I am hiring a postdoc for scRNA-seq research in Lund, Sweden on the visual systems of non-model inverts as part of an ERC project on the evolution and ecology of advanced color and polarization vision. Apply here or share the link with someone who may be interested! 🧪
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
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📣 EvolDir is now managed by @eseb.bsky.social!
We are delighted to be taking the reins and express our gratitude to both Brian Golding who began this service to the community in the mid-1980s and to @rdmpage.bsky.social who ran this account until now 👏
You can now find evoldir here: evoldir.net
Well, at least the BBC is covering this.
Home from a great spring break hiking trip with my kids. Our last spring break together before kid1 heads to college.
Photo: Spooky Gulch Slot Canyon trail, Utah.
First up: F grants
These support individual grad students and post-docs (and some college students).
# of new grants issued through April 15 in
FY2024 (the last “normal” year): 652
FY2025: 402
FY2026: 74
In August, Jay Bhattacharya said “Training future biomedical scientists” was the 1st priority for his version of NIH.
But talk is cheap. Let’s see how JB’s doing. 🤔
NIH supports trainees mostly via fellowship (F), training (T), and career development (K) awards.
Here are funding curves for each.🧵
Figure showing number of competitive grants mentioning women from 2015-2025. The number was rising until recently, with a precipitous drop in the last year.
At the end of 2024, the National Academies put out a report concluding the NIH has woefully underfunded women’s health research, and they suggested $15 B should be invested over the next 5 years.
Here’s what’s happened instead. Hard to study women’s health if you can’t say “women.”
wapo.st/4euUt1c
John Roberts’ Wife Made Millions From Bribes
Roberts accepted $10 Million in bribes disguised as recruiting fees from Law firms with cases pending before the Supreme Court.
www.thedailybeast.com/chief-justic...
The American Naturalist classic cover
Are There Ecological Consequences of Urban Adaptation? A Test of Eco-Evolutionary Dynamics in a Terrestrial Isopod (Oniscus asellus) by Yilmaz et al.
Read now ahead of print!
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...
Washington Post article on STEM cuts at federal agencies. NSF tops it at -42%!
“Between January 2025 and February 2026, STEM and health employees at science-focused agencies saw nearly 15,000 jobs cut. The rate outpaced cuts among other federal workers.”
OPM data - Figure from Wash Post article 19 April. (Where US science has been hit hardest.)
NSF at -42%!
NYT INVESTIGATION: As the Trump administration & Congress last year moved to repeal sanctions on Syria, the Qatar-based family that most stood to benefit was privately negotiating a real-estate partnership with Jared Kushner and proposing a Trump golf course in Syria www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/u...
Amidst everything else, the Trump regime has quietly killed off the U.S. Forest Service 🌲
“One hundred and ninety-three million acres of your national forests… just handed, on a silver platter, to the people who’ve spent their entire careers trying to destroy it.”
www.hatchmag.com/articles/tru...
Cover of report "Mission Aborted: how NASA illegally implemented the president's budget request without congressional approval. Minority staff report, prepared by members of the committee on science, space, and technology, us house of representatives, April 2026
This report came out today by minority staff of the House science committee on how three NASA missions were aborted due to NASA illegally following the FY26 president's budget request instead of congressionally approved budget. Very important reading. 🔭🧪 democrats-science.house.gov/staff-report...
Highlighted in red: "Political interference is inappropriately shaping or interfering in the conduct, management, communication, or use of science for political advantage or such that it undermines impartiality, nonpartisanship, or professional judgement"
"HHS works to promote a culture of scientific integrity by creating an empowering environment for innovation and protecting scientists and the process of science from inappropriate interference. Scientific findings and products must not be suppressed, delayed, or altered for political purposes and must not be subjected to political interference or inappropriate influence. The responsible and ethical conduct of research and other scientific activities requires an environment that is safe and free from harassment and discrimination" Highlighted in red are "suppressed, delayed, or altered for political purposes", "subjected to political interference", and "inappropriate influence."
"HHS works to promote a culture of scientific integrity by creating an empowering environment for innovation and protecting scientists and the process of science from inappropriate interference. Scientific findings and products must not be subjected to interference or inappropriate influence and must not be inappropriately suppressed, delayed, or altered. The responsible and ethical conduct of research and other scientific activities requires an environment that is safe and free from harassment and discrimination." Highlighted in green are "subjected to interference or inappropriate influence" and "inappropriately suppressed, delayed, or altered."
