🏝️🐜A new study out by Dr. Evan Economo and colleagues reveals a decline in Fiji’s native ant species. With insects playing a crucial role in ecosystems, this research is key to understanding insect populations and guiding conservation efforts.🐜🏝️

UMD Science@umdscience.bsky.social · 12mo ago

“Insects are essential for the environment,” said @umdentomology.bsky.social's Evan Economo. “As scientists, we need to play our part in their protection.” Read about Evan's novel approach to studying ant populations, which revealed signs of decline in 79% of species found only in Fiji ⤵️ #BugSky

🚨 NEW: Climate change is already causing 30,000 deaths per year - a global annual economic loss of $100-350B USD - but the true damage is probably 10x higher. Out TODAY in Nature Climate Change: the first systematic look at the science of "health impact attribution" 🔓 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The National Academies' response to the EPA's proposed removal of the endangerment finding is out today. It does not mince words about the effect of GHGs on the climate. Kudos to the authors. Key paragraph below; you can read the whole thing here: nas.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?...

Disease prevalence in US states before & after vaccine introduction 🧪 From Edward Tufte & graphics.wsj.com/infectious-d...

Looking for a #postdoct for a NSF project integrating ecosystem productivity, hyperspectral remote sensing and airborne LiDAR to test prominent hypothesis of the effect of #biodiversity on #forest #productivity @fluxnetecn.bsky.social @ngaps.bsky.social Apply at: jobs.colostate.edu/postings/165...

How do scientists push back against autocratic, anti-science ideologies? The "Anti-Autocracy Handbook: The Scholars’ Guide to Navigating Democratic Backsliding" provides some insights on what can be done, from lower risk to extreme risk groups: (1/11)

🔬🪲An approach for long term mgmt of #EAB has been to introduce parasitic wasps to the US for #biocontrol. The Gruner Lab monitors the effectiveness of this approach one log at a time.Watch as Estes debarks trees to assess the presence of EAB larvae & the extent to which they have been parasitized.🪲🔬

NIH FY26 #SCIMaP scorecards are now available for * All states * All districts The White House has shared its vision of priorities for this year and years to come. This vision comes with consequences for our health and innovation economy. Explore and share: scienceimpacts.org/fy26

SCIMaP - Impacts of Federal Cuts to Science and Medical Research

View Projected Impact of the FY2026 Budget Cuts to the NIH

scienceimpacts.org

Had to try this out with insects and HOO BOY is this embarrassing.

Carl Zimmer@carlzimmer.com · last yr.

Yesterday I discovered that ChatGPT's PhD-level expertise didn't extend to bird anatomy. This morning I thought, perhaps I was being too hard on the half-trillion-dollar company. Birds are a little weird, anatomically speaking. Let's try something more familiar. A mammal. Behold.

Biology's Sean Carroll's latest documentary won an Emmy for outstanding science documentary filmmaking! The documentary follows an evolutionary biologist's quest to find DNA in 2-million-year-old soil from Greenland. Sean shared the challenges and triumphs of this project ➡️ go.umd.edu/hunt-DNA

Also, sign up for PBS Passport! You pay what you want, money goes to your local station, and you get access to tons more great programming on-demand. help.pbs.org/support/solu...

Dave Goldberg (he/him)@drdavegoldberg.bsky.social · last yr.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting just lost about $1.1 billion, which is a lot to them, but only about $3.33 per American. Please consider upping your donation to your local stations by a significant multiple of that.

Since April 4, #SCOTUS has issued 15 rulings on 17 emergency applications filed by Trump (three birthright citizenship apps were consolidated). It has granted relief to Trump ... in all 15 rulings. It has written majority opinions in only 3. Today's order is the 7th with no explanation *at all.*

Steve Vladeck@stevevladeck.bsky.social · last yr.

Here we go again: Over an acerbic dissenting opinion by Justice Sotomayor (joined in full by Justices Kagan and Jackson), #SCOTUS, with no explanation, grants a stay in the Department of Education RIFs case—effectively clearing the way for the Trump administration to dismantle much of the agency:

🧪 BREAKING (good news): Senate subcommittee says NO! to Trump's proposed slashes to NASA & NSF funding. Today, the subcommittee said to keep NASA + NSF funding at $33.9 billion, the same as in FY24. See 7:15 below. Full Senate appropriations committee meets tomorrow about it. 🧵 1/3

Subcommittee Markup of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act | United States Senate Committee on Appropriations

