Join us through the Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship in EEB! Conduct your own research, mentored by 2+ EEB faculty. $65k salary + research/moving $. All areas of EEB welcome. Apply by 11/1 I co-chair this search and am happy to field questions Spread the word! eeb.msu.edu/initiatives/...

Postdoctoral Fellowship - Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior

eeb.msu.edu

New paper! We used drones + ensemble models to map 18 plant species in threatened sagebrush steppe with >90% accuracy. Low-cost RGB cameras perform nearly as well as multispec: good news for monitoring biodiversity in these landscapes. read it here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ra... #drones #sagebrush #UAV

Interested in deep learning in ecology? Apply for a postdoc position at Boise State! We are accepting applications until August 15th. I am at ESA, if anyone would like to have an in-person conversation about the position. #ESA #drones #postdoc #jobs

Trevor Caughlin@trevorcaughlin.bsky.social · 4w ago

New job--please share! Looking for a postdoc to deep learning methods for identifying plant species from drone imagery. The two year position offers a salary of $78,000 and the option to be based in Boise, Idaho, or Burns, Oregon. For more info: caughlinlab.com/join-the-lab/ #postdoc #drones #ai

My Spanish champion is Pontevedra Mayor Miguel Anxo Fernández Lores, who kicked cars out of city center: “It's not my duty as mayor to make sure you have a parking spot. It's the same as if you bought a cow, or fridge, and then ask me where you're going to put them.”

This Spanish city has been restricting cars for 24 years. Here's what we can learn from it

Pontevedra, Spain, offers some of the best evidence available about what happens when a city is reconfigured to accommodate people, rather than cars.

fastcompany.com

New job--please share! Looking for a postdoc to deep learning methods for identifying plant species from drone imagery. The two year position offers a salary of $78,000 and the option to be based in Boise, Idaho, or Burns, Oregon. For more info: caughlinlab.com/join-the-lab/ #postdoc #drones #ai

Collecting wild seed is one of the biggest challenges in restoration ecology. How do you identify reproductive plants across landscapes? We show how drones could provide a solution, predicting flower production of a native shrub: doi.org/10.1016/j.ra... #rangelands #sagebrush ​

New paper out led by Louis Jochems. We develop prediction models for a nasty invasive species, European Frogbit, in the Great Lakes. Dispersal-related variables were more important than establishment-related variables. Statistical models can help guide early detection! 🐸 ☘️ doi.org/10.1002/eap....

new PhD position available! The student will develop remote sensing tools to support land management in the western United States, contributing to ongoing USDA-funded research on monitoring and restoring mesic and riparian ecosystems. For more details, please see: caughlinlab.com/join-the-lab/

Confused writing is usually a symptom of confused thinking. As we struggle to clarify writing, we clarify our thoughts. AI writing aids rob us of that struggle, leaving clean-looking text and thoughts still confused for lack of inspection. Writing is not just a product; it is a diagnostic tool.

new paper, led by @nkolarik.bsky.social: monitoring outcomes of ecological restoration is challenging. Satellite imagery could help, but interpretation requires statistics that can identify breakpoints in messy time-series data. We provide a practical guide: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

after more than 15 years as a scientist, I just submitted my first preprint

a man stands in front of a sign that says ' usted leadership for a stronger america '

ALT: a man stands in front of a sign that says ' usted leadership for a stronger america '

media.tenor.com

Life is all about making choices, and stats is no exception. You can either select the best predictive model out of a big set OR you can look at p-values from a model. Not both! Good news is choosing between prediction vs inference often streamlines workflows and makes writing more logical.

Jo Potts@analyticaledge.bsky.social · last yr.

