Erin Gerecke, PhD, ELS

A family member found that out the hard way once. Ouch! 🐝

I’d like to overseed my Midwestern grass with some #clover for a lower maintenance and #pollinator friendly yard. Recommendations for sourcing seed welcome!

‘No one quite like her’: meet the female colleagues who inspire these award-winning women in science To mark International Women’s Day, Nature asked winners of its awards programmes to nominate a colleague who brings out the best in them.

I’m grateful to #mentors that helped in my work in science, higher education, science & public communication—& music! I pay it forward where I can to help promote success for everyone, regardless of gender. #InternationalWomensDay
www.nature.com/articles/d41... #InternationalWomensDay

'One year of failure.' The Lancet slams RFK Jr.'s first year as health chief In a scathing review, the top US medical journal's editorial board warned that the "destruction that Kennedy has wrought in 1 in office might take generations to repair."

"The destruction that Kennedy has wrought in 1 year might take generations to repair, and there is little hope for US health and science while he remains at the helm." www.npr.org/2026/02/28/n...

Bass chimes and a room full of bells

New day, another rehearsal!

Bass chimes and a room full of handbells

Putting on my musician hat for the rest of the week. 🔔🎶 #handbells

Scientists engineer bacteria to eat cancer tumors from the inside out Researchers are engineering bacteria to invade tumors and consume them from the inside. Because tumor cores lack oxygen, they’re the perfect breeding ground for these microbes. The team added a geneti...

A new approach to thinking about tumor destruction? Harness bacteria that thrive in the low-oxygen dead core of tumors and consume them from the inside out. 🤔🧪 www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...

US FDA reverses course, will review Moderna's flu vaccine application Moderna said on Wednesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration changed course and will review its new flu vaccine, a week after rejecting the original submission and fueling drugmaker and investor co...

Some good news. www.reuters.com/business/hea...

FDA reverses course, agrees to review Moderna’s flu vaccine The FDA reversed course and told Moderna it would review its application for a new flu vaccine, the company announced Wednesday.

“The Food and Drug Administration reversed course and told Moderna it would review its application for a new flu vaccine… The FDA will now review the product in adults 50 to 64 through a regular pathway, and adults over 65 via accelerated approval with a requirement to run a post-marketing study.”

An Elephant Is Blind Without Its Whiskers

Elephant whiskers! 🐘🧪 #scicomm
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/12/s...

Microplastics have reached Antarctica’s only native insect Even Antarctica’s toughest native insect can’t escape the reach of plastic pollution. Scientists have discovered that Belgica antarctica — a tiny, rice-sized midge and the southernmost insect on Earth...

Yep, they’re everywhere: Microplastics have been found in the guts of unique rice-sized insects that survive remote Antarctica’s many extreme challenges as plant decomposers. 🧪https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/02/260212234214.htm

Help count birds this weekend! 🧪

Another good reason to adopt a lifelong learning mindset—it literally may keep your brain healthier as you age. Stay curious!

Thank you!

A decade ago, I worked in higher ed. I scraped together support & took the BELS scientific editing test. I recently completed the new ELS recertification process as an editor/writer. I've learned from many editors in recent years, & I'm happy to count myself among them! ✏️ #editing #scicomm

How the ‘Quad God’ cracked a seemingly impossible jump How do figure skaters like Ilia Malinin keep landing harder and harder jumps?

Olympics figure skating science! 🧪 #scicomm www.scientificamerican.com/article/quad...

Interesting cell bio finding on the topic of aging: worm cells have less rough ER and more smooth ER as they age. Lots of interesting follow-up questions worth exploring.

Video: How the science of saltwater-tolerating plants could protect coastlines Rising sea levels along coastlines not only threaten populations, but also pose a danger to agricultural crops, which may be damaged by surging amounts of saltwater. Researchers have, in response, sou...

