This is well outside my area of expertise. But so are lots of things. If I have a new, well reasoned, thought or set of experimental data in them, no one will question me publishing. Nothing special about a degree, science is for everyone. Its hard to meet the criteria of innovation without training

A composer published a paper on theoretical physics. His lack of credentials drew criticism.

Some people compose music or make YouTube videos for a hobby. That’s Brandon Yates’ job — so in his spare time, he tries his hand at theoretical physics. But his only published paper was questioned…

retractionwatch.com

Two origins of life? www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Intermediate stages in the origin of metabolism at a phosphorylating hydrothermal vent

Enzymatic metabolism emerged from metal-catalyzed, aqueous reactions of H2, CO2, NH3 and phosphite at a hydrothermal vent.

science.org

#ChemSpaceInSPACE solutions.

John Trant@trantteam.bsky.social · 11h ago

Binary Star Research Services is proud to announce that we plan on doing YOUR comp chem on Europa and Io! We will power our servers using Io's INEXHAUSTABLE INTERNAL FIRES (TM) and cool them using Europa's INFINITE ICE (TM). This will cut our power costs by a factor of INFINITY. Details to follow.

Binary Star Research Services is proud to announce that we plan on doing YOUR comp chem on Europa and Io! We will power our servers using Io's INEXHAUSTABLE INTERNAL FIRES (TM) and cool them using Europa's INFINITE ICE (TM). This will cut our power costs by a factor of INFINITY. Details to follow.

First thesis committee I am on where I am the "senior colleague." That's messed up. I should never be the "adult" in the room. Even when I am.

Writing a book is hard. It’s so fucking hard. Just this week I’ve reached out to so many people for help to get this book over the finish line. And so many people have helped me. Yesterday one of my professors from undergrad hopped on a zoom call to talk through Raman spectroscopy.

Okay genuinely asking— what does accountability look like for Holden Thorp and Hank Green? What I’d like to see: I’d love if @holdenthorp.bsky.social set a clear journalistic standard at SCIENCE and prohibited the use of LLMs for researching, writing, and editing publications at SCIENCE.

Debbie Gale Mitchell@heydebigale.bsky.social · 4d ago

So in the last two weeks EIC of Science and a famous science communicator have lost massive amounts of credibility because of their reliance on LLMs... Some examples of how to lose trust with your audience to share with my students I guess.

I wish I was half as funny and clever as whoever is running @inprep.bsky.social. I am not. But yes. This is...very on the nose.

Techbio Founder Who Only Talks To Other Techbio Founders Accuses Scientists Of Groupthink

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—Expressing concern about the intellectual insularity of government-funded research, Excursion Therapeutics co-founder and AI evangelist Marcus Aldrich accused NIH-funded scientists o...

open.substack.com

Civic Holiday is one of the happiest holidays of the year in (most of) Canada. In Ontario, it is Simcoe Day (no one calls it that). The daycare is open, but work is closed. For parents with no family...this is incredible.

Look, it handles my invoices! Its ok if it only right 98% of the time! I am sure the tax man will understand that it isnt tax fraud if I didn't mean it. Like when I agreed that all data was true and accurate and that I am responsible for it, they didnt mean I was responsible for the AI stuff. Right?

The Economist@economist.com · 4d ago

An economy powered by individual entrepreneurship, with AI handling tedious back-end tasks, could prove fulfilling and lucrative for many people. Register for free to learn why

Some comments on this are WILD (about Wild!). "The AI tools are good and mostly right, so you should use them" is nuts. If, like Alex you are writing science, mostly right is the same as completely fucking useless. If mostly right is good enough...you are not doing something important.

Alex Wild@alexwild.bsky.social · 4d ago

The short version is: after a month the AI has not given me any good reasons to trust it, and I am honestly freaked out by the confidence with which it weaves completely wrong facts into prose, and the confidence with which it writes and professionally formats entire sections of bullshit.

In case you haven't seen it, you might like this.

I see this a lot. I have sold a LOT of patents for $1. Where's my adoring posts? It had a lot more buying power in 1923 than in the 2020s. He made out like a BANDIT! Unfortunately my line is generally: "good, I could never afford to service and litigate that: I have never received the dollar BTW.

Ariaa®@ariaa.bsky.social · 6d ago

I apologize for interrupting your regular consumption of shitposts and angry retweets from this supposedly serious scientific account of a VERY SERIOUS SCIENTIST to post something important. A former MSc grad from my lab, Dr. Xiao Yu from my group is running a network for Asian women in STEM.

