AJ Alveshere (she/her)
@ajalveshere.bsky.social
Archaeologist, biological anthropologist, geneticist. Mom, spouse, cat and dog person.
Friends: Please consider helping Ciaran to become the next comic book hero of the Stan Lee Universe, and help him raise awareness about the Neurofibromatosis (NF) tumor disorders. You can vote once per day for free. And sharing this post is free, too. 🙂 thesuperkid.org/2026/ciaran-...
Vote for Ciaran to be Stan Lee's Super Kid!
His Mission Is To Defeat NF, A Disorder That Affects 1 In 3,000 Kids. Defying A Brain Tumor, He Greets Each Day With A Smile & A Kind Heart.
thesuperkid.org
It's heartening that Dan Gilbert is still making significant donations to NF research. His son Nick died in 2023 of an NF-related brainstem tumor (just like my son has 😢). It's so generous of the Gilberts to continue funding this crucial research in memory of their son. www.cnbc.com/2026/05/21/c...
Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert turns grief over son’s rare disease into search for a cure
Dan Gilbert honors his son Nick by funding research into neurofibromatosis, the rare disease that took Nick’s life.
cnbc.com
135 years ago today, hundreds of unarmed Lakota, mostly women and children, were massacred at #WoundedKnee. In 2025, Trump reinstated the military medals honoring their murderers. Please spend 12 mins watching this video, just from where it starts to around the 16-min mark. youtu.be/m6K4ar1nm5A?...
500 Nations - The story of native Americans - part I
YouTube video by Arian LopqiCanaen (Of Lothlorien)
youtu.be
Promotion and tenure (P&T) systems rely on external evaluations by arms-length reviewers. Here we find that gender influences the content of these letters... So much so that P&T candidates with more women letter writers were more likely to receive tenure! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Women advocates and men critics: How referees' gender influences candidates' likelihood of receiving a promotion
External review letters (ERLs) play a critical role in the promotion and tenure (P&T) process. However, recently, scholars have questioned their valid…
sciencedirect.com
Far too many people are genuinely unaware that their own access to health care could be affected by the upcoming Medicaid cuts, especially in rural areas. Please share this thread so everyone can be better prepared when the cuts take effect. #Medicaid
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · last yr.Too many Americans don't realize that they personally rely on Medicaid. This is because Medicaid programs have different names in different states. The screenshots in this thread show what Medicaid is called in each state. Medicaid programs may also be called State Plans or Title XIX Plans. 1/5
May 17th is World NF Awareness Day. This date was chosen because the gene that causes NF1 (the most common form of NF) is located on Chromosome 17. #NFawareness #EndNF
Our kiddo was officially diagnosed with NF1 after a blood DNA test at eight months of age. NF1 was suspected at his two-month well-check when his pediatrician counted more than 25 tan birthmark-like spots on his skin. 1/3
NF affects 1 in every 2000 people worldwide. About half of these people inherited NF from a parent. The other half are each the first person with NF in their family. In these cases, a new mutation occured in the sperm or egg that they developed from, or in the very earliest stages of embryo growth.
Trump policies promote "the idea that if you take away life-saving services, then only the strong will survive." This is deeply flawed logic. The wealthiest people will survive; however, there are strong arguments to be made that the most privileged humans are the worst for our species' future.
Maga’s era of ‘soft eugenics’: let the weak get sick, help the clever breed
At the heart of all Trump administration policies is ‘soft eugenics’ thinking – the idea that if you take away life-saving services, then only the strong will survive
theguardian.com
J Patrice McSherry@jpmcsherry.bsky.social · last yr.'At the heart of all Trump administration policies is ‘soft eugenics’ thinking – the idea that if you take away life-saving services, then only the strong will survive' www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
Neurofibromatosis (NF) disorders cause tumors to form on nerves. The effects vary greatly, depending on which organs or systems they impact. The number of tumors typically increases over time. Because they grow on nerves, surgery can be very risky, and they grow back more aggressively after surgery.
