Fang Zhouzi's Wildflower Hiking Ritual | Generated by AI
Fang Zhouzi, better known by his pen name Fang Shimin (方是民), is a Chinese-American writer, biochemist, and prominent science skeptic. He earned a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Sussex in the UK and later pursued postdoctoral work in the US, which is where he has lived since the early 2000s (initially in New York before moving to California). His medical and scientific background stems from this expertise—he’s long been involved in health-related writing and debunking pseudoscience, alternative medicine claims, and academic fraud, especially in China. This earned him both fame and controversy; he’s often called China’s “science watchdog” for exposing high-profile scams, but it also led to legal battles, including a 2014 arrest in China during a visit (he was later released and returned to the US).
As for his “obsession” with flowers, it ties into a deeper, lifelong passion for natural history (博物学) that predates his move to the US. Back in his university days in China, Fang was an avid collector of biological specimens, including plants, though he initially preferred animals because plant identification felt more cumbersome. Over time, this evolved into a broader appreciation for botany and ecology. Now based in San Diego, California—a region famous for its diverse wildflower superbloom seasons—he’s turned this interest into a near-daily ritual. Since around 2020, he’s hiked local trails almost every day to observe and photograph native wildflowers, rain or shine. The COVID-19 pandemic played a big role in kickstarting this intensity: with travel restricted, he channeled his energy into exploring the abundant local flora instead, logging over 700 consecutive days of observations by early 2022. He describes it as a meditative, grounding practice that connects him to the rhythms of nature, and it’s become a way to celebrate life’s simple beauties amid his often contentious online debates.
On X (formerly Twitter), where he has over 950,000 followers, Fang shares these sightings regularly—often under titles like “今日所见野花” (Today’s wildflowers seen), complete with detailed identifications (in English and Chinese botanical names) and photos of species like California buckwheat, coastal golden bush, or rare endangered ones like San Bernardino aster. It’s a stark contrast to his usual posts on science criticism or politics; these flower updates feel like a personal respite, emphasizing mindfulness and the “care for life” you mentioned. He even volunteers for trail maintenance on public lands and has had his photos used in academic papers or exhibitions, showing how seriously he takes it. In a way, it’s therapeutic for someone with his high-stress background—focusing on the quiet resilience of plants in the wild.