“That could be me" event RSVP

That Could Be Me is a virtual conversation series that brings together Asian women in STEM across different career stages through meaningful 1:1 conversations. Whether you're a student exploring what'...

docs.google.com

Why the USA, in polls on issues, looks like a standard progressive liberal democracy, but in elections, elects fascists happily enough and generally calls anyone left of Thatcher a communist.

Becca@sciencelizard.bsky.social · 5d ago

Americans on basically any political issue: "Would you like to kick yourself in the nuts?" "Uhm no????! WTF???" "What if you could kick yourself once, and some Black guy twice?" "WHERE DO I SIGN UP????!!?!?!? NOW WE'RE TALKING!!!"

Americans on basically any political issue: "Would you like to kick yourself in the nuts?" "Uhm no????! WTF???" "What if you could kick yourself once, and some Black guy twice?" "WHERE DO I SIGN UP????!!?!?!? NOW WE'RE TALKING!!!"

Arrianna Marie Planey, PhD MA@arrianna-planey.bsky.social · 6d ago

This was a truly impactful realization for me. In the health communication literature, there's "disparate impact frames" which are effective if the (majoritarian) audience actually cares about adverse outcomes affecting people who don't look like them. We saw that this was not the case.

I just don’t even know where to start with this one … seriously how do they come up with BlueSky’s best satire week after week…

In Preparation@inprep.bsky.social · 6d ago

Hey! I can see my house from here! And with the Americans as neighbours...I wish I had a weapon. #Warcraft2 #DeepCutz

The Economist@economist.com · 7d ago

Lessons from a fight over a bridge between America and Canada

Who the fuck is saying this?? All we do is scream that they need those skills, dont have them when they reach university, and we need to now teach them. We, who are world-leading DISCIPLINE SPECIALISTS, not basic educators. But guess what? We do it anyways....

The Economist@economist.com · last wk.

It is growing common to hear academics shrug that perhaps students no longer need strong basic skills. That is not pragmatism—it is surrender

Owning and driving a Cybertruck is a bit like announcing to the world that you have a penis and money, but you don't know what to do with them.

Huh. Almost like public health rules are rules for a reason.

Task & Purpose@taskandpurpose.com · last wk.

Navy reinstates some flu vaccine rules months after Pentagon ended mandate trib.al/kuIY7lY

Well, if Nature won't take my brilliant ideas for publication without further revision...I am sure Nurture will!

Just FYI, the call for Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fellowships is now open. As a reminder, if you plan to apply or know someone who is about to, @nvogtvincent.co.uk and Rita García Seoane wrote a great (unofficial) application guide. #AcademicSky

Noam Vogt-Vincent@nvogtvincent.co.uk · last yr.

Dr Rita García Seoane and I (with valuable input from other colleagues) have put together a little (unofficial) applicants' guide to applying for EU Marie-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships! We hope that this guide will make the process a little less overwhelming for other first-time applicants.

The spectators at my run this morning didn't seem too focused on cheering.

I've gotten into watching Super League rugby while exercising. Realizing that it is like a bunch of teams from right around Leeds and then two from Southern France beating up on each other. From what I've heard about Leeds...this is consistent. But I expect better from the French.

I don't think Musk is particularly stupid or particularly uneducated. He seems about average intelligence, and seems to know about as much about everything as the average citizen of a Western nation. Which is fucking terrifying as the average citizen knows fuck all, but they don't make policy.

Dr Kat Day (she/her) 🌖@chronicleflask.katday.com · 2w ago

Musk *literally* going full Captain of Golgafrinchan Ark Fleet Ship B here.

Extremely niche post alert: Anyone else REALLY careful with their mouse use when approving submissions on "Editorial Manager"? So easy to accidentally click "edit" instead of "view" or "approve" and have to go through a random 15 minute waiting period again.

Responses of a former professor trying to get a REAL job.

Dr Kat Day (she/her) 🌖@chronicleflask.katday.com · 3w ago

One more? Oh if you insist…

If you fear that state-run grocery stores paying living wages to all employees will undercut the pricing of private sector grocery stores paying minimum wage and drive them out of business...it is not the state-run store's fault. It's the profit-seeking private sector model's gross incompetence.

The Economist@economist.com · 2w ago

Discontent about rising food prices is inviting all kinds of intervention from politicians. Yet most of these measures are looking in the wrong place