After reviewing nearly 200 applications from prospective grad students and postdocs over the past few months for a couple different 🧪⚒️ postings, here are some tips, at least as they apply to North American positions. I hope they help future applicants. Share with your networks. 🧵

Join us! ETH Zürich and the Department of Environmental Systems Science (D-USYS) is seeking an Assistant Professor (Tenure Track) of Sustainable Plant Nutrition @usyseth.bsky.social ethz.ch/en/the-eth-z...

Silly me

📚𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 Translational control in plants: from basic mechanisms to environmental and developmental responses 🧬🌱 ✍️ Jade Lyons, @kmerchante.bsky.social @alonsostepanovalab.bsky.social Discover the power of translation in shaping plant responses 🌱👉 doi.org/10.1111/tpj.70647

'Although AI is helping Science catch errors that can be corrected or elements that are missing from a paper but should be included, such as supporting code or raw data, its use and the evaluation of the output require more human effort, not less.' www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

A thing I think about a lot is how the hyper powerful and tech billionaires want to be seen as people saving humanity, which is why they create space companies to send us to Mars and invest in gen AI to render us more "productive" And yet, not a single one is working to solve climate change.

It's quite incredible how this poor and inaccurate tool has been prioritised and integrated *so* effectively that I regularly have people tell me something they've 'looked up' and I have to say 'you're not just reading the AI overview are you' and they are. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

A little introduction /reintroduction to me. #cansky 1/15

The next online talk will look at life on the road in the mediaeval period. What was it like to travel, who could be found on the road, and what observations did they leave us? I'll be live online at 7pmGMT on Wednesday 28 January. Booking & more info: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-mediae...

Genome editing in brown algae! 🧬🪸🌿 Now out in Cell Reports Methods! Excited to share this highly efficient, transgene-free CRISPR–Cas genome editing protocol for brown algae, requiring no cloning and no specialized equipment. doi.org/10.1016/j.cr... #CRISPR #BrownAlgae @mpi-bio-fml.bsky.social

🧵 Big News: Today was my last day at work. I resigned to completely dedicate my time to trans activism as long as it's financial feasible I'll be writing a book debunking anti-trans attacks that falsely claim to be founded in "biology" and making educational resources at @beyondxandy.bsky.social

Loving this beautiful cover image in this week's @science.org illustrating the paper which came out online late last year www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... #Plantscience

A little eel history to welcome the year! In 1535, Richard Graynfeld wrote Arthur Plantagenet about the fishing in the castle moat, saying: "I pray God send us good stuff of eels." And may it be so with you, too, friends. I wish you all good stuff of eels in this coming year. 🗃️🧪

The best of 2025 : Accountabiility.

New Year's at the Gldani prison in Tbilisi. Georgia now has more political prisoners per capita than Russia. January 1, 2026 is Day 400 of daily #GeorgiaProtests 📷 @mariamnikuradze.bsky.social

Proof

I do not like your AI slop I do not like it, make it stop I do not want an AI house I do not want an AI mouse No AI box. No AI fox— That AI slop can go kick rocks I would not AI here or there I would not AI anywhere No AI car, no AI czar Your AI slop is killing trees I do not like it, let me be!

Like a rainforest fractal on the rainforest floor: a green sea of haircap moss.

Is this a joke @washghost1 asks? Gaining 1million views, and a comments section full of FUMING right wingers frothing at the mouth! No, it’s not a joke It’s not a thing It is entirely made up to elicit exactly that reaction (This is a twitter thing but the moral of the story holds here!) 🧵 1/7

Beautifully bedazzled Strawberry Squid! #LetsChangeThat

These blue beans are gorgeous and this thread is fascinating! As a botanist in a past life, this is so interesting. And this colour. 😍💙 I am also really curious about using these for natural dyeing. I know anthocyanins in black beans can be used to make a range of colours, including blue.

Looking for a cozy mystery for the 👉in-betweeny👈 time? The Crimson Diamond is 25% off! Overwhelmingly Positive on Steam! 88 on Metacritic! Blurbed by Roberta Williams herself! 💬 Check it out here: store.steampowered.com/app/1098770/...

The most worthy quest for blue beans, and ultimately blue veggies. (At first glance I thought the pic was a jar of blue smarties.)

UK had many problems before Brexit. But Brexit has solved none and made most worse. EU member states have many problems now. But their people have seen that putting up economic and political barriers with neighbours means the opposite of 'taking back control'.

Your passion reminds me of @seamus.bsky.social amazing ancient Egyptian bread baking adventure Good luck! www.eater.com/2019/8/8/207...

Great thread on #seed #coat #colour in beans. Back in school, it was these types of experiments (on peas and fruit flies) that sparked my interest for #genetics.

A few years ago, through luck and vibes, I managed to produce this blue colored bean variety. This was an early step in trying to answer the question, [paraphrased] "Why isn't blue as common as red in beans, even though they're both anthocyanins and the plant has the genes for both?"

These technologies can and are being used to create lifelike images and videos of actual living women and girls. For what I think are pretty obvious gendered civil rights reasons, it needs to be a recognized civil cause of action to create an AI image or avatar of a woman without her consent.

Motivation for choosing a botany-related education pathway: 𝙐𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣.

Why botany? "𝙈𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙮 𝙗𝙤𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙖 𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙨𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣. 𝘼𝙜𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙥 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙜𝙡𝙤𝙗𝙖𝙡 𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙪𝙚. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙄 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙮 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙥 𝙨𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚."

Day 395 of Georgia’s unbroken resistance. It is now illegal under Ivanishvili’s authoritarian rule to express peaceful protest near the parliament building, even by standing on a sidewalk.

First trailer for "Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia" anime series by Science Saru studio. Directed by Naoko Yamada & Abel Gongora. Character designer & Animation director : Kenichi Yoshida. Based on the manga by Tomato Soup. Coming in July 2026. Full video >> www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqB3...

🔬 EXPERT VIEW 🔬 In this review, Cox & Czymmek cover the recent developments of expansion microscopy techniques in plant systems and provides examples of their applications in plant biology research. 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/... #PlantScience 🧪 @kcox-bioguy.bsky.social

I wish there was a game where I could simulate mixing chemicals in flasks and it have a realistic chemical physics engine to emulate a real world lab, but with no dumbing down of the processes. A real ChemSim. Would play it all day, lol. Role play an industrial chemist :)

I love this thread. One thing I’ve been focusing on with my group this last year - and my biggest initiative for 2026 - is trying to get everyone, especially junior people, to feel comfortable proposing new analyses, asking questions, investigating the “oh, that’s weird” in the data we handle.

Should Andrew Mountbatten Windsor lose further titles?

Some people do my head in. This arse is one of them. Why TF would we care about his business…? Did he care about all the SMEs bankrupted by Brexit? Does he feel any anxiety or shame about just how much that stupid idea has cost our country and many of us personally. No. He can absolutely do one.

Huge news from Blakeney Point...

My final paper from my postdoc with @trevorrife.bsky.social is out! If you've ever manually counted or sorted seeds, sampled tissue with a hole punch, filled tubes or plates with beads/seