# Ed Yong on Reddit (u/edyong209)

Part of Scientists on Reddit, researched with Autumn (https://www.autumn.ai) from public sources. Updated 2026-11-07. Interactive version: https://www.autumn.ai/resources/scientists-on-reddit/ed-yong

Ed Yong: Science journalist, author of I Contain Multitudes.

- Reddit account: [u/edyong209](https://www.reddit.com/user/edyong209/) (AMA only)
- How we know it's theirs: [Named in the 2013 r/IAmA AMA by four National Geographic bloggers](https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1aaji5/)
- Where they post, in the records we retrieved: r/science (78), r/IAmA (39), r/reddit.com (15), r/biology (4), r/Music (1)
- Known activity in the posts we found: 2007 to 2013
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Yong

## Moments

### u/edyong209 in r/IAmA, Mar 14, 2013 · Explains things

Replying to a redditor:

> Just wanted to say 'Thank You' for your wonderful writing. And for linking to other writers on twitter. Just one question to all of you: What organism do you find most fascinating?

> THE MANTIS SHRIMP! It's a type of crustacean and not a mantis or a shrimp. It has some of the most sophisticated eyes in the animal kingdom--sensitive to 12 colours instead of our 3 and capable of seeing bits of the spectrum we can't. They attack their prey with arms tucked under their head that end in hammers or spears. The hammer species can strike with the force of a rifle bullet, and they create a pressure wave that sort of boils the water ahead of them. They're basically like Thor with really good eyes.

Full thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1aaji5/comment/c8vlvu7/ · 7 points as of Nov 7, 2026

### u/edyong209 in r/IAmA, Mar 14, 2013 · Explains things

Replying to a redditor:

> You all come across a lot of discoveries, what is one discovery that has just blown your mind?

> Bees can sense the electric fields of flowers! That discovery was published last month and it completely blew my mind. Flowers obviously have bright colours and aromatic nectar, but it turns out that they’re also like electric billboards. They have subtle electric fields around them, which bees can sense. The bees can use the fields to tell the difference between differently shaped flowers, and they can distinguish between fresh flowers and those that had just been visited by another bee.
>
> I just love this stuff. Here’s a system—bees and pollinators—that people have studied for centuries, and yet they have this hidden communication channel that we’ve *only just discovered*? That’s amazing! What else do we not know?

(Excerpt.)
Full thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1aaji5/comment/c8vljsw/ · 31 points as of Nov 7, 2026

### u/edyong209 in r/IAmA, Mar 14, 2013 · Explains things

Replying to a redditor:

> You all help to bridge the gap between technical scientific research and public awareness. What tips do you have for ''dumbing down'' the science without resorting to metaphor? What do you think could be further done to help improve scientific literacy in the general public? I…

> Thanks! I have to say that I loathe the phrase "dumbing down". It's an arrogant way of describing the act of making something accessible. The best science writers never underestimate their audience's intelligence but never overestimate their knowledge either. I try to tell people to remember when their readers last encountered science at school. When they were 15? 18? Then think about how much you knew at that age. Probably not very much. Then write as if you were talking to someone who was as intelligent as you were then but who knew the same amount of bupkis.

Full thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1aaji5/comment/c8vm82t/ · 11 points as of Nov 7, 2026

### u/edyong209 in r/Music, Jan 3, 2012 · AMA answer

Replying to a redditor:

> I'd have been more worried about tripping whilst carrying around 10M dollars worth of delicate wood, in a very dimly lit hotel room, wearing goggles. One toe stubbed on something and it's matchstick wood everywhere.

> That's one of the reasons why a study like this has been so long in coming. "Excuse me, can we borrow your 10M instrument so that a blindfolded stranger can play it? Wait... where are you going?"

Full thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/Music/comments/o06qx/comment/c3deg63/ · 5 points as of Nov 7, 2026