Text, with "political" highlighted in red to indicate removal: I. Protecting Scientific Processes Scientific integrity fosters "honest scientific investigation, open discussion, refined understanding, and a firm commitment to evidence" (OSTP 2010). It also enables consideration and documentation of differing scientific opinions. Practices that support scientific integrity may include peer review and open science. Science, and public trust in science, thrives in an environment that prevents political interference and inappropriate influence from impacting scientific data and analyses and their use in decision making. It is the policy of HHS to: 1. Prohibit political interference or other inappropriate influence in the design, proposal, conduct, review, management, evaluation, communication about, and use of scientific activities and scientific information. Prohibit inappropriate restrictions on resources and capacity that limit and reduce the availability of science and scientific products (e.g., manuscripts for scientific journals, presentations for workshops, conferences, and symposia) outside of normal budgetary or priority-setting processes or without scientific, legal, or security justification. 3. Require that leadership and management ensure that covered individuals engaged in scientific activities can conduct their work objectively, free from political interference or other inappropriate influence, and free from retaliation.
HHS just published an update to its Scientific Integrity Policy. Notably, it has removed the concept of political interference, and no longer calls it out as something specifically to be prevented.
www.hhs.gov/sites/defaul... (deletions in red, insertions in green)
Thank goodness for digital cameras w/ autofocus tracking. Swifts are nearly impossible to photograph on the wing, but 5 minutes and a few hundred rapid fire images got some nice shots of white throated swifts at Bryce
Rep. Chu brings up the fact that FEMA is approving disaster requests from Republican states but not Democratic states.
She asks Vought about it, and he basically says it's not a problem. "No one has looked harder at FEMA funding than us."
This story is why self-respecting journals have begun to have data editors who check that data archives are complete and code archives run and ReadMe documentation is clear.
Data/code review is a key part of quality assurance, which is a reason journals exist.
They seem to be reliable near Angels Landing in Zion.
I'm not a fastidious lister, though I do keep track of what bird species I see when I travel to new countries. I get mildly excited by 'lifers'. But I was ecstatic to see the condor given the history of this species. I was geeking out with other birders on the trail, to my kids' embarrassment
We really only have labor for ~130 regular contributed virtual talks. So, yes! Get those talks in!
Late submissions decided via Thunderdome.
Not a good photo, but I had a good look through binocs afterwards... my first ever California Condor!!!
Zion National Park
Cartoon by @deadder.bsky.social.
Disappointed, though not surprised, I began to describe various life- saving components of USAID’s global health portfolio, highlighting how we prepare for and respond to emerging pandemic threats; support the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV; and immunize millions of children from the deadliest childhood diseases. I spoke for about five minutes, focusing primarily on our infectious diseases work and hoping to keep the attention of people who seemed to have no experience—or interest—in global health. When I finished, the room was silent, the political appointees looking at one another in what appeared to be disbelief. The silence was broken by Ken Jackson, who chuckled softly and shook his head. “Wow, there really is so much that USAID does that we never knew,” he said. “This is the story that needs to get out there.” Joel, also smiling, chimed in next, echoing Jackson’s amazement. “I had no idea you did all this,” he said. “As a Republican, when I think of what USAID does in global health, I assumed it was just, you know, abortions.”
This is NUTS
www.thehandbasket.co/p/trump-usai...
Americans unfortunately will relearn why vaccination is important the hard way, by killing a staggering number of children.
MAGA wrong again.
We were delayed a fair bit in Chicago (and the departure gate changed 3 times). We got to our hotel south of Salt Lake City at 2 AM (4 am back home). But it’s been worth it. Had a sunny afternoon in Zion, turned to rain in the evening.
Regarding #NSF #GRFP announcements:
ENGR awards: 1529
ENGR honorable mention: 153
% of ENGR in top 4000 who earned awards: 90.9%
Life Sciences awards: 486
Life Sciences honorable mention: 573
% of Life Sci in top 4000 who earned awards: 45.9%
(calculations by Elizabeth Jockusch)
Republican wife beaters. The anger is real.
Plot showing GRFP awards by directorate shows a big dip last year and major increases for engineering and biology (though this only brings it back to parity with 2024).
The NSF GRFP is now out! There are 2,599 awardees, which is the most ever—and a big shift from last year which initially halved awardees (1,000 awardees + an additional 500).
I've thrown together a plot to break down the changes by field.
www.research.gov/grfp/Awardee...