“America isn't the way it is because he's president. He's president because America is the way it is” — David Cochrane CBC Power and Politics

"Independence would shift the question from “How do we gain entry?” to “What forms of knowledge become possible when we are not organizing ourselves around entry?” This all requires what the imperial center covets and hoards from the margin: resources." lareviewofbooks.org/article/univ...

I do not use ChatGPT as my search engine because, among other things, I understand the difference between looking for the correct thing and looking for the most frequent thing

“Perfectionism is about the avoidance of unhappiness. There are therefore as many kinds of perfectionist as there are kinds of unhappiness” “Phylogenetics without genomic data would be inaccurate, but phylogenetics without morphology and other phenotypic information would be pointless” Great post!

Reminded of this Simpson (1944) quote: “It is, however, pusillanimous to avoid making our best efforts today because they may appear inadequate tomorrow.”

Scientific fashions, perfectionisms, and the value of traditional morphological taxonomy. #evolbio #philsci 🧪 waynemaddison.wordpress.com/2026/07/16/s...

#HigherEd workload is out of control. It is time for a sector-wide teaching formula. Currently, we get the same teaching credit for teaching a course of 20 students as we do for teaching a course of 1800. The workload is not the same, and the distribution of course assignments is not equitable.

Probably more helpful to think of them not so much as “Canadian wildfires” but rather “climate change wildfires currently consuming Canada”

Meet Algonquin Park’s oldest residents https://www.northbaynipissing.com/news/algonquin-life-old-growth-forests/article_46c52551-365d-5b37-a210-e35d0ada905d.html

Fascinating perspective of a strikingly bizarre (and potentially unique) phenomena in #ctenophores ✨ Published this week in @france.theconversation.com English translation: "With or without synapses? The unique nervous system of ctenophores—or how a century-old scientific debate has resurfaced." 🦑

ICYMI

Our News & Views article “Body-plan organizer in comb jellies hints at animal ancestry” now published in @nature.com 🎉 We discuss fascinating work revealing organizer activity in comb jellies & the evolution of animal development. rdcu.be/fsLWq @ruthstyfhals.bsky.social @msarscentre.bsky.social

Beautiful ctenophore 📷 taken by @alexandrejan.bsky.social The original research is “A blastoporal organizer in a ctenophore” by @kremnyovs.bsky.social, @tclebedeva.bsky.social, @genikhovich.bsky.social and @hejnol.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1038/s415...

New study shows there may be 2-3x as many insect species as previously estimated, owing significantly to the diversity of parasitoid wasps!

IMHO the COVID pandemic exposed the colossal failure that is the public health policy build on decades of neglect and complacency. The communications alone was simply dreadful.

After SARS, Canada stockpiled masks. Then let them rot. COVID hit, and they had nothing. @picardonhealth.bsky.social: "When public health is successful, you're invisible." We never seem to learn that lesson. Do we ever? 🎙 Ep 5 of One Crisis After Another: youtu.be/9ufDTckCjpw?...

This is true of anything that acts in a preventative manner, be it preparation for pandemics, vaccines, safe water, food testing, avoiding too much sun, homing the homeless.

#insects #ecology #entomology #biodiversity 'A new estimate of insect species globally finds that there may be 8 to 14 million more species than people thought, with few of them discovered yet.' today.uconn.edu/2026/07/ther...

🧪 Physiology is a hidden dimension of diversity in the radiation of woodland salamanders | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

There are dozens of species of similar-looking woodland salamanders in Appalachia. A study of 33 species shows that they nevertheless vary in physiological traits, such as skin resistance to water loss, metabolic rate, and cold tolerance. In PNAS: https://ow.ly/qhJW50ZhXem

🧪 (drat)

The answer to the loneliness crisis isn't telling people with long Covid & other disabilities to take more health risks. It's creating a society where people don't have to choose between protecting their health & participating in community in the first place

Carinaria is a sea snail that swims upside down in the open ocean with a tiny shell perched on its back like a party hat several sizes too small. It's a mostly transparent predator in a party hat, and there is no party. There was never going to be a party. #MolluscMonday #marinelife

I first met Neil Shubin 30 years ago when he was digging for fossils of our fishy ancestors in Pennsylvania road cuts. Now he's becoming president of the National Academy of Sciences. We talked about taking the helm of the 163-year-old organization at this fraught moment. Gift link: nyti.ms/4giD3FX

#HigherEd: "We value transdisciplinary research and teaching." Also #HigherEd: "We can't allow non-disciplinary members on thesis examination committees."

