I asked @drsuzannesimard about Avatar/the Home Tree and the Mother Tree, interconnectedness and James Cameron’s debt to her work - and if he’s going to provide funding!
Such a pleasure to sit under an old oak tree and talk about the interconnectedness of life with the wonderful Suzanne Simard. We talked about her new book WHEN THE FOREST BREATHES and also my new one, TOGETHERNESS (published in June by @fernpress_ )
Bluebells in our front garden. They have poor root systems, and rely on symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi to do the job of scouting for nutrients. From my book Togetherness (now available for pre-order!)
In my new book Togetherness I look at how life emerges from non-life through processes of symbiosis. I thought these fir trees and larches (deciduous conifers) in the Alps emerging from the rock really captured that feeling. Life from non-life. It reminds me also of Wordsworth’s “Rolled round in earth's diurnal course/
With rocks, and stones, and trees.”
Saw Tim Crouch’s brilliant and clever take on The Tempest (without messing with Shakespeare’s language but changing other things - Caliban wears a Paul Gascoigne England shirt). Very much a fan of his theatre. At the beautiful Wanamaker playhouse. @thistimcrouch thanks @drvictoriajames x
Should we stockpile food? On the podcast this week we welcome climate, energy, and food systems professor Paul Behrens - and New Scientist reporter Michael Le Page - to discuss the coming food shock.
Full podcast on link in bio
#FoodCrisis, #IranWar, #FertiliserCrisis, #OilPrices, #FoodInflation, #CostofLiving, #SciencePodcast, #Science, #ScienceFacts, #NewScientist, #Podcast,
An awe-inspiring exploration of how symbiosis can change the way we understand our world, ourselves and our future
From evolution to capitalism, ‘survival of the fittest’ has shaped our view of the world. But we got it wrong – and our mistake has brought us to the brink.
For the history of life on Earth is much more than a story of competition. The natural world has been forged and sustained by small miracles of co-operation between animals and plants, insects and fungi, fish and bacteria – these partnerships are ubiquitous, lifelong and an essential guide for a better future.
In TOGETHERNESS, Rowan Hooper reveals the intimate connectedness of nature through these remarkable stories of symbiosis. From the female wasp venturing deep inside a fig and the intricate relationship between corals and the algae that sustain them to the symbiotic gut microbes that influence our moods, he explores how co-operation is fundamental to life itself and to protecting our shared future.
TOGETHERNESS will change the way you see the world, our place in it and our obligation to its hidden wonders.
🐜
Publishing 4 June 2026
Cover design by @juliacconnolly@vintagebooks@pew_literary@rowhoop
“Stop wasting your life” is @rutgerbregman ’s message. His latest book is called Moral Ambition and the subtitle is stop wasting your talent and start making a difference.
We chat with Rutger on the New Scientist podcast, coming soon!
