by Brooke Borel
Hello! I know I’ve been absent from this blog for awhile now, but that is partly because I have been working on a new blog for Popular Science’s brand new blog network. It launched today. I’ll occasionally update my WordPress space, too, but for a regular fix visit the new blog– Our Modern Plagues— for weekly posts.
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: blog, blogging, news, our modern plagues, popular science, science, writing
by Brooke Borel
Earlier this week, I guest blogged for a great site called the Last Word on Nothing, which is written and managed by a group of science writers (you should check it out, they’re great). I’ve copied the original post below, and you can read the original here. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ In early January, the sidewalks in my neighborhood are lined with discarded Christmas trees. It’s the collective holiday hangover trash, and quite frankly it makes me sad; the trees mark the […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: animals, anthropomorphism, birds, christmas trees, dogs, human nature, mind, psychology, science writing
by Brooke Borel
Two days ago, the New York Times ran a story on the alleged new trend of bed bugs in libraries. The piece has a lot of problems with it, particularly its alarmist take on the topic, which was nicely analyzed by Reluctant Habits managing editor Edward Champion* yesterday. Champion has good points but, for me, the most troublesome line of the NYT story is this: “That’s because bedbugs have discovered a new way to hitchhike in and out of beds: […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: bed bug, bed bugs, bedbug, bedbugs, libraries, new york times
by Brooke Borel
This is Lorenzo, my dog, striking a ridiculous pose on my couch. A few weeks ago, I told a story about Lorenzo and his bout with heartworm at The Story Collider, a science-themed storytelling event in New York. It was the first time I’ve told a story live on stage and it was both thrilling and terrifying. It was also three days before my wedding, which lent a new level of excitement (read: craziness) to an already big week. Now, […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: dogs, heartworm, science, storytelling, the story collider, writing
by Brooke Borel
My Kickstarter ended yesterday: Funded! I’m excited and relieved at the outcome and look forward to my next research trips. Yesterday, I booked my flight and hotel for the Entomological Society of America’s annual meeting, which will include a host of papers and symposia on bed bugs. That trip, and the others I have lined up for this year and next, would not have been possible without the Kickstarter funding. This was my first Kickstarter. It’s been interesting watching the […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: bed bug, bed bugs, bedbug, bedbugs, crowd funding, crowd sourcing, data, kickstarter, science, writing
by Brooke Borel
Just one week left on my Kickstarter project. My goal is to raise $5,000 to help fund travel for my book. With the money, I’ll visit research labs where they study bed bugs, people’s homes where they have bed bugs and I’ll also trace the footsteps (or some of them) of an entomologist who crisscrossed the world in the 1950s and 1960s to find bed bugs and related species to study. I’m over 80% there. Click the bed bug to […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: bed bug, bed bugs, bedbug, bedbugs, books, crowd funding, crowd sourcing, history, journalism, kickstarter, narrative, science, writing
by Brooke Borel
A week from tomorrow I’ll be on The Story Collider, a live storytelling event featuring personal stories about science. Five other storytellers and I will be performing stories about animals. Click here to learn more and to buy tickets!
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: animals, science, Story Collider, storytelling
by Brooke Borel
A couple of weeks ago, I traveled to Oslo, Norway on a journalism fellowship to attend the Kavli Prize (disclosure: the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and the Norwegian Ministry of Research and Education funded my trip, as well as the trips of seven other journalism fellows. We were independently selected by the World Federation of Science Journalists). We attended the Kavli celebration, related laureate lectures, a forum on global health, and a press conference. We were also able to interact with the laureates […]
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: astrophysics, kavli, nanoscience, neuroscience, oslo, politics, science
by Brooke Borel
Check out my Kickstarter project, which I put together to help raise travel funds for my bed bug book. It includes a short animation (made entirely by me, illustrations included!). Here’s a sneak peek at what it looks like:
Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: bed bug, bed bugs, bedbug, bedbugs, book, cimex lectularius, fundraising, journalism, kickstarter, writing
Brooke Borel