In some ways, this does make more sense than ctenophores as the outgroup to all other animals because it allows for the developmental programming for *some* sort of symmetry to be a synapomorphy of non-sponge animals.

Really bad news budgetprocess.unl.edu/final-budget...

There's something that feels a bit dead about the world right now, but tens of thousands of people just came together to help us solve a 100 year old mystery about a little blue jelly, and I find that heartbreakingly hopeful:

When I explain why I retired from teaching after 38 years, some of these same thoughts come up. www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...

At an airport in South Carolina on Thursday, representative Nancy Mace called police officers “fucking incompetent” and berated them repeatedly, according to an incident report. www.wired.com/story/nancy-...

Pretty good article about the specifics of PRI's situation and what led to the immediate need they have from upstate NY based media. www.newyorkupstate.com/news/2025/10...

We are so lucky to have him. www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...

At the empty USGS booth at GSA. More out of view on both sides

The very first moments of the Cenozoic

Reporting live from Chicago, there’s no “hellscape” I’d rather be in.

This is a great example of geoheritage: www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

Federal Troops Arrive in Portland and Immediately Form Bands

Science news article about 2nd year grad students being unceremoniously dropped from the GRFP eligibility with no explanation or warning: www.science.org/content/arti...

#BrianKilmeade should've been fired a LONG time before this. But especially this time @foxnews.com.web.brid.gy do something right, for once in your miserable existence as a so-called NewsOrg. Fire Kilmeade! #FoxNews

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/08/o...

I'm in there. I bet many of you are. www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...

Global Change Biology | Environmental Change Journal | Wiley Online Library onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Hoo boy

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/u...

Been talking with a recent graduate in biology who wants to get a Masters in vertebrate paleontology. He's taking a gap year and will take some geology classes. He's looking for suggestions for grad schools. I had some ideas but would love to hear some more - anyone willing to communicate with him?

No, JD, belonging in America does not depend on how many generations of your family have lived here. The values of this country matter - deeply - to who we are and what it means to be American.

Yet another Mazon Creek animal reconsidered

The story about Colbert being cancelled because…. Trump doesn’t like him, should be a warning shot to everyone. The oligarchy has the power… they will use their money to silence you. Time to rise up.

Honorable mentions: total 2020 1788 2021 1786 2022 1377 2023 803 2024 1719 2025 2535

Awarded GRFPs since 2020. Yearly totals: 2020: 2076 2021: 2074 2022: 2193 2023: 2555 2024: 2036 2025: 1500

Here are the ecology and evolutionary biology numbers: Awarded Ecology: 44 (2.9%), Evolutionary Biology 19 (1.3%); Honorable Mention Ecology 198 (7.9%), Evolutionary Biology 74 (2.9%). Again, the drop off from Honorable Mention to Awarded is telling.

Some numbers on the 2025 GRFP awards. Total awards: 1500. Total in Geoscience: 85 (5.7%). Total in paleontology/paleobiology: 2 (0.13%). Honorable mentions: 2535. Total in geoscience: 217 (8.6%). Total in paleontology/paleobiology: 11 (0.43%). Not good.

Indiana University Bloomington B.A. in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences B.S. in Atmospheric Science B.S. in Earth Science B.S. in Environmental Geoscience Indiana University Indianapolis B.A./B.S. in Geology Indiana University Northwest B.A./B.S. in Geology

Here is the list: Ball State University B.A./B.S. in Geology M.S. in Geology and Natural Resources B.A./B.S. in Environmental Geoscience M.A. in Environmental Geoscience Indiana University Bloomington B.A. in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences B.S. in Atmospheric Science

Many of these are geoscience programs! Editorial: Indiana University, Ball State and Purdue are gutted without logic or thought www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/07/e...

Research Alert‼️ Why were ~50 enigmatic, small crustaceans from the Carboniferous Period found clustered together? Paper led by my good colleague Russell Bicknell. Here's a short news story: collections.museums.ua.edu/2025/07/03/o... Belated #FossilFriday #paleontology #fossil @almnh.bsky.social

It's a tragic point to make re the direct line connecting the killing cuts from EOs DOGE & now reconciliation bill to these deaths by cuts. Pressure Congress to do their jobs this fall & vote back the cuts. All of em. Resist here www.standupforscience.net/take-action #SUFS #SaveNOAA #SaveFEMA

I spoke to @ninalakhani.bsky.social for this article and reading it was still a gut punch. The US’s gold-standard scientific funding system has been completely demolished. I genuinely don’t know what to do with what remains. And it’s going to get even worse under the new budget.

Will be explaining what paleontologists actually do, why it is important, and why it is under dire threat in the US to the annual gathering of Mensa on Friday (not a member, they invited me).

Are there any folks in science journalism space in NY, or the US in general who would be interested in doing a story on the Paleontological Research Institution? They are one of the 10 largest fossil museums in the US and desperately need ~1-2million dollars by December to pay off their mortgage 🧪

New Evidence Suggests Dinosaurs Would Have Driven Selves To Extinction Through Greed And Complacency Anyway — theonion.com/new-evidence...

None in life sciences beause obviously biomaterials and agriculature are not important areas for the future.

This wouldn't happen if they had submitted handmade tales

I have a Fulbright student from Norway scheduled to come in August ... Has already made all of her plans for her stay, and now we are no longer sure what will happen. Heartbreaking, and severely damaging and wasteful for US science.

My sign is ready #NoKingsDay

I'm just glad one of these men has the nuclear codes and the other has all our personal data.

A scientific conference in Chicago that was going to be held next month, is being cancelled because of foreign travel issues. www.icdd.com/xafs19/

What is going on? This is insane. Trump just shared a completely unhinged conspiracy theory claiming President Biden was “executed in 2020” and replaced by a robot clone.

Tragic.

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/26/s...