more.

Yesss! Amazing photo. I wrote about this years ago in a story for Science News Explores (aimed at teens): www.snexplores.org/article/zomb...

One-fifth of computer science papers may include AI content | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti... 🧪

Photo of a hand cradling a shoot of the vine. Some leaves are elliptical, while others are 3-lobed. Photo by Scott Zona CCBYNC2.

Photo of a selection of isolated leaves. Some leaves are entire, some are lobed. Some leaves are large, some are small and narrow. Photo by Scott Zona CCBYNC2.

Passiflora suberosa exhibits heteroblasty (different-shaped leaves on the same plant). The 2nd photo shows leaves from a single plant. It’s part of the evolutionary arms race with butterflies. It may prevent gravid female butterflies from forming a search image. #Passifloraceae #Botany 🌾🧪🌱

Two assassin bugs I met this summer. Such stylish, alien little dudes! 👾 #nature #insects

‘Kids are Just as Smart as Grown Ups’ Kathryn Hulick ’04 tackles big topics, including AI and fusion energy, in her books for young readers

How do I cover science and tech for young people? “Kids are just as smart as grown-ups. They just don’t have as much life experience. I never dumb things down.” Read the full story in Colby News:
news.colby.edu/story/kathry...

Science in action: bringing the black-footed ferret back from the brink - Gene Drive Network When I first began working on black-footed ferrets over twenty years ago, the species was beginning to recover from what was once thought to be its final chapter.

I recently partnered with the Gene Drive Network to create a blog about how biotechnology helps conservation of the black-footed ferret. Here it is: 👩🏻‍🔬🌏🧪

genedrivenetwork.org/blog/science...

Mutualism Under Pressure: New Research in Panama Shows a Plant's Ability to Keep Its Defender Ants Happy Scientists discovered that swollen-thorn acacias invested more in ant rewards during a drought, suggesting that mutualistic interactions play a crucial role in the plant's survival, even during climat...

www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smiths...

Could AI Help Humanity Understand Whales? This project hopes that decoding sperm whale sounds will boost conservation efforts

My first story for Sierra magazine! What could sperm whale sounds mean? “Understanding is not just about translation—it’s about listening, about honoring another way of being.” - Daniela Rus, MIT 🧪
@sierraclub.org @projectceti.bsky.social www.sierraclub.org/sierra/could...

The Healthy Glow of Plants A drone-borne photon counter can provide a new view into environmental health.

TIL that plants give off dim red light when they are healthy. “It’s the photosynthetic heartbeat of the organism.” - Ozzy Mermut and now drone could help track this. 🧪

physics.aps.org/articles/v18...

Wow! Turtles, baby birds, moths and more What amazing animal encounters have you had lately?

What special nature encounters have you had lately? These are my top five from this summer (so far!) #nature 🦋
open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...

Dual interfacial H-bonding-enhanced deep-blue hybrid copper–iodide LEDs - Nature A dual interfacial hydrogen-bond passivation strategy and a hybrid copper–iodide are used to fabricate deep-blue light-emitting diodes with excellent external quantum efficiency and lifetime.

Not sure, but here’s a quote from the press release: “The new material provides an eco-friendly and stable alternative to what currently exists, addressing some of these issues and may potentially advance LED technology,” Li said.

And the research paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A microscopic image of hybrid copper iodide crystals emitting deep-blue light developed by scientists at Rutgers University

Don't these look like pieces of a light saber? Actually, they are crystals scientists fabricated as a new source of blue light. Existing materials that emit this color can be toxic, so this could be a better option for displays. www.newswise.com/doescience/n... 🧪
Image: Kun Zhu/Rutgers University

When Bats Carry the Cure A new rabies vaccine for vampire bats spreads through colonies via grooming, offering a humane alternative to culling.

🧪 Science Poem 🖋️

New research has found that vampire bats can lick rabies vaccines off each other, spreading immunity through grooming

Here’s my poetic response and explainer: scienceblog.com/thepoetryofs...

#SciComm 🍎 🐡 #Poetry #Vaccines #Bats

Celebrate with me! Come to a book launch event in Massachusetts

Book launch events just dropped! If you’re in New England, Come celebrate with me August 10 or September 6! I’ll lead a kids activity and sign books.
open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh... @quartokids.bsky.social

Molecular fossils offer first glimpse of how life survived Snowball Earth Overlooked rock samples from 640 million years ago record microbes hanging on beneath frozen oceans

At @goldschmidt-confer.bsky.social last week, scientists reported the first biomarkers from a Snowball Earth event(!!!!)

It’s a first glimpse of life under the ice at a time when glaciers blanketed the world from pole to equator.

New from me for @science.org 🧪

www.science.org/content/arti...

An older violinist stands in silhouette, while her younger self plays within, symbolizing how lifelong musical training preserves youth-like brain function. Just as melodies transcend time, playing music holds back age-related neural upregulation, supporting better speech perception in older musicians. Credit: Mohan Yuan (myuan@research.baycrest.org), CC-BY 4.0

Long-term #MusicalTraining can provide neural resources to help cope with effects of #aging, but how? @leicogsci.bsky.social &co show that cognitive reserve acquired via music training holds back age-related neural recruitment during speech-in-noise perception @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/44NIkxZ

"the ideas were more grounded in science fiction than in actual science and the grip on reality was tenuous at best. 'What this sort of crystallized for me... was that these tech guys — who people think of as knowing a lot about science — actually, don’t really know anything about science at all.'"

Thank you! 🛸

The year is 2033. An alien spacecraft has arrived on Planet Earth. What could be inside?

It's the last day for this special offer on my new kids book THE UFO FILES. Get 25% off with code PREORDER25
www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-ufo-fi...

@quartokids.bsky.social @barnesandnoble.com #BNPreorder

Cutting-Edge Technology Could Massively Reduce the Amount of Energy Used for Air Conditioning Roughly 10 percent of the world’s energy is used for cooling, with much of the necessary electricity generated by fossil fuels. Companies need to make AC much more efficient—as soon as possible.

New AC technologies are going to help here - but the risk is people buying and over-using the cheapest, most polluting AC with the worst (in terms of global warming potential) refrigerants.

share.google/VMHa5QxDPgHy...

Does AI steal art or help create it? It depends on who you ask With AI image generators on the scene, artists see both power and peril ahead.

Here's my story from last year that describes how Glaze and Nightshade work, and features thoughts from multiple artists about how #AI is impacting them: www.snexplores.org/article/ai-a...
@snexplores.bsky.social