My March story for @forbes has just gone live. It's all about pedestrian crossings and how the timings they're based on no longer match the demographics of our cities - research from the University of Bath

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauriewinkless/2026/03/05/fewer-than-2-of-older-pedestrians-can-cross-the-street-in-time/

#science #sciencejournalist #scicomm

Fewer Than 2% Of Older Pedestrians Can Cross The Street In Time

The length of the green signal on pedestrian crossings assumes that people can walk at a speed of 1.2 m/s. Scientists find that very few older people can walk that fast.

Forbes

Hey #scienceJournalist, trying to pitch something obscure? *TON* might have some advice for you, like: "When pitching tough subject matter, the quality of your writing plays an especially important role. 'If you can really write beautiful, thoughtful, smart prose, that will absolutely make you stand out from the crowd'"

https://www.theopennotebook.com/2025/11/25/isotopes-archaea-and-cold-water-physics-how-to-sell-obscure-science-stories-to-editors-and-readers

#pitch

Isotopes, Archaea, and Cold-Water Physics—How to Sell Obscure Science Stories to Editors and Readers - The Open Notebook

Getting a story about unfamiliar and obscure fields such as geology, organic chemistry, or quantum mechanics off the ground often means jumping over hurdles—for editors and readers alike—that might not exist for more relatable subjects. But through proper framing and thoughtful storytelling, a determined and creative journalist can turn nearly any arcane subject into compelling reading. Such stories can leave people more informed, more curious, and with a lasting sense of wonder.

The Open Notebook
Street Lamps Aren’t The Main Source Of Light Pollution In Cities

New studies from Germany and Hong Kong pinpoint specific sources of light pollution keeping our cities excessively bright at night.

Forbes

Deep, chewy, rich, digestible. A cracking good job by #ScienceJournalist Zack Savitsky.

''But the implications go beyond just building better superconductors. A theory that explains strange metals may force a fundamental rethinking of how electricity works in all materials. It might subsume the standard theory the way general relativity, with its curved spacetime, subsumed Isaac Newton’s theory of gravity—and prove just as unsettling. Strange metals are forcing physicists to ask whether the very idea of an electron, or any particle for that matter, is an oversimplification of what’s really going on. “The violation of the standard theory of solids in these strange metals is so dramatic—it’s in your face,” says Qimiao Si, a physicist at Rice University who collaborates with Paschen. “There’s no question there’s new physics.”''

#StrangeMetals
#conductivity
#electrons
#CondensedMatterPhysics

https://www.science.org/content/article/strange-metals-point-whole-new-way-understand-electricity

My April article for @forbes has a distinctly NZ flavour. It's about a new study that uses satellite radar imagery to measure land movement in NZ's coastal cities - the bad news is, in many places, it is sinking. I spoke to the lead author of the study https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauriewinkless/2025/04/16/new-zealands-major-cities-are-sinking/

#subsidence #nz #engineering #cities #scicomm #sciencejournalist

New Zealand's Major Cities Are Sinking

No coastal city is immune to the impacts of sea-level rise. A new study shows that in NZ, land subsidence is accelerating the problem, putting infrastructure at risk

Forbes

RT by @REA_research: 📢 What do #journalist want?

The #MCAA Training Program is back with a new event! 😍

Are you interested in knowing more about how to speak to #ScienceJournalist?
If so, then this training is perfect for you! 😉

Find out more and register soon 👇 https://www.mariecuriealumni.eu/mcaa-training/courses/communicating-science-what-journalists-want

🐦🔗: https://nitter.cz/Mariecurie_alum/status/1732716330304888876#m

[2023-12-07 10:59 UTC]

Communicating science: What do journalists want? | Marie Curie Alumni Association

How researchers should speak to science journalists Date of the workshop : 25 January 2024,from 09:00 to 14:00 CET, online.

I am new here, so I start with an #introduction.

I am a #sciencejournalist for the Swiss weekly #NZZaS. Until recently I was also president of the Swiss Association of Science Journalism (#SASJ).

I studied history and philosophy of science and later also biology.

As a journalist, I mainly cover biological topics such as #evolution or #infectiousdiseases, but I also write about the business of #scientificpublishing, the #historyofscience, and #interdisciplinary research approaches.

I had some Thoughts on the weekend, after finally catching up to the start of the pandemic in my Longform podcast listening and hearing the first interview with #ScienceJournalist Ed Yong back in March 2020.
So here are my thoughts about 'what now?' - what do we need to do for ourselves, for our society, for our work, as we shift into this new phase of the #pandemic?
This is a bit of a stream-of-consciousness and personal piece of writing, so I'm sharing it with some trepidation! But interested in what others think:
https://biancanogrady.com/2023/03/06/what-now/
#ScienceJournalism #trauma #Storytelling
What now?

Bianca Nogrady
I am looking for all my #science #journalism peeps and scientists to follow! Please speak up if you are a #sciencejournalist or a scientist who doesn't mind talking to journalists! #noxp