Conservation's best and worst of 2016 (plus more)

Hey folks, happy Monday after Christmas. I'm probably heads-down already today (and the rest of this week) working on a top-secret project for early 2017, but meanwhile, the last of my articles for 2016 continue to eke their way out. Want to read the latest? Of course you do.

I'll start with two big "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American, looking back at the year that was. (Fair warning, the second piece is pretty darn bleak.)

The Best Wildlife Conservation Stories of 2016

The Worst Wildlife Conservation Stories of 2016



Next up, my latest for Hakai magazine, on the subject of beach restoration:

Reinforce and Rebuild



Finally this week, here's my latest tech careers article for IEEE-USA InSight:

The Art & Science of Poster Sessions


That's it for this week -- and pretty close to the end for 2016. I know I have at least one more article pending before December 31, so follow me on Twitter for the headline(s) as it (they) happen(s), or come on back here in a few days for another list.

Happy holidays!

Giraffes, Millennials and eBikes

Wow, December sure is motoring along. Like, I'm sure, a lot of you, the coming two weeks are all about tying up the last business of the year. Meanwhile, though, there sure are still a lot of my articles coming down the pike. Last week saw the publication of six new articles by me, covering a pretty broad range of topics.

Let's start the list with my last two articles for TakePart, which, sadly, stopped publishing last week. I wrote nearly 300 articles for TakePart over the past three years, including more than a few that I don't think anyone else would have let me write. It's a shame to see them go, but I'm happy to go out with two good stories, including one set here in Portland.

EPA Restricts Use of Pesticides That Are Harming Endangered Species

Brown Goes Green: UPS Tests Electric Bikes for Deliveries in Portland


Next up, two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American:

Giraffe's "Silent Extinction" Finally Earns Some Noise

The 301 Mammal Species Most Threatened by Overhunting


Switching gears, here's my latest tech careers feature for IEEE-USA InSight:

Generations: What Can Older and Younger Engineers Learn from Each Other?


And finally, here's a neat business profile piece for American Builders Quarterly:

Culture + Art + Science = Retail Innovation


That's it for this time around. Expect a few more links next Monday!

Koalas, Killers and a Crisis

Ah, Monday, that favorite day of the week when all the caffeine in the world just isn't quite enough.

So let's hold off on the start of this week for a few more minutes while that third cup of coffee starts to work its way through your veins. As far as I'm concerned, it's still last week until your heart starts to beat just a little bit faster and the neurons in your brain start to figure out how to make your vocal chords work once again. While we wait for that to happen, let's take a moment and look at my articles from the week before this dreaded Monday.

I'll start this list with my latest article for PBS's Nature:

Climate Change Could Turn Up Heat on Already Vulnerable Koalas


Moving on from that happy topic, here are two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American, both of which ended up being about invasive species:

The World's Worst Invasive Predators are Cats, Rats, Pigs and...Hedgehogs?

The Killer Shrimp Bullies Species into Extinction


Finally this week, here's my latest for TakePart, an important environmental topic that doesn't get nearly enough visibility:

The Conservation Crisis No One Is Talking About: Sand


That's it for this week. Which is good, because all of that caffeine is starting to make you jumpy. You night want to slow down on that stuff a bit. Maybe a nice cup of decaf with lunch, okay?

See ya next Monday (sigh), or follow me on Twitter all week long.

Climate, Crime & Comics

Happy Monday, dear readers! It's time for my weekly roundup of my most recent articles. This time around I have five new pieces for you, all focusing on the three big C's: climate, crime and comics.

Let's start with my latest articles for TakePart. The first features interviews with climate scientist Michael E. Mann and editorial cartoonist Tom Toles. The second is a cool program I that doesn't get nearly enough credit for the good it's done.

A New Weapon in the War Against Climate Change Denial: Laughter

Rural America’s New Cash Crop: Renewable Energy


Next up, here are two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American. The first is a crime story you haven't seen anywhere else. The second is a story I've been following for several years now and it's starting to get me a bit frustrated.

