Press Recent Highlights Below is an expanded selection of press that covers, cites, or discusses my research. Press Coverage Wild Resonance #1: Animal Syntax in the Trees and Seas - A Conversation With Dr. Mason Youngblood Wild Resonance | 07 Aug 2025 Dr. Youngblood and Stephen explore Mason's fascinating research on vocal efficiency in house finches and cetaceans... Windows Are the No. 1 Human Threat to Birds – An Ecologist Shares Some Simple Steps to Reduce Collisions Yahoo! News | 21 May 2025 When wood thrushes arrive in northern Mississippi on their spring migration and begin to serenade my neighborhood with their… Windows Are the No. 1 Human Threat to Birds – An Ecologist Shares Some Simple Steps to Reduce Collisions The Conversation | 21 May 2025 When wood thrushes arrive in northern Mississippi on their spring migration and begin to serenade my neighborhood with their… Do Any Animals Whistle? The “Whistling Dog” Dholes Do-Hoo-Hoo-Hoo Iflscience | 14 Feb 2025 And it's pretty haunting as predator vocalizations go. Humpback Whale Song Follows Zipf’s Law, a Fundamental Law of Human Language Iflscience | 10 Feb 2025 And some whales exhibit Menzerath’s law even more strongly than humans. Rachael Funnell Writer Whale Song Shows 'Hallmarks' of Human Language Yahoo! News | 08 Feb 2025 There's a reason "antidisestablishmentarianism" is more a piece of trivia than vital to the English language. Whale Song Shows 'Hallmarks' of Human Language CBC | 08 Feb 2025 New studies reveal structural similarities to human languages found in whale song There's a reason "antidisestablishmentarianism… Whale Songs Follow the Laws of Human Languages El País | 07 Feb 2025 Two studies reveal that the communication systems of most cetaceans examined adhere to the principles of efficiency and economy… Whale Songs Follow 'A Lot of the Same Rules' as Human Language RNZ | 06 Feb 2025 By Jacinta Bowler, ABC Across just a few weeks, complex, never-before-heard melodies sung by humpback whales can spread across… Whale Songs Obey Basic Rules of Human Languages Scientific American | 06 Feb 2025 For all the worlds linguistic diversity, human languages still obey some universal patterns. Humpback Whale Songs Have Patterns That Resemble Human Language New Scientist | 06 Feb 2025 Humpback whale songs have statistical patterns in their structure that are remarkably similar to those seen in human language. All Languages Follow This Pattern. So Does Humpback Whale Song. New York Times | 06 Feb 2025 The animals’ complex songs share structural patterns with human language that may make them easier for whales to learn, a new… Whale Songs Follow 'A Lot of the Same Rules' as Human Language ABC.net.au | 06 Feb 2025 Across just a few weeks, complex, never-before-heard melodies sung by humpback whales can spread across thousands of kilometres… What the Science of Baby-Speak Can Tell Us About Whale Songs National Geographic | 06 Feb 2025 Just like popular songs on TikTok, new humpback whale songs can rapidly spread across regions and populations to replace all-too… Opinion: Building Safer Cities Means Protecting Animals Too, Not Just Humans Yahoo! News | 25 Jan 2025 The recent Los Angeles wildfires are the most destructive in the region’s history. What's What Podcast WFUV | 20 Nov 2024 New research published this August in the scientific journal PLOS ONE suggests that more than a billion birds in the US die annually from building collisions... Picture of 4,000 Dead Birds in Toronto Wins International Photography Award CBC | 24 Sep 2024 ‘I want people to be shocked by this image,’ says 2024 Bird Photographer of the Year winner All 4,000 birds in Patricia Homonylo… Surfing Penguins and Hunting Falcons Among Bird Photography Prize Winners CNN News | 24 Sep 2024 Editor’s Note: Call to Earth is a CNN editorial series committed to reporting on the environmental challenges facing our planet… July 2024 Was Second-Warmest on Record, and Other Nature and Climate Stories You Need to Read This Week World Economic Forum | 12 Aug 2024 Though July 2024 wasn't the hottest July on record, it did harbour the two hottest days on record. Over a Billion Birds Die From Striking U.S. Buildings Each Year — Maybe Many More Washington Post | 08 Aug 2024 The majority of birds that are injured or stunned colliding into buildings don’t recover, a new U.S. More than 1 billion birds die each year after crashing into buildings study