In a recent lecture for the Canadian Philosophical Association & the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science, I predicted that prediction markets would include betting on the success of repro-genetic interventions. This moves us closer to the unfortunate future I anticipate.

NPR@npr.org · 4d ago

Researchers warn betting on clinical trials could incentivize insider trading and interfere with drug development. But Kalshi and Polymarket say they provide valuable information to patients. n.pr/3RTTTRW

✨ Celebrate excellence. Support Canada's future. ✨ Join us on for the RSC Annual Gala. Every ticket supports the RSC's mission to recognize Canada's leading scholars, researchers, and artists and bring their expertise to conversations shaping our future. 🎟️ Register: bit.ly/3TqopmV #COEE2026

✨ Célébrons l’excellence. Façonnons le Canada de demain. ✨ Soyez des nôtres au Gala annuel de la SRC. Chaque inscription nous aidera à honorer les plus éminents universitaires, chercheurs et artistes canadiens et à éclairer les conversations qui façonnent notre avenir. 🎟️ Inscription: bit.ly/3TlfnYp

"Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them." ― Margaret Atwood

Listening to Cory @doctorow.pluralistic.net always feels shocking, because he so clearly articulates an objective reality that is aggressively concealed by almost the entirety of the media industry, not least the financial press.

Frank Mc Girr@vhsteacher.com · last wk.

Excellent long-form interview about AI. With Jon Stewart and @doctorow.pluralistic.net the writer and activist who coined the term "enshittification"—the process by which digital platforms gradually become worse for users as they prioritize profits and business interests. youtu.be/-dAIJRjb-Bw

Nature is investigating concerns surrounding a paper at the heart of a news story we published with @science.org last week on the death of a 6-year-old girl following a gene therapy treatment in China.

Journal, university investigations launched into gene-editing death following Science-Retraction Watch reporting

Nature is investigating concerns surrounding a paper at the heart of a news story published last week on the death of a 6-year-old girl following a gene therapy treatment in China. The paper, publi…

retractionwatch.com

A quick reminder of per capita deaths from COVID in the first phase. Deaths were 3 times higher in the US vs Canada. Without the work of Tony Fauci it would very likely have been much worse.

David Rothkopf@djrothkopf.bsky.social · 2w ago

Disappointed in number of stories about Fauci that neglected to point out that the attacks on him are part of an on-going effort by Trump and GOP to distract from their catastrophic mismanagement of the pandemic, mismanagement estimated to have caused hundreds of thousands of unnecessary US deaths.

A fatal reaction: A cutting-edge gene-editing trial in China went disastrously wrong. The death of 6-year-old girl was never made public. Now, her family wants accountability, by @bborrell.bsky.social www.science.org/content/arti... via @science.org @retractionwatch.com

Exclusive: Death of girl in Chinese gene-editing trial was never made public

Parents want accountability after study went disastrously wrong, Science and Retraction Watch investigation reveals

science.org

Québec’s Bill 9 doesn’t just ban symbols — it bans obligations

Québec’s Bill 9 doesn’t just ban symbols — it bans obligations

Québec’s Bill 9 demands the public sphere be free of visible religion, even when expressions of religion take are obligations its adherents cannot set aside.

theconversation.com

Trump / Miller are now limiting student visas to 4 years. PhD programs typically run 5-6 years in many disciplines.

Trump administration tightens visa rules for foreign students

Students will need federal permission to stay longer than four years in the US and universities will lose the power to extend visas.

bbc.com

Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 11mo ago

Every single day of this administration, I have thought of my late professor Joe Nye and his work on soft power. Every single day of this administration, Trump finds a new way to hemorrhage soft power from a country that once had more to spare than any in the world.

Darn scientists keep making findings that undermine our pea brained ideologies and racist talking points. We’ve learned enough. Release the Ivermectin applications!

Carl Zimmer@carlzimmer.com · last mo.

The @nytimes.com Lost Science series continues. USG killed funding for Jessica Cantlon's study of cognitive skills, saying it was turning from basic to applied science. "There won’t be more discoveries, and we’ll just stop at what we already know," Cantlon says. Gift link: nyti.ms/4hbDmCS

Why all politicians, but looking at you Canada, should get off X @mark-carney.bsky.social

The Atlantic@theatlantic.com · last mo.

“The story has become even stranger with the growing integration of Grok”: The technology writer Ben Tarnoff and the historian Quinn Slobodian, authors of “Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed,” discuss how X’s owner may influence social media. Watch Galaxy Brain: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tysm...

The Atlantic republishes JD Vance’s anti-Trump essay from 10 years ago Magazine invites readers to judge Vance’s ‘assessment’ of Trump, whom he called ‘cultural heroin’ during first term www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

The Atlantic republishes JD Vance’s anti-Trump essay from 10 years ago

Magazine invites readers to judge Vance’s ‘assessment’ of Trump, whom he called ‘cultural heroin’ during first term

theguardian.com

It's time to recognize higher educating as a matter of national security for Canada www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...