Thousands of African Grey Parrots Stolen from the Wild Every Month

Climate-Threatened American Pika Denied Protection--Again


Getting back to the crime angle, here's my profile of World Wrestling Entertainment's top intellectual property attorney, who just loves to fight copyright thieves, for Profile Magazine:

Win Battles Outside the Ring to Protect Trademark and Fans


Finally this week, back to the comics connection. You may recall a piece I did for From the Grapevine a few months back where I tracked some of Albert Einstein's most memorable appearances in comic books. Well, here's the next logical step in that examination:

What did Batman and Einstein have in common?


That's it for this time around. I'm working on all kinds of new stuff, so come on back here next Monday for another link list, or follow me on Twitter for links as they happen.

Solar Firefly Otters (and Other Stuff)

Peter Trimming. Creative Commons license

One of my favorite gigs each year involves interviewing the winner of the IEEE Presidents' Scholarship for The Institute. Here's my article about this year's inspiring teen:

Texas High School Student Designs Self-Cooling Solar Cell


Last week also brought my latest for TakePart, a story you won't read anywhere else:

Firefly Populations Are Blinking Out


Finally this week, here are two new Extinction Countdown articles for Scientific American -- bad news and (at the very least) interesting news:

Asian Otters are the Latest Victims of the Illegal Pet and Fur Trades

The Italian Alps Hold a Secret: A New Species of Viper


On a slightly different note, you can hear me talk about turtles on the latest Green Dudes segment of the Green Divas podcast here.


That's it for this week's link list. Come on back next Monday for more links!

Things are Getting Fishy Around Here

Happy Memorial Day, friends and readers. I hope you're taking the day off. I probably am, but we'll see how it all works out. Freelancers don't always get to relax on holidays, and I have several large features working their way toward completion so I should probably be heads-down, fingers-on-keyboard today. But it's early yet, so I haven't decided. Maybe I'll get some work done before the rest of the world wakes up and then spend some quiet, fun time with the rest of the human race.

Anyway, it being a Monday, here are my links to my articles from last week. I'll start with two fisheries-related stories for TakePart:

The Philippines’ Giant Fish Are Disappearing

Squid Are Getting Bigger and Taking Over the Ocean


Next up, two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American:

Illegal Pet Trade Threatens 13 Indonesian Birds with Extinction

What do Elephants and Cocaine Have in Common?


That's it for this time around. I'm not sure how much of my work will see publication this week, it being a short holiday week and all, but again, we'll see. Come on back here next Monday for another list, or follow me on Twitter for headlines as they happen.

Drones, Parity, Immortality and Information

Put on a fresh pot of coffee, folks, because I have a lot of reading for you this Monday morning.

Last week saw the publication of a ton of new articles by me. Not only that, the articles themselves stand out from everything else that I've done so far this year.

Let's start with my latest feature for TakePart. This massive article -- my longest and most complex to date -- took me high into the Oregon mountains and (by phone) to forests around the world. It was tough work, but boy was it worth it:

Drones' New Mission: Save the Forests


My next piece is also something different for me. Motherboard spent all of last week telling stories of what they called the Silicon Divide, about how women are underrepresented in and by technology. As part of the series, they asked me to write an essay about my attempts at source parity. Now, I never write essays, but this was an important topic to explore and it generated an unbelievable response from readers. Check it out:

What Happened When I Pushed Myself to Interview More Women


Moving on to publisher number three, here's my latest for Audubon, one of my most inspiring wildlife stories in a long time:

Endangered Hawaiian Bird Immortalized In Space


On a completely different subject, Slate dropped me a line last Monday and asked me to write this, my first piece for them:

This Week’s Back-to-Back Earthquakes Don’t Mean the World Is Ending


Getting back to TakePart, here are two new news articles from my regular wildlife beat:

The Information Age Is Failing the World’s Wildlife

Can a Park the Size of New York City Save Sumatran Rhinos and Tigers?


