David Barrie

Join Rethinking Economics I just joined Rethinking Economics

I just took action with @theactionnetwork.bsky.social: Get the newsletter. Take action here: actionnetwork.org/forms/not-a-...

A New Way to Flirt: Dazzle Potential Mates With Patterns Invisible to Humans

A New Way to Flirt: Dazzle Potential Mates With Patterns Invisible to Humans www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/s...

Open letter calling for a televised emergency briefing It's time the Government briefed the nation on the threats presented by climate and nature breakdown, like British Governments have in previous crises. Urgent action will deliver real benefits for the...

I just signed a @theactionnetwork.bsky.social petition: Open letter calling for a televised emergency briefing. Sign here: actionnetwork.org/petitions/op...

DarkSky International opposes Reflect Orbital’s proposed orbital illumination system DarkSky International recently released an organizational statement in response to Reflect Orbital’s proposal to use in-space mirrors to reflect sunlight to…

This plan is appalling. Please support this petition. #darkskies #lightpollution #outer-space darksky.org/news/organiz...

In Pursuit of the Monarch’s Magnetic Sense

In Pursuit of the Monarch’s Magnetic Sense -exciting new experiments! www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/s...

Why our physical bodies may be a core part of conscious experience – new research The brain’s sense of “this is my body” is tightly bound to conscious awareness – far more than many theories assume.

Embodiment and consciousness … theconversation.com/why-our-phys...

‘Incredible’ carved canoe dates back to first settlement of islands near New Zealand Fibers found on waka in Chatham Islands roughly align in age with earliest known human arrival

An astonishing discovery! www.science.org/content/arti...

Pigeons sense Earth’s magnetic field in an entirely new way Specialized hair cells pick electric currents induced by magnetism

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

No, but I’ve read a lot about it!

A Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea

A Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/s...

Humans have an internal lunar clock – but light pollution is disrupting it Many animals synchronise their behaviour to the phases of the Moon.

Humans have an internal lunar clock – but light pollution is disrupting it
theconversation.com/humans-have-...

Science Magazine - Positive affective contagion in bumble bees We have all likely experienced moments when the joy or sadness of someone close to us quickly becomes our own emotion.

Bumble bee emotions! www.sciencemagazinedigital.org/sciencemagaz...

Science Magazine - Seeking ghosts One day when Kenji Suetsugu was 4 or 5 years old, he went for a walk with his parents through the Kasugayama Primeval Forest near their home in Nara, one of Japan’s ancient capitals.

Fascinating www.sciencemagazinedigital.org/sciencemagaz...

DarkSky’s Home Outdoor Lighting Assessment Protecting the night starts at your front door.

How to make your home ‘night-friendly’ #lightpollution #animalwelfare #health darksky.org/get-involved...

Voyages to the End of the World - First Things Francis Bacon dreamed of abolishing disease, natural disasters, and chance itself. He also dreamed of abolishing God.

Faced with ‘the #Anti-Christ’ and ‘Armageddon’, the Christian ‘prays for new miracles, new technologies, and strange new possibilities.’ What exactly is #PeterThiel trying to tell us?https://firstthings.com/voyages-to-the-end-of-the-world/

Opinion | How to Save the American Experiment

‘What American democracy needs now is grand experiments like those of a century ago...’ A stimulating piece with relevance beyobd the US. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/o...

A Turning Point for the Ocean: What the High Seas Treaty Means - Inside Climate News With more than 60 countries on board, the new international law will soon enter into force, ushering in the world’s first framework to conserve biodiversity across two-thirds of the ocean.

What the High Seas Treaty means insideclimatenews.org/news/2709202...

Evidence of mood states in reptiles There is increasing evidence that non-human animals experience ‘free-floating’ mood states, but such evidence is lacking in reptiles, hindering the debate as to their affective capacity and with subse...

Moody tortoises…new evidence that reptiles have feelings pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

Categorical and semantic perception of the meaning of call types in zebra finches Vocal communication in social animals involves the production and perception of various calls that ethologists categorize into call types based on their acoustical structure and behavioral context. Wh...

And so are birds! | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Dogs extend verbal labels for functional classification of objects Fugazza et al. show that Gifted Word Learner dogs extend verbal labels to functionally similar objects, even without perceptual similarity, during playful interactions with their human families. Funct...

Dogs are clever! Current Biology www.cell.com/current-biol...

No, I’m not on Desert Island Discs! Recording session for BBC RADIO 4 Rare Earth on animal #migration with @willleohawkes.bsky.social @tomheap.bsky.social and @helenczerski.bsky.social Airs on Friday 19 September at 1200 GMT

Me too!

Striking reminder of #GPS vulnerability: EU chief von der Leyen's plane hit by suspected Russian GPS jamming. #GNSS

Octopuses fall for the ‘rubber arm’ illusion, just like us Experiment shows octopuses feel body ownership, a trait previously seen only in mammals

Octopuses fall for the ‘rubber arm’ illusion, just like us | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

Paleolithic seafaring in East Asia: An experimental test of the dugout canoe hypothesis An experimental voyage suggested the presence of functional boats and advanced navigational skills in the Paleolithic.

Paleolithic seafaring in East Asia: An experimental test of the dugout canoe hypothesis | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Paleolithic seafaring in East Asia: An experimental test of the dugout canoe hypothesis An experimental voyage suggested the presence of functional boats and advanced navigational skills in the Paleolithic.

Paleolithic seafaring in East Asia: An experimental test of the dugout canoe hypothesis | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Something lovely on show today at the #BritishMuseum

‘Science that can help to catch criminals, secure national
borders and prevent theft can also be used to monitor
political groups, suppress protest and identify battlefield
targets.’ Yes.

Culture literally changes how we see the world Where city dwellers see rectangles, people who live in round huts see circles

This illusion is fascinating! Culture literally changes how we see the world | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

YouTube video by Nature Podcast Flight simulator for moths reveals they navigate by starlight

Fascinating new research reveals that Australian #bogongmoths can steer by the light of the #stars! youtu.be/mEIZWRr5KM4?...