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Richard Fisher

Senior Editor, Aeon

Richard Fisher is a senior editor for Aeon, an honorary professor in science communication at University College London, and the author of the non-fiction book The Long View. Previously, he was an editor at the BBC and New Scientist, and a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.

What I’m looking for: For Aeon, I commission essays about science and technology. I primarily focus on the physical sciences – geology, physics, cosmology, space, oceans, climate, paleontology, chemistry, mathematics etc. In technology, I’m looking for essays that offer a psychological, philosophical or historical lens on our relationship with tech. Most of the writers I work with are academics, expert professionals, or book authors. For more details about what Aeon is looking for in a pitch, visit aeon.co/pitch

See Richard Fisher’s profile on Psyche

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Bluesky

Edited by Richard Fisher

Photo of an astronaut beside a large boulder on the Moon’s surface with lunar rover in the background against a dark sky.

essayPalaeontology

Life happened fast

It’s time to rethink how we study life’s origins. It emerged far earlier, and far quicker, than we once thought possible

Michael Marshall

Painting of ancient Roman ruins with people, cattle and trees under a blue sky with clouds.

essayNations and empires

The rewards of ruin

Societal downfalls loom large in history and popular culture but, for the 99 per cent, collapse often had its upsides

Luke Kemp

Abstract digital art of a web-like cosmic structure with purple and orange filament patterns, resembling a universe simulation.

essayCosmology

Rivers of galaxies

What are the largest shapes in the Universe? The answer might be found in the most unassuming places here on Earth

Mark Neyrinck

Yellow slime mould on textured tree bark, showcasing intricate branching patterns.

essayBiology

Memories without brains

Certain slime moulds can make decisions, solve mazes and remember things. What can we learn from the blob?

Matthew Sims

Daguerreotype of a man in a Victorian-era suit holding a rod with one eye closed, framed by an ornate gold border.

essayHistory of science

Injury and inhibition

The misunderstood story of Phineas Gage shows that we need a new way of understanding the experiences of brain injury survivors

Ben Platts-Mills

Vintage painting of a man with glowing eyes surrounded by floating spheres on a decorative background.

essayStories and literature

Merveilleux-scientifique

With brain swaps and death rays, a little-known French sci-fi genre explored science’s dark possibilities a century ago

Fleur Hopkins-Loféron

Aerial photo of turquoise ocean with a sinuous sand-coloured formation running diagonally, creating a striking contrast.

essayOceans and water

An oceanic tempo

An appreciation of the immensity embedded in the ocean’s cycles offers a way to reimagine our relationship with time

James Bradley

A man looking up from the driver’s seat of a yellow vehicle with an open window and side mirror visible.

essayPhilosophy of language

Extraterrestrial tongues

Imagining how aliens might communicate prepares us for first contact and illuminates the nature of our own languages

Nikhil Mahant

A dark building at night, the black building structure contrasting with a deep blue night sky, with many vertical rectangular windows, three windows are brightly lit.

essayPhilosophy of science

More-than-human science

When AI takes over the practice of science we will likely find the results strange and incomprehensible. Should we worry?

Brandon Boesch

Aerial photo of a snowy town with colourful buildings and a vast frozen landscape in the background.

essayThe environment

On unstable ground

A ‘great reshuffle’ of the land is underway. It will force us to reconsider traditional ideas of property and ownership

Michael Albertus

A desert highway at dusk with cliffs and the moon visible and a rear-view mirror showing a road and sunset reflection behind.

essayPhysics

The stagnation of physics

Physicists today need to jettison the all-too-attractive myth that they are uncovering the hidden reality of our Universe

Adrien De Sutter

Painting of an angel in an orange glow flying with small birds across a night sky over a cityscape and bare trees.

essayHistory of science

Legacy of the angels

When medieval scholars sought to understand the nature of angels, they unwittingly laid the foundations of modern physics

Rebekah Wallace