Finally this week, here's my latest high-tech careers feature for IEEE-USA InSight. It's a fun one:

Engineers & Entrepreneurs: Are You Missing this Key Skill? 


Holy cow, what a week! I hope you enjoy reading them all. Meanwhile, keep checking Twitter for my latest headlines. This week coming week should be another exciting one.

Hiding Rodents, Disappearing Primates, 3-D Printing and Career Coaches

Hey folks! It's Monday again, which means I get to barrage share with you all of my articles from the previous week.

Here they are, starting with two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American:

Is This Super-cute Rodent Extinct or Just Hiding?

Climate vs. Primate: Dawn of Extinction?


Next up, a cool wildlife/tech story for TakePart:

Faking Out Poachers With 3-D-Printed Sea Turtle Eggs

Also for TakePart, their annual Animal Bracket -- a kind of March Madness for wildlife. I wrote all the descriptions, and each click generates money for conservation, so check it out.


Finally this week, my latest tech careers article for IEEE-USA InSight:

Put Me In, Coach! An Engineer’s Guide to Career Coaching


That's it for now, but holy cow do I have a lot in the works. I'm tying up a half-dozen big assignments while continuing my ongoing news assignments. On top of that, I got four new gigs last week from four different magazines. Come on back here each week to see which stories have been published, or follow me on the Tweet Machine for headlines as they happen.

Shark Mammas, Hidden Orangutans and Disappearing Cows

Hey folks, welcome to Monday again. I hope you had as good a weekend as I did. Or at least as good a weekend as I imagine that I did, since I'm writing this on Friday.

Anyway...last week brought forth three new Platt-penned articles. Here are the first two, for TakePart:

Scientists Use Ultrasound to Find a Shark 'Maternity Ward' in the Bahamas

There May Be Twice as Many Sumatran Orangutans as Thought


And here's my latest for Vice magazine's Motherboard imprint:

The Hidden 1,458 Potential Extinctions that Could Upend the World's Food Supply


Well, that's all that I have for you to read this week. I'm working on about a gazillion other articles, so stay tuned for lots more headlines in the coming weeks!

River Monsters, Parrot Genes and Monkey Puzzles

 I love my job. Every week I get to write about some of the most interesting species on the planet. This week really proved that, with articles about weird trees, nearly extinct parrots, tiny primates, rare bees and amazing fish.

Let's start the list of last week's headlines with my newest "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American, including:

Every Member of This Rare Bird Species Is About to Get its Genome Sequenced

The Monkey Puzzle Tree Faces More Threats Than a Barrel of Monkeys

And here are three new articles for TakePart:

Tickle Me Not: Japan Revealed as Hub of Illegal Trade in Slow Lorises

A Mysterious River Monster Could Help Save Papua New Guinea’s Rainforests

Scientists Discover an Imperiled Bumblebee Bouncing Back in Unexpected Places


I have lots more in the works, some of which should be pending publication over the next few days. Make sure to follow me on Twitter for the latest headlines as they happen.

Zika, Heavy Metals and Poachers

Hey folks, welcome once again to my Monday morning look back at my latest articles.

Last week I published five new articles. I think I turned in two or three others that will be coming out at some point in the next month. It's tough balancing all of this work, but it's also deeply satisfying.

Okay, let's start the list with three new articles for TakePart, including yet another elephant-related article (don't worry, this time it's good news!):

Conservationists Rush to Save the Congo’s Last 38 Giraffes

Is the Zika Virus (or Something Worse) Killing Nicaragua’s Monkeys?

500 African Elephants Are Moving to a New Home


Next up, two new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American, neither of which are good news:

Heavy: Caspian Turtles Are Polluted by Toxic Lead, Mercury and Cadmium

Poachers Steal 7 Million South African Abalones a Year


Finally this week, here's one of my older SciAm articles that just got translated into Spanish:

El exterminador de estrellas de mar: un robot patrulla las aguas de la Gran Barrera de Coral 


Look for more soon. Follow me on Twitter to get the latest headlines as they happen!