United States Senate Committee on Appropriations

appropriations.senate.gov

Kilauea Caldera, Halema'uma'u crater, big island of Hawai'i, current status

Callous and corrupt, this will deepen the devastating impact of this administration on basic science, scientists, and National Science Foundation staff, for whom there is NO plan www.alxnow.com/2025/06/24/r... 🧪

Report: National Science Foundation headquarters to be taken over by HUD, displacing 1,800+ employees | ALXnow

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will reportedly take over the National Science Foundation (NSF) headquarters building (2415 Eisenhower Ave.), displacing more than 1,833 NSF emplo...

alxnow.com

Do the authors understand irony? Or maybe that's their hidden point of publishing behind a paywall

🌞 Summer is prime time for ticks & mosquitoes, but don’t let these pests deter you from your next outdoor adventure🏕️. #UMD entomologist, Dr. Dan Gruner shares w/ NPR's Morning Edition that it's perfectly fine to enjoy outdoor activities, just take precautionary measures.👇 www.npr.org/2025/05/28/n...

How to protect your kids from mosquitoes and other bugs this summer

NPR's A Martinez speaks with Dan Gruner, professor of entomology at the University of Maryland, about how to safely protect kids this summer from mosquitoes and other biting insects.

npr.org

Well, it's official. We just received notice that all authors on the Sixth National Climate Assessment have just been released from their roles. The NCA is a vital, Congressionally mandated resource for our nation as we prepare for the impacts of climate change. This is a huge loss.

The iceberg headed toward the economy

Phil Williams@philinvestigates.com · last yr.

“The consequence will be empty shelves in US stores in a few weeks and Covid-like shortages for consumers and for firms using Chinese products as intermediate goods,” Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo, wrote in a note to clients Friday. www.cnbc.com/2025/04/28/e...

If this wasn’t posted by @atrupar.com I would have thought it had to be a doctored screenshot. But…it’s not

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · last yr.

lmao Hannity's Trump accomplishments ticker got even more pathetic

🌏🧪

The Associated Press@apnews.com · last yr.

A new carnivorous caterpillar that wears the remains of its prey has been dubbed the bone collector.

🧪🧬🦠🌎

Tammie Visintainer@proftv.bsky.social · last yr.

If you, like me, had you NSF granted terminated, here’s what I learned from a hopeful meeting with my VP of research: 1. We have 30 days to act! Meet with your admin asap 2. APPEAL: Everyone can appeal! It must go through your institution, there’s a template, sent registered mail. My VP told me ⬇️

Into a second year of a global mass bleaching event. 🌎🪸

Mongabay@mongabay.com · last yr.

Coral reefs around the world have been subjected to unprecedented heat stress since early 2023. A new report finds heat-related coral bleaching has damaged corals in more than 80 countries, making it the most extensive bleaching event ever recorded, with no clear end in sight.

A colleague at Stanford’s business school used The Stanford Daily to argue—poorly—against DEI. The piece was riddled with historical errors and left one searching for fact, so I broke my public writing hiatus to respond. I hope you’ll read and share the piece. stanforddaily.com/2025/04/22/w...

What DEI threatens isn’t merit. It’s monopoly.

Political science professor Hakeem Jefferson argues for DEI's importance to de-monopolizing universities.

stanforddaily.com

Happy to walk anyone through this. Our grants are proposed work. We often budget for things like salaries, student tuition, and equipment and consumables (in my field). We work on tight margins - we're often asked to "trim" or modify budgets because program officers try to spread the money.

Maya Sen@mayasen.bsky.social · last yr.

Ok so yeah, this has quickly become the #1 misunderstanding about the canceled grants the grants are not “subsidies” or “entitlements” to Harvard or Princeton or whatever they aren’t going into universities’ endowments they are competitive contracts won by these universities to do research

NSF halts grant awards while staff do second review | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

NSF halts grant awards while staff do second review

Action comes after DOGE team arrives at science agency

science.org

Letter from Zoe Lofgren, Ranking member of Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. democrats-science.house.gov/imo/media/do...

New dashboard from @joshuasweitz.bsky.social et al. maps nationwide economic impacts of cuts to NIH funding scienceimpacts.org 🧪

SCIMaP - Impacts of Federal Cuts to Science and Medical Research

Developed by an interdisciplinary research team, this website shows how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwide

scienceimpacts.org

Heck of a closing paragraph.

Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · last yr.

They are further consolidating control over the priorities of federal science funding.

San Diego. This lady for the win.