Chipping away at divisive, elitist education, one step at a time.

A nudge in the right direction.

Postdoctoral Scholar position in the Coaker group University of California, Davis We are seeking a Postdoctoral Scholar to join our research program focused on immune receptor engineering and spatial analyses of plant pathogens interactions using computational and imaging approaches. The position will involve integration of molecular, imaging, and computational approaches. Relevant publications from the laboratory include Nature Plants (2025, PMID: 40721669), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2024, PMID: 38814867), and Cell Reports (2023, PMID: 37342910). https://www.coakerlab.org/ Qualifications: • Ph.D. in plant biology, molecular biology, genetics, computational biology, or a related field • Strong background in genomics and/or computational biology • First author publications in peer-reviewed journals • Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary environment • Experience in plant innate immunity is preferred Application Instructions: The position is initially available for two years, with the possibility of extension based on performance and funding. Salary is based on the University of California postdoctoral salary scale (https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/_files/2025-26/represented-oct-2025-scales/t23.pdf). The salary range for this position is $69,073-$82,836 US Dollars/year. Review of applications will begin June 1, 2026 and will continue until the position is filled. Please submit a CV, a brief statement of research interests (~1 page), and contact information for three references to glcoaker@ucdavis.edu. The research statement should describe your previous work, how your expertise aligns with ongoing research in the lab, and potential future research directions.

We are hiring! We’re excited to recruit a postdoc to our lab at UC Davis to work on plant immune engineering and single-cell analyses of plant pathogen interactions. Apply by June 1. Please repost. www.coakerlab.org/postdoctoral...

Another fantastic piece of news, if true

Royal Academy of Music bans private school pupils from new course share.google/wk57CigZBVTC...

Liberty's Husband?

Not every.

Our college (@Imperial), or at least in the degrees run by our department, we spend a lot of effort to "tone down" the aspects of competition between students.

They are already hyper competitive when they get there. Often to the detriment of the whole cohort.

So we try to be different

We should be learning from other countries...

Out of general taxation.

That's why we have, for example:

NHS
Roads
Police
Roads
.
.
.

Not everyone benefits from PRIVATE education. And that is the problem.

Maybe you do.

I hope it will taxed out of existence.

I am genuinely thrilled to see this, and if it feels like no big deal to you, I would refer you to five years ago, when people in Westminster hyped the Turing scheme& argued that Erasmus was pointless anyway since British students did not like to go abroad.

The Brexit delusion is dead – so now Keir Starmer doesn’t need to pretend any more | Rafael Behr To rebuild relations with Europe in a dangerous world, the prime minister needs to win big arguments, not hide behind outdated red lines, says Guardian columnist Rafael Behr

“To rebuild relations with Europe in a dangerous world, the prime minister needs to win big arguments, not hide behind outdated red lines” Well said @rafaelbehr.bsky.social - Every word!
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

State ed paid by all of us. And so it should be, as we all benefit from it.

Vast disparity in ed provision in the pub sector?

Yes, and that should be tackled. But that's a different topic.

Education is a right (and a duty).

Bestowing a privilege of a better education based on ability to pay entrenches inequalities.

POW: Unequal societies are bad.

Especially for those at the bottom.

Good because private education is the source of many ills, for individuals as well as society at large.

The sooner they are all gone the better.

If it means collecting a few pennies from those fools who insist on buying privilege from the purveyors of injustice, all the better.

3 cheers.

Britain’s top private school to close after Labour’s VAT raid share.google/p97U9zw0qUOb...

Good.

The consequences may be unintended, but they are good nevertheless.

I dream of a UK when money doesn't mean educational privilege

EasyJet passengers describe new EU border controls 'nightmare' Airlines warn of further disruption due to the introduction of a new EU digital border control system.

Brexit: the gift that keeps giving.

(Also: all borders made to limit the fundamental human right of movement across this earth are the source of many evils)

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A brilliant preprint here:

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Modelling the MLO proteins as Ca2+ channels.

Somehow they facilitate powdery mildew infection.

Still wondering how they may do that.

One of my cartoons in Monday's Metro

Some of them a literally works of art.

See, for example, the Café Paulista ads.

Or

La Linea (Lagostina)

Italy: always ahead in trends, ideas, fashion and design.

Even the crappy ones

(full disclosure: I do fish... not very successfully, usually, always for food)

By the way...(For those in the UK)..

This was the headline in last night's News at 10 (BBC). Why?

Says he, while hoping to torture someone innocent fish.

But I agree with your sentiments.

Congratulations Dr. Bala Chaudhary!

... responsibility for his crimes.

‘Unhinged madman’: US politicians react to Trump’s expletive-laden threat to Iran Marjorie Taylor Greene and Bernie Sanders among those responding with alarm to Trump writing ‘open the fuckin’ strait, you crazy bastards’

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

”This is who he is, but this is not who we are."

In your dreams, Mr Schumer.

In our nightmares, this is exactly what you are:

Violent
Murderous
Imperial
Greedy
Self-righteous
Unhinged

DJT is not alone. He has a country behind him who shares...

And I thought it was just me...

Dear Souseh: Distressed (& More) by War This month, Souseh answers two letters from readers distressed by the outbreak of war, and notably the cognitive dissonance that results.

Please read this by @warghetti.bsky.social

themarkaz.org/dear-souseh-...

"A government spokesperson said: “Our mission is to break the link between background and success"

A simple way to start this: work towards abolishing private/fee paying education

Copenhagen Cycling Revolution: Lessons for Cities Close to two-thirds of the city’s residents commute by bike to school or work every day.

“When mayors in other cities ask me how #Copenhagen afforded to invest in its cycling networks, I ask them how on earth they have been able to afford highway projects. We invested in bike lanes because that was the cheapest option.”

What the world can learn from Copenhagen’s cycling revolution.

Agreed