Killer Robots, Killer Cats and Killer Humans

I did not write a single word last week -- I spend almost the entire time at a conference in San Francisco learning about marine mammals -- but all the same a ton of articles I wrote over the past few weeks all managed to appear.

Here's the coolest, a short article for the January 2016 print issue of Scientific American, which is already online:

A Starfish-Killing, Artificially Intelligent Robot Is Set to Patrol the Great Barrier Reef


Speaking of SciAm, here are my latest two "Extinction Countdown" articles:

Lost Butterfly Rediscovered After 56 Years

Feral Cats Are Killing Off One of Australia's Cutest Marsupials


Sticking with the killer theme of the week, here's a new article for TakePart:

How to Save Sharks From Extinction


Finally this week, here's something completely different: my latest careers article for IEEE-USA InSight:

Got Expertise? Become An Expert Source


The next two weeks won't see too much on the publication front -- we're counting down to the end of the year and many of my editors will be taking time off (as I should be, as well) -- but come back next week for a headline or two. And follow me on Twitter for stories as they happen!

Tigers, Elephants and Suckers

Howdy folks. The year is starting to wind down but my keyboard is still clacking away. This past week brought five new articles covering (mostly) wildlife and crime.

Here's the first batch, all for TakePart:

Tigers Face Deadly Squeeze in the Wild (and Deadlier Threats in Captivity)

The Unexpected Places Where Endangered Wildlife Are Thriving

African Nations Commit to Game-Changing Reforestation Plan


And here's the final two, for Scientific American:

The Hidden Crisis Killing India's Young Elephants

Modoc Sucker Recovers, Leaves Endangered Species List


That last one was a little bit tough for me. As a comics fan, I kept wanting to type MODOK instead of Modoc.

I'm at the Marine Mammalogy Conference this week, learning all about whales and seals and dolphins and manatees and other cool critters. That means I won't be writing any new articles this week, although there are at least four in the queue at various publishers. Follow me on Twitter for the headlines as they happen (and maybe a few tweets from the conference).

Solar Careers, Soaring Squirrels and Sinking Forests

These days I am mostly known for my work writing about endangered species, but I love writing career articles -- especially articles about green careers. Here's my latest for IEEE-USA InSight:

Power Up: Sustainable Energy Brings Sustainable Careers

Back on the endangered species beat, here are three new articles for Scientific American. One is good news, while the other two are pretty awful news:

Squirrel! Conservationists Cheer as Giant Squirrel Recovers, Leaves Endangered Species List

Amazon Trees Face Extinction Crisis, but There's Hope 

Northern White Rhino Dies, Leaving Just Three on the Planet


And finally this week, here are three new articles for TakePart, covering wildlife trafficking and climate change:

Criminal Syndicates Are Driving Wildlife Crime Around the Globe

Washington Judge Rules Government Has Legal Duty to Fight Global Warming

The Great Antarctic Melt May Benefit These Penguins 


More next Monday! Or follow me on Twitter for headlines as they happen.

Lions, Leopards and Logs - A Week of Wildlife Crime

Hey folks, welcome to another Monday link list. This week definitely has a theme: Wildlife and other environmental crimes.

We'll start the list with two new articles for Scientific American:

Lions in Peril: Big Cats Face 50 Percent Decline in Next 20 Years

Clouded Leopards Threatened by Sudden Increase in Poaching and Live Trade


(And here's one other short, holiday-timely SciAm post linking to some older stories:)

Ghosts, Devils and Graveyards: An Extinction Countdown Halloween


Back to crime time, here are three new articles for TakePart (okay, the third one is just about endangered species):

The ‘Devil’ Gets His Due: Elephant Poaching Kingpin Arrested

Demand for Expensive Furniture Is Fueling Illegal Logging in Indonesia

Native Americans Fight to Keep the Grizzly Bear on the Endangered Species List


That's it for this week! More next Monday. I'll have more endangered species articles all week long, and some of my technology careers articles should be working their way toward publication. Make sure to follow me on Twitter for headlines as they happen.