Applications are now open for our fall science reporting internship! This is an excellent opportunity for a beginning science journalist to report and write about the fast-moving field of neuroscience. Apply now: simonsfoundation.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/simonsfounda... #neuroskyence

Charlatans taking advantage of vulnerable people - just the lowest, most grotesque sort of behavior... www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Autistic children injected with unapproved stem cell treatments supported by RFK Jr

Desperate US parents pay up to $20,000 a session for a procedure scientists say could be bogus

theguardian.com

We're recruiting postdocs to study how people build structured knowledge from experience & use it to act flexibly. Behavioral work, fMRI, computational & AI models, with a lifespan focus. You don't need experience with every method; fit & curiosity matter most. Please repost & share! 🧠

Some big professional news! I'm so excited to be on this team!

Stellate Communications@stellatecomms.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Welcome @avaskham.bsky.social 🥳 Angie joins us to lead media strategy and engagement across our clients. She is a former reporter and neuroscientist, with previous work spanning digital & radio journalism, writing, and scientific publishing. Learn more about our Team: www.stellatecomms.com/team

The requested boost would help counter the planned sunsetting of one of the program’s long-standing funding streams, which will result in a $195 million drop in funding for fiscal year 2027. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/funding/lett...

Letter asks Congress for nearly $500 million to sustain BRAIN Initiative

The boost would help counter the planned sunsetting of one of the program’s long-standing funding streams.

thetransmitter.org

Explore “Brainstorming,” @thetransmitter.bsky.social’s new LinkedIn newsletter that looks at how neuroscientists are solving research challenges. The first edition features nontraditional model organisms that are well suited for studying certain behaviors or neurological conditions. bit.ly/4v6x506

The nontraditional model organism renaissance

Each month, The Transmitter explores creative approaches neuroscientists are taking to solve problems that arise in their research. In this installment, we see how researchers work backward from speci...

bit.ly

“In her obituary, her mentee, Catherine Veil, says that [Marcelle Lapicque] fought against the prejudices of her time … it may be that the prejudices included race and not just sexism,” says @oligoclonalband.medsky.social. #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/history-of-n...

"The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has so far not received approval to spend any of the research funding allocated in a budget bill signed into law on 3 February. " www.nature.com/articles/d41...

White House stalls release of approved US science budgets

The US Congress rejected sweeping cuts to science agencies. But the NIH, the NSF and NASA have had their spending slowed.

nature.com

It was so fun to work with @rebeccasky.bsky.social on this video about the life and work of pioneering neuroscientist Marcelle Lapicque! Check it out here:

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Chances are you have not heard her name, but Marcelle Lapicque may have been the first Black woman neuroscientist in Europe. By @avaskham.bsky.social, @rebeccasky.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/history-of-n...

Functional MRI scans of more than 100 2-month-old infants suggest that they are capable of distinguishing among a variety of different objects. The findings challenge perceptions of cognitive development as a gradual process. By @helenak.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/cognitive-ne...

Infant brain categorizes common objects by two months of age

Brain activity patterns in the ventral visual cortex appear to distinguish images across 12 categories, including birds and trees, fMRI scans suggest.

thetransmitter.org

Thanks Angie! If you’re starting out your career in neuroscience check out our early career newsletter. It features articles catered towards early career researchers, job opportunities and much more!

Angie Voyles Askham@avaskham.bsky.social · 6mo ago

@franciscorr25.bsky.social is really killing it with this newsletter. You can subscribe here to get it in your inbox! www.thetransmitter.org/newsletters-...

There are always great mentoring tips in @thetransmitter.bsky.social's early career newsletter, Launch. This one from new PI @qlu.bsky.social in today's edition stood out to me as being a particularly useful idea!

The one gene that makes mice good dads—or infanticidal parents. By @natmesanash.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...

Single gene sways caregiving circuits, behavior in male mice

Brain levels of the agouti gene determine whether African striped mice are doting fathers—or infanticidal ones.

thetransmitter.org

Ken Catania's class at Vanderbilt that covered the neurobiology of fascinating animals like the star-nosed mole is one of the reasons I pursued a career in neuroscience! So fun to read this Q&A:

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Kenneth Catania spoke with @thetransmitter.bsky.social about how the specialized snout of the star-nosed mole allows for high-speed foraging and underscores the importance of studying behavior alongside anatomy. By Lauren Schneider #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/neuros-ark/n...

#neuroskyence

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 6mo ago

“I am very concerned about the minimal scientific expertise on the committee, and the degree to which it is stacked with vocal proponents of the discredited notion that vaccines contribute to autism,” says Joshua Gordon, former NIMH director. By @avaskham.bsky.social bit.ly/3Z8Gs0y

“As long as we can remain optimistic about the future of science and communicate that optimism to young people, we’re going to be fine,” says Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...