finds CBS News | 07 Aug 2024 Buildings are one of the top bird killers in the United States with more than a billion birds dying after a building crash each year... Death toll for birds hitting buildings may be over 1 billion a year in US The Guardian | 07 Aug 2024 Only 40 percent of birds survive collisions with windows researchers say suggesting that mortality rates are far higher than previously thought... More Than a Billion Birds Could Be Dying From Flying Into Buildings Each Year in US Popular Science | 07 Aug 2024 Glass windows are a marvel of human engineering–clear, nearly invisible sheets of sturdy material that let us bring natural… Taking the lead in music: First-mover advantage may be key to success in the music industry Max Planck Society | 21 May 2024 Researchers studying the science of cultural evolution have conducted a comprehensive study of the role of first-mover advantage in music... Here Is Why Conspiracy Theories Spread So Fast on Twitter Yahoo! News | 26 Sep 2023 Conspiracy theories spread rapidly on social media networks such as X (formerly known as Twitter) - and now scientists are… Negativity Bias Boosted Voter Fraud Conspiracy Theories Online Futurity | 25 Sep 2023 A negativity bias boosted the spread of voter fraud conspiracy theories on Twitter (now called X) around the 2020 presidential… Negative 'Retweets' Appear to Add to Voter Fraud Conspiracy Theories Phys.org | 22 Sep 2023 A team of behavioral scientists using big data and a simulation-based model to analyze social media "tweets" around the 2020… Music and Mutations Could Be Linked Discover Magazine | 17 Nov 2022 Some researchers think that evolution drives transformations in both species and songs... Hip Hop is a cauldron of conformity Cosmos | 24 Sep 2021 Sampling the incorporation of short snippets from previously recorded songs is very popular among hip hop and electronic dance artists... Deradicalizing domestic extremists Monitor on Psychology | 01 Jul 2021 Psychologists are using their expertise in human behavior to identify ways to deradicalize and disengage domestic extremists... Strategic Extremism: 4 Insights on the U.S. Capitol Siege From Established Insurgencies The Conversation | 18 May 2021 In the coming weeks, trials will begin for more than 400 people accused of attacking the United States Capitol. Jacinda Ardern Calls for 'Ethical Algorithms' to Combat Online Extremism. What This Means The Conversation | 17 May 2021 New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern has called for “ethical algorithms” to help stop online radicalisation. Are We at a Turning Point for Tackling Online Extremism? World Economic Forum | 12 Apr 2021 A growing body of evidence illustrates the ways social media has radicalized users and resulted in violence. Russian Media Aligns With GOP Messaging Following Capitol Attack Medium US | 19 Feb 2021 Anytime foreign actors are allowed to mislead the public, that puts the public at risk of being manipulated in unforeseeable… Extremism: Rise from the far right Voices of Islam Radio | 02 Feb 2021 Research has shown that higher levels of poverty are linked to increases in violence and extremism... Study Finds Around One-Third of Americans Regularly Get Their News From Facebook Yahoo! News | 12 Jan 2021 Around a third of Americans regularly get their news from Facebook, according to the latest study from Pew Research Center… Study Finds Around One-Third of Americans Regularly Get Their News From Facebook Tech Crunch | 12 Jan 2021 Around a third of Americans regularly get their news from Facebook, according to the latest study from Pew Research Center… The Far-Right’s Doom Loop Strategy Medium US | 11 Jan 2021 1 hour ago · 4 min read Encourage supporters to act crazy, stupid, and bigoted, then play the victim when critics call you crazy… White Supremacists Believe in Genetic 'Purity'. Science Shows No Such Thing Exists The Conversation | 27 Sep 2020 Far-right white supremacist ideology is on the rise in Europe, North America and Australia. Canada's Sparrows Are Singing a New Song. You'll Hear It Soon New York Times | 02 Jul 2020 Over 20 years scientists tracked the transformation of the traditional trill of a common bird from western Canada to Ontario... Sampling music networks Parsing Science | 30 Aug 2019 Can the sharing of drum break samples among musicians help us better understand how networks of artists collaborate?