May is Neurofibromatosis (NF) Awareness Month Neurofibromatosis, called "NF" for short, is a long word that describes a collection of genetic conditions with overlapping symptoms. The name refers to tumors called "neurofibromas" that can grow on nerves throughout the body. #NFAwareness #ENDNF
Here's a way to participate, even if you can't leave home to attend a Hands Off! protest. Remember, every registration adds to the official total. Apparently 3.5% participation is the magic number (see next post). Sign up, invite a friend. We can make a difference! mobilize.us/s/WqAJnP
Hands Off! Disabled Community Fights Back · Hands Off
🚨 Donald Trump and Elon Musk think this country belongs to them. We are fighting back! 🚨 They're grabbing everything they can—our health care, our data, our jobs, our services—and daring the world to...
mobilize.us
"Might as well have handed control of the world's wealthiest nation to a troop of baboons led by a 'Magic 8-ball' toy."
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · last yr.It appears that the Trump team asked AI how to implement tariffs, and AI gave some spectacularly flawed advice. They then, of course, ran with it.
Please read the whole thread. Our nation is overflowing with stories like this. The senators are reading many of them on the senate floor right now. It's time for our elected officials to listen and to begin to do their jobs and serve us, their constituents.
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · last yr.Chris Murphy has joined Cory Booker in a Senate filibuster. They are talking about the horrors of gun violence and crushing medical debt in the United States. www.c-span.org/event/us-sen...
This statement requests signatures to affirm the important role of higher education in democracy. Anyone who values the contributions of colleges and universities to democratic nations is encouraged to consider signing, if it's not too great a personal risk: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Speaking Out for Democracy and US Higher Education
Speaking Out for Democracy and US Higher Education To add your name to this statement, go to https://bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEdSign We publicly affirm our commitment to the enterprise of higher educ...
docs.google.com
Very sad news. But, let's take a moment to celebrate the life of this amazing bonobo who provided myriad insights into the fascinating mind and abilities of his species.❤️
For the #IdesofMarch, here's one of the most famous coins to ever be minted: the silver denarius of M. Junius Brutus commemorating the assassination of Julius Caesar. It depicts two daggers, a slave's cap of freedom (pileus), and the inscription EID MAR. 🏺 #ancientbluesky 43-42 CE. #MetMuseum 📸 me
Here's the WH letter to Columbia University, a.k.a. “the ransom note.” The demands attack the core principles of academic freedom, shared governance, and basic due process. In exchange, they’ll consider discussing return of the 400 million in research grants for cancer, HIV, heart disease, etc.
DOGE defunds dogs: No food, shelter, or vet visits for the TSA's bomb sniffing dogs, until further notice.
I guess he feels untouchable now.
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · 2y agoMeeting about the World Cup in which Trump boasts that he's now president because they rigged the election. I wonder if someone can get him to brag about exactly HOW they rigged it. Link to full video on FOX 5 New York (rigging claim appears at 2:16 in that video): www.youtube.com/live/44PSaIf...
Scary! Also, interesting to see (later in the same thread) how the propaganda media is framing it.
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · 2y agoThe dodgy DOGE "audit" is a cover for the world's largest data heist. They'll own a copy of every document the U.S. government has. Talk about blackmail potential, against both domestic and foreign individuals. Imagine being able to instantly pull up the most sensitive info on anyone who annoys you!
Hold the line, friends. Make it crystal clear that we're not going back.
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · 2y agoAmerican Nazis in Cincinnati, cosplaying as tough guys, flee when confronted by a neighborhood prayer circle. Lots of bigots are feeling empowered right now. Remember, they are cowards at heart, and we outnumber them.
People who struggle to meet their family's basic needs (food, clean water, health care, shelter) are vulnerable to being radicalized. Why? Because they love with the same intensity that we all do. For 64 years, USAID saved lives and kept us all safer.
Unintended Effects@unintendedeffects.bsky.social · 2y agoThis will also hurt U.S. farmers who grow the food that USAID buys. Plus, as people watch loved ones die, this will cause desperation. This breeds war & terrorism, destabilizing the world & endangering Americans. An excellent example in this 2014 film on the origins of ISIS. youtu.be/brvhCnYvxQQ?...
A round-up of remarks that provide context on the current situation. From a post on Facebook by @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social www.facebook.com/share/1BBJdv...
Germs are constantly mutating to try to outpace our immune systems. It's basic biology. If we miss doses of an infection-fighting drug, the most drug-resistant versions of the virus (or bacteria) will quickly replicate themselves & create an infection that the drug won't be as effective at fighting.
As the relative of a child who has a brain stem tumor and a genetic tumor disorder that has few effective treatments and no cure, this directly affects my family in really scary ways. 🙁
