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.

Bird Week + Ugly Critters, Eaten Lemurs and Melting Glaciers

Greetings friends, readers, enemies, passers-by and other people with eyeballs! It's time for my weekly list of links to my articles from the previous seven days. I have some great stories for you this week, so let's start with my favorite, my issue for the June 2016 print issue of Scientific American, which is already online:

Ugly Critters Get No Love


Speaking of SciAm, here are two more "Extinction Countdown" articles for them:

Who Eats Lemurs? The Answer Is More Complex Than You'd Think

Here's a List of Every At-Risk Bird Species in North America (All 432 of Them)


Finally this week, here are two new pieces for TakePart, one of which is kinda hopeful and the other of which should have you sweating in your socks:

There’s New Hope for Saving the U.S.’ Most Endangered Bird

One of Antarctica’s Biggest Glaciers Is Eroding Faster Than Thought


That's it for this time around. Join me next Monday, same blog time, same blog station, for another link list. Of follow me on the thing that sounds like a bird to get headlines and other links as they happen.

Turtle Week (plus a whole lot more)

Hey folks, welcome to the 400th post here on the old John Platt Article Library.

This blog originally came into existence as a place for me to archive some of my old writing. Along the way, it also became an ongoing catalog of all of my current writing. Which, of course, is why we're here again today.

This week's publications include two new articles about sea turtles, including this one, my first contribution to Hakai magazine, about how drones are being used to study sea turtle sex:

Turtle Voyeurs


This week's "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American continued with the sea turtle theme, while also addressing deforestation and its effect on one of the world's rarest primates:

Should Tourists Swim with Endangered Sea Turtles?

Fractured Monkeys


Next up, three new articles for TakePart, two of which look at how global warming is messing with our wild species:

Drought Offers Insight Into How Species Will Fare in a Warming World

How Global Warming in the Arctic Kills Birds in the Tropics

Scientists Put Bees on the Menu


Finally this week, here's a short new piece for Audubon:

The Bison Joins the Bald Eagle as a Fellow Symbol of America


Oh, did I say "finally"? Not quite. I also made an appearance on the "Green Dudes" segment of the Green Divas radio show. You can listen to it here.


That's it for this time around. Join my next week for another list, or follow me on Twitter for links as they happen.

Extinction, Consumerism and Ghosts

Hey folks, it's Monday again, which means it's time for another batch of headlines representing my latest publications.

First off, remember my bleak article about antelopes from last week? Well, the news got even worse for one species. Here's the news, my latest "Extinction Countdown" article for Scientific American:

Only Three Addax Antelopes Left in the Wild?

Next up, three powerful pieces for TakePart:

Preaching Against Extinction (my interview with Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir)

Hunting Wolves Hurts Tourism

‘Ghost Gear’ + Climate Change = Bad News for Lobsters


Finally, let's end with something completely different, my latest tech careers article for IEEE's The Institute:

Five Ways Engineers Can Improve Their Writing


Next week...another antelope article? Probably not, but you never know!

Lemurs, Antelopes and Impending Extinctions

That was weird. Last week involved what felt like a lot more interviewing and preparation than actual writing, and yet I ended up with six published articles. Go figure.

Well, I guess that means this coming week will see even more as all of that prep work pays off and turns into actual stories.

Anyway, let's get to the links. I'll start with this, my second piece for Slate:

Unfortunately, You Can't Have a Lemur as a Pet


Next up, my latest for TakePart;

Africa’s Antelopes Face Extinction as Climate Change Squeezes Habitat


And finally this week, here are four short new "Extinction Countdown" articles for Scientific American:

Legacy of South Africa's First Female Botanist Reaffirmed after 147 Years

Island Fox May Have Lowest Genetic Variability of Any Animal

Royal Cambodian Turtle Population Plummets 95 Percent; Just 10 Left in the Wild

Black-Throated Finch Extinct in New South Wales


Lots more in the coming days and weeks ahead. Make sure to follow me on Twitter for headlines as they go live.

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.

Yet another tiger article (plus other stuff)

Happy Monday, folks. This week I have three new articles for you. Here's the first, for Scientific American, where once again I tackled tigers.

Please note, actually tackling tigers is highly discouraged.

6 Reasons Why We Should Still Worry About Tigers


Here's the next two, both for TakePart:

A Fungus is Wiping Out Australia's Unique Frogs

The Great Barrier Reef is Losing Its Strength to Fight Climate Change


Short list this time around, but I have soooooo many articles working their way toward publication in the coming weeks. None of them are about tigers. Yet.