Opinion: It’s time to recognize higher education as a matter of national security for Canada

Decades-long efforts to turn higher education into a majority privilege also serve to bolster our physical, economic and social security

theglobeandmail.com

“It’s just a microscopic water droplet surrounded by a fatty membrane and stuffed with chemicals and snippets of DNA encoding a mere 36 genes. But it’s also arguably the closest researchers have come to building a living cell from scratch.”🧪 My story in @science.org on a fascinating preprint:

Lab-created ‘SpudCell’ marks ‘stunning’ step toward building life from scratch

A synthetic cell can now grow and divide—but it’s still far from alive

science.org

ICYMI: From fortifying Canada’s food security to keeping children safe online, CCA assessments are informing some of the most important policy conversations of the day. go.cca-reports.ca/44IDgew

The Advance

In this edition: Take our quick survey and help shape future issues. ICYMI: What stops...

go.cca-reports.ca

Fertility Inc.: A five-part series by the IJB that delves into the Wild West of the egg-freezing industry, its aggressive marketing, the high costs and the chances of an eventual successful pregnancy nationalpost.com/tag/fertilit... via @nationalpost.bsky.social @ijbstories.bsky.social

Centering Marginalized Voices Is Not Musical Chairs impactethics.ca/2026/06/26/c...

Centering Marginalized Voices Is Not Musical Chairs

Daphne Pereira points out that expanding the circle doesn’t mean shrinking or displacing anyone else.

impactethics.ca

This week, the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science and the Canadian Philosophical Association meet in Halifax. I will be giving the Stillman Drake Keynote lecture – “Building Better (Human) Beings: Gattaca Stack & Prediction Markets.” Hope to see some of you there.

theconversation.com/as-corporati...

As corporations race for the stars, we need international collaboration on space governance

Human activity is causing large disruptions to the near-Earth space environment. We need an intergovernmental panel on space sustainability.

theconversation.com

theconversation.com/why-brain-he...

Why brain health is an urgent priority for G7 member countries

As G7 societies age and birth rates decline, we must invest in collaborative open science research, to optimize brain health for every citizen.

theconversation.com

Yesterday was an important first for me in my role as President of the Royal Society of Canada @src-rsc.bsky.social we delivered S7 Statements on Brain health (including mental health); Large Satellite Constellations; and the Global Arctic. The aim — provide G7 leaders with best-available evidence

Françoise Combes, présidente de l'Académie des sciences de France, souhaite la bienvenue aux participants au Sommet S7 à Paris. Nous sommes ici pour deux jours de discussions avec nos collègues. Restez à l'écoute. @src-rsc.bsky.social

Françoise Combes, President of the Académie des sciences in France welcomes delegates to the S7 Summit in Paris. Looking forward to two days of discussions with colleagues — stay tuned @src-rsc.bsky.social

Just in: A federal appeals court has restricted access to one of the most common means of abortion in the U.S. by blocking the mailing of mifepristone.

Court restricts abortion access across the US by blocking the mailing of mifepristone

A federal appeals court has restricted access to one of the most common means of abortion in the U.S. by blocking the mailing of mifepristone.

n.pr

Earlier this week, The Honourable Mike Savage, Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia (@ltgov-novascotia.bsky.social) and @francoisebaylis.bsky.social (FRSC), President of the RSC, were pleased to host a roundtable discussion at Government House with Nova Scotia based RSC Members.

Empathy-Simulating Chatbots: A Double-Edged Sword in Mental Health Care impactethics.ca/2026/04/29/e...

Empathy-Simulating Chatbots: A Double-Edged Sword in Mental Health Care

Vanita Fernandes warns that the use of empathy-simulating chatbots in mental health care poses ethical concerns including the risk of deception.

impactethics.ca

After two terms and more than 16 years as Executive Director of  the Royal Society of Canada, Darren Gilmour is stepping down next month. Learn more below.

Darren Gilmour to Step Down as Executive Director of the Royal Society of Canada (RSC)

After two terms and more than 16 years as Executive Director of  the Royal Society of Canada, Darren Gilmour is stepping down next month.

rsc-src.ca

Après deux mandats et plus de 16 ans de loyaux services en tant que de directeur général de la Société royale du Canada, Darren Gilmour quittera ses fonctions le mois prochain. En savoir plus ci-dessous.

Darren Gilmour quitte ses fonctions de directeur général de la Société royale du Canada (SRC)

Après deux mandats et plus de 16 ans de loyaux services en tant que de directeur général de la Société royale du Canada, Darren Gilmour quittera ses fonctions le mois prochain.

rsc-src.ca

« La SRC, reconnue comme le plus important regroupement d’éminents savants, chercheurs et artistes au Canada, constitue un organisme apte à fournir le leadership intellectuel nécessaire au mieux-être de la société canadienne et mondiale. » Qu'avons-nous fait? Que pourrions-nous faire?

The Royal Society of Canada // La Société royale du Canada @src-rsc.bsky.social · 3mo ago

📅 Nouvel événement – en ligne | Le 12 mai, nous tiendrons le second volet d’une série de webinaires animés par la présidente de la SRC, @francoisebaylis.bsky.social (MSRC). Soyez des nôtres pour avoir des nouvelles de la SRC. S'inscrire pour la session en français ci-dessous (à 13 h 30 HE)!