Science, Society, and Fiction from Matthew R Francis
To my science journalist colleagues at the New York Times, Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and elsewhere: I write this open letter on the day the New York Times begins a podcast series about healthcare for transgender children, which based on that publication’s track record on the subject, I do not anticipate will go [ ]
(Quasi-sincere apologies for the earworm. This is probably not a post most people are interested in, but what else are blogs for? ) So, I deleted my Bluesky account. For those unaware, Bluesky is a social media network created by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey to serve as the libertarian cryptocurrency paradise Twitter had failed to [ ]
Just over two weeks ago, I went into the hospital in excruciating pain, and came out about a week and two surgeries later without my gallbladder, absolutely covered in bruises, incisions, and bandages. I m back home and on the mend, but I m still recovering and unable to do much work beyond thinking. I ll spare you [ ]
I'm republishing my 2015 feature story for the now-defunct publication Mosaic, "What is Life?"
UPDATE: THE CAMPAIGN IS LIVE! PLEASE PLEDGE TODAY! On February 6, 2023, Iron Circus Comics — one of the premier independent comics publishers — launches its crowdfunding campaign for Failure to Launch: A Tour of Ill-Fated Futures. This volume includes comics essays by luminaries such as Ryan North (whose contribution you can preview here), Evan [ ]
[Updated: I wrote this piece very quickly and as a result it was not well-written at all. I ve gone through and fixed a few typos and other errors, leaving the terrible writing in place to avoid accusations of tinkering with the piece after the fact.] Today (July 11, 2022), the first images from the new [ ]
The sins of the past are never that far from us. I occasionally touch on historical topics in my work, often because the incorrect Great Indispensable Man view of science is prevalent. I wrote a relatively short opinion piece about one of those great men six years ago for Forbes: James Webb, who was NASA s [ ]
UPDATED OCTOBER 1, 2021: I just added a Kindle version of the story! Read on! OK, it has to be said so I ll say it: It has been a very long time indeed since I last posted on this blog. That s done. Anyway, my first new post in ages is an experiment. I have written [ ]
For a few years now, I ve been collaborating with artist extraordinaire Maki Naro on nonfiction science comics for The Nib. Now, we re turning those comics — along with material never before published! — into a book entitled Who Owns an Asteroid? Comics on Science and Society. We re crowdfunding the project through Unbound, a UK-based publisher. [ ]
O villain, villain, smiling, damnèd villain! My tables!—Meet it is I set it down That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain. [Hamlet, Act I, Scene 5] IQ as a measure of intelligence is widely embraced by people across the political spectrum. It s also among the most weaponized scientific concepts, used heavily [ ]