Some cool plant science explained, with important implications for understanding plant adaptations to harsh environments: Mangroves may beat the salt in their habitat along coastlines by having stouter and thicker cells. 💪 🧪 #plants #scicomm
phys.org/news/2026-02...

Spotted lanternflies are invading the US. They may have gotten their evolutionary superpowers in China's cities. The alarming spread of spotted lanternflies across the U.S. has been made possible by cities acting as evolutionary incubators, fine-tuning the insects and enabling them to thrive.

The spotted lanternfly has spread across the United States with unrelenting speed — and now we have a clue as to why: living in cities seems to have helped these invasive insects evolve to be more resistant to stresses. 🧪

www.livescience.com/animals/inse...

How Modern and Antique Technologies Reveal a Dynamic Cosmos | Quanta Magazine Today’s observatories document every pulse and flash in the sky each night. To understand how the cosmos has changed over longer periods, scientists rely on a more tactile technology.

An interesting look at the fate of old astronomy photographic plates and how they can still inform today’s research needs. 🧪
www.quantamagazine.org/how-modern-a...

Star of the Month: Bugs Bunny February 2–9 | 45 Shorts

WHAT'S OPERA DOC? (1957) — 8:20 pm ET
(Star of the Month: Bugs Bunny | Co-starring Elmer Fudd)

Mel Blanc; directed by Chuck Jones

Elmer Fudd is hunting Bugs Bunny and chases him into an opera acting out their characters.

#TCM #TCMParty

Help scientists document Midwest light pollution by looking at Orion More people participating in the citizen science project Globe At Night could help fill gaps in what astronomers know about the extent of skyglow.

A community science project needs your help to document light pollution in the U.S. Midwest. Just look up! 🧪
www.kcur.org/environment-...

I wrote a thing last week, amid the chaos of our country, the weather, and everything else, in an effort to stay grounded. Forgot to add useful hashtags here, though, of course. ICYMI, please drop in if so inclined. #SciComm #sciencewriting #blog #science

mulledscience.com/2026/01/25/t...

Study Finds That Bacteria in Eye Worsens Alzheimer’s A Cedars-Sinai study finds a common bacterium in the eye linked to Alzheimer’s severity, pointing to new approaches to detect and treat the disease.

Could retinal infection and inflammation have a connection to Alzheimer’s disease? Scientists in the Crother lab (one of my grad school peeps!) are trying to find out. 🧪 www.cedars-sinai.org/newsroom/com...

A potentially habitable new planet has been discovered 146 light-years away – but it may be -70C The Earth-size planet HD 137010 b has a ‘50% chance of residing in the habitable zone’ of its sun-like star, scientists say

One of the researchers in this project got hooked on the search for exoplanets through a community science project as a teen! 🧪
www.theguardian.com/science/2026...

Deep-sea robots will search for source of mysterious ‘dark oxygen’ Scientists have launched a fresh effort to find out what could be producing oxygen at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.

Scientists have launched a fresh effort to find out what could be producing oxygen at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean 🧪🌊
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Enough is enough, I've had it with these…

youtu.be/amYzBQMT4VI

Strange white rocks on Mars hint at millions of years of rain Bright white rocks spotted by NASA’s Perseverance rover are rewriting what we thought we knew about ancient Mars. These aluminum-rich clays, called kaolinite, usually form on Earth only after millions...

Martian rocks made of aluminum-rich clay suggest to earthlings at Purdue University that there might have once been a LOT of water on Mars. 🧪 #HoosierSky
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...

A new study suggests blister beetles are sneaky in catching a meal! 🧪

The Balm of an Engaging Science Story The “Mulled Science” blog has been quiet for a while. Again. Over the past few years, I (the author) have explored new jobs, had major life changes, and supported loved ones through their own life …

I’ve been long overdue for a new blog post. I started one yesterday, about science writing spotted in the wild. And then the all the Things happened yesterday that sucked me and maybe you down with strong feelings. Anyway, please stop by if you need a break. mulledscience.com/2026/01/25/t...