Turns out the number of insect species is...a lot. I tell people that there are 3700 described species of mosquito but it's my opinion that it's probably closer to 7,000. Might need to rethink that. 🦟🪰🧪

As a reminder, the difference between n insect species and n total (multicellular) species is practically insignificant. When it comes to species richness, our planet consists of: 1 insects, 2 more insects, 3 did I mention insects ... 99 some miscellaneous riff-raff.

Haven't had time to read this article yet, but what I've glanced at and heard sounds interesting! Some day, we'll be able to answer the question "How many species are there on Earth?" with more than a bemused shrug of shoulders, and work like this helps us get there.

NEW paper on the #deepsea stars of Costa Rica, including 3 new species and a new subspecies collected by @schmidtocean with assist by Greg Rouse and Charlotte Seid at @scripps_ocean My thanks to Schmidt for supporting Open access! doi.org/10.11646/zoo...

Tommy Hunter, a fixture in Canadian living rooms for decades with his long-running CBC TV show, has died. He was 89. youtube.com/watch?v=5OoT...

🧪

This isn't just a paper about insects. It's a demonstration of what decades of biodiversity inventory, conservation, and scientific collaboration can achieve. Congratulations to Dan & Winnie, the parataxonomists, and all the authors on this remarkable PNAS publication. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

carpet of caterpillars layer of larvae wonderwall of worm forms plethora of pre-pupae lots of leps

Today is Moving Day in Quebec. Every year on this day, thousands of Quebec residents load up trucks and vans to move residences. The origin of Moving Date dates back centuries to the era of New France. This is the story. 📸 Montreal Gazette Archives 🧵 1/7

A giant isopod hauling its own bodyweight in sargassum four miles down is a good reminder that in a food-poor abyss, you take the meal you find and you do not let go. Energy is the whole story down there.

Crinoids as "living fossils" drives me crazy. Modern crinoids are more species-rich than extant primates and about twice as diverse as turtles. They live in habitats ranging from the deep sea to coral reefs. And they're quite morphologically & ecologically disparate if you understand how they live!

🤣 🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛🐛 🧪

It's full of (in)stars

🧪 "Más de tres décadas de investigación en el ACG transforman la estimación mundial" "More than three decades of research at the ACG are transforming global estimates." www.acguanacaste.ac.cr/noticias/not...

🧪 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 "Study finds number of insect species on Earth is more than double previous estimates" 🎁link to a wonderful article by @ivansemeniuk.bsky.social in the @theglobeandmail.com about our #OA PNAS paper doi.org/10.1073/pnas.... @gdfcf.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/c231c7b...

In this blog, the Guest Editors of #ProcB's new Special Feature discuss the inspiration behind "The other 1%", the importance of showcasing research from underrepresented regions and what they learned from bringing this unique collection together buff.ly/QDCSTUM | #Ecology #GlobalSouth

This Special Feature from #ProcB showcases research from scientists, countries and regions underrepresented in the scientific literature, while addressing inequities in publishing and "helicopter science". Discover the collection: buff.ly/RjnbPC7 | #Ecology #GlobalSouth

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 In many ways, the deeper story is that patient, long-term inventory work in one very special place, involving the people of that place, has generated insights about biodiversity at a global scale. @gdfcf.bsky.social doi.org/10.1073/pnas...  grateful to have been part of the team🧵

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 The result is striking: our work suggests that Earth may harbor a minimum of 14 to 30 million insect species, far above the long-standing estimate of roughly six million.  Most of life is <1g, <1cm and has no name. 97% of insect species may not be named!  doi.org/10.1073/pnas...

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 Highly collaborative work is directly rooted in decades of biodiversity inventory in ACG — the Lep inventory begun by Dan Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs, the work of the #parataxonomists, Malaise trapping, DNA barcoding, and global taxonomic collaborations. doi.org/10.1073/pnas...

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 Using different kinds of sampling,  including parasitoids reared from caterpillars and collected using Malaise traps, we extrapolate to a conservative estimate of how many species of insects exist in ACG, and then, by comparing to other taxa, the world.  doi.org/10.1073/pnas...

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 We begin by estimating how many species of microgastrine wasp there may actually be - based on (the!) Anne Chao's estimation using DNA barcoded wasps from all collection methods.

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 In our paper, we (an international team of authors) root our answer in the globally unique biodiversity hotspot, (and UNESCO World Heritage Site), in northwestern Costa Rica, the Área de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG). @gdfcf.bsky.social

🧪🧵 🪰 🐜🪲🐞🦗🐛🦋🪳🦟 How many species of insect are there?  A seemingly simple question, but one that has been 'bugging' scientists for years.  Our work out today suggests that there are millions more than we had previously expected.  doi.org/10.1073/pnas... @gdfcf.bsky.social