Another day another example of AIC model selection then interrogating p-values to look at significant effects 😞 (No slight on the authors, a common problem and often journals request—force?— reporting of p-values)

🚨 New paper, led by Cristina Barber. We used high-resolution aerial imagery to study tree mortality in a tropical landscape. Large, isolated trees were most likely to die--alarming finding! @ecologicalsociety.bsky.social esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Given that a substantial number of people will likely read AI-based summaries of our scientific papers, how should we be adapting our writing style? Are there stylistic or structural choices that will make writing more palatable to our AI overlords?

IMPORTANT: The Dutch invested €595 million annually on urban biking, resulting in €19 BILLION saved in public health care costs alone. That’s how smart governments do the math on investing in better mobility. Let’s be clear— it wastes public money to NOT do it. #CityMakingMath HT @modacitylife.com

I am so heartened to this seriously AWESOME #SaveNSF website go up today!!!! Has a take action toolkit with: 1. Press outreach templates 2. Social media toolkit 3. Elected official outreach 4. Talking points Check it out and share widely!!!! Likely more to come. www.savensf.com

Was going to post something pithy about how the takeover of New College relates to state of higher ed...but I can't. This place was my alma mater. Its quirks nourished me and I am heartbroken to see it destroyed www.chronicle.com/article/the-...

The College That Conservatives Took Over

The overhaul of New College of Florida stoked fear on the left and excitement on the right. Two years in, what’s really changed?

chronicle.com

government investments in research aids the economy!!! “... a lot of our increase in living standards seems to be coming from public investment in scientific research,” said Fieldhouse, economist and author of study. “The rates of return are just really high.” www.nytimes.com/2025/04/30/b...

Trump’s Cuts to Science Funding Could Hurt U.S. Economy, Study Shows (Gift Article)

Reducing federal support for research and development could cause long-run economic damage and reduce government revenue.

nytimes.com

A bumper year for bitterbrush flowers in Boise foothills

enjoyed this book on accessory dwelling units in American cities. Zoning for single family homes is not working for many of us; ADUs are emerging as a solution. Author convincingly makes the case that policy solutions, including formalizing "illegal" ADU setups, can help alleviate housing scarcity

Proud of my hometown, Boise Idaho, for serving as a global leader in geothermal energy www.nytimes.com/2025/03/25/c...

They’re in Hot Water in Idaho. Here’s Why That’s a Good Thing. (Gift Article)

Nearly 500 buildings in the state capital get their heat from a clean, renewable source located deep in the ground.

nytimes.com

Tenure clock extensions are a scam! Don't fall for it!

Amy Orsborn@neuroamyo.bsky.social · last yr.

I'm already hearing rumblings from academic leaders that tenure clock extensions may be part of how early career researchers weather this new storm. A reminder that clock extensions are not the easy solution some think them to be: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... We must do better by junior faculty.

We’re making it happen… but the need and timing seems to be accelerating, EO data is an incredible value, and the barriers to entry have been lowering for a while now. The time is now!

Love the idea of a humanitarian satellite constellation

Bill Greer@billfgreer.bsky.social · last yr.

One of the reasons we started Common Space was to make high-resolution optical data open & accessible for humanitarian aid. Right now, the commercial imagery market is dominated by defense & intelligence—which means access is limited, even when lives are at stake. kyivindependent.com/maxar-techno...

please share: I am recruiting for a PhD student to join my lab for fall 2025. I am interested in finding someone who is passionate about applying models to study plant ecology. Potential study systems include urban environments, sagebrush steppe, and tropical forest. caughlinlab.com/join-the-lab/

Having worked in Latin American cities like Buenos Aires, Santiago, Bogotá and especially Medellín, I’ll keep on saying this — global cities have a lot to learn from Latin American cities. Especially around applying the equity lens to infrastructure, and doing smart, creative things REALLY FAST.

Desert stream temps mean life or death for aquatic organisms. Drones can measure stream temps across large areas--but how do drones compare to in situ measurements? In new paper, led by Mel Campbell, we flew for 24 hours to evaluate thermal accuracy #UAS #drones www.mdpi.com/2225-1154/13...