‘Peer review is our strength’: Q&A with Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director

In his first week off the job, the former National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke director urges U.S. scientists to remain optimistic about the future of neuroscience research…

thetransmitter.org

Former NINDS director Walter Koroshetz sat down with @avaskham.bsky.social to reflect on his tenure and share his thoughts on the "attempts at influence" from politicians www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...

‘Peer review is our strength’: Q&A with Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director

In his first week off the job, the former National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke director urges U.S. scientists to remain optimistic about the future of neuroscience research…

thetransmitter.org

A letter signed by 40 neuroscience groups asks Congress to ensure that scientific expertise remains a priority in the search for a new director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...

After NINDS director ouster, 40 neuroscience organizations press U.S. Congress for oversight over hiring process

A letter signed by the groups asks Congress to ensure that scientific expertise remains a priority in the search for a new director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

thetransmitter.org

The bill includes a 33 percent budget increase for the NIH’s BRAIN Initiative, which has faced significant funding cuts over the past two years. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/funding/neur...

Neuroscience, BRAIN Initiative gain budget in ‘bad’ NIH funding bill

The bill goes before the House of Representatives today and outlines increases for neuroscience-related research—including a 33 percent increase to the BRAIN Initiative—but maintains a multiyear…

thetransmitter.org

🚨 New from me: Grant review at more than half of NIH's institutes could be frozen by the end of the year. That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027. A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications. A short 🧵

Exclusive: key NIH review panels due to lose all members by the end of 2026

Thirteen of the agency’s advisory councils, which must review grant applications before funding is awarded, are on track to have no voting members.

nature.com

A new method for delivering genes to the primate brain enables researchers to apply existing genetic tools across the monkey brain. By @avaskham.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/pre...

Prenatal viral injections prime primate brain for study

The approach makes it possible to deploy tools such as CRISPR and optogenetics across the monkey brain before birth.

thetransmitter.org

Good news from NIH! Michael Chiang has apparently been reappointed as Director of the National Eye Institute www.nei.nih.gov/about/our-mi...

Reposting with comments. NIDDK budget appears to be cut because there is a separate fund for diabetes, elsewhere in the bill. NINDS budget is increased because of funds transferred from the Office of the Director (OD) for ALS, Alzheimer's. NIEHS seems like a real cut. OD cut is related to NINDS.

A mathematical glitch means that lesion network mapping, which aims to find condition-specific dysfunctional networks, produces strikingly similar results regardless of the condition being studied:

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 7mo ago

More than 200 published studies and at least seven ongoing clinical trials rely on potentially faulty brain network maps, according to a study published yesterday. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/brain-imagin...

What can the Brain Knowledge Platform do for you? 🧠📈 Join us on Jan. 14, 11am-12pm PT for a webinar on the new features and data in world's most comprehensive brain cell atlas. 🔗 https://alleninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Le5E4CXGSA2clMJ2VesyBw#/registration

“It’s giving mechanistic insight into how estrogen modulates reinforcement learning—all the way down to the molecular mechanism,” says Ilana Witten. By @avaskham.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/sex-hormones...

Sex hormone boosts female rats’ sensitivity to unexpected rewards

During the high-estradiol stages of their estrus cycle, female rats learn faster than they do during other stages—and than male rats overall—thanks to a boost in their dopaminergic response to reward…

thetransmitter.org

Given the issues facing neuroscience around government policy and funding, the naming of an outsider to SfN’s top position caught some neuroscientists by surprise. By Natalia Mesa #neuroskyence #SfN2025 #SfN25 www.thetransmitter.org/teaching/kev...

A change at the top of SfN as neuroscientists gather in San Diego

Kevin B. Marvel, longtime head of the American Astronomical Society, will lead SfN after a year of uncertainty in the neuroscience field.

thetransmitter.org

While I was out on maternity leave, the Transmitter team produced this incredibly rich and informative special report on the state of neuroscience as a field. It's out now — go explore it here!! #neuroskyence

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · 9mo ago

@thetransmitter.bsky.social presents a portrait of the state of neuroscience in 2025 through four lenses: its focus, its output, its people and its funding. Each view features analyses of major trends and more. Explore the end of year report: bit.ly/4oNeTVC #neuroskyence #StateofNeuro

Join us on Dec. 2 for a webinar on the major advances in basal ganglia mapping, including cross-species cellular mapping and open-access visualization tools. 📅 Dec. 2, 9-10:30am PT 📍 Online 🔗 Register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/neuroscience-cell-types-webinars/ #studyBRAIN #neuroskyence

Neuroscience Cell Types Webinars

Neuroscience webinars from the Allen Institute to hear about latest cell types researchers from various scientists.

alleninstitute.org

This article in The Transmitter covering our paper may be one of the best scientific content headlines of all time. www.thetransmitter.org/fmri/timing-...

Timing tweak turns trashed fMRI scans into treasure

Leveraging start-up “dummy scans,” which are typically discarded in imaging analyses, can shorten an experiment’s length and make data collection more efficient, a new study reveals.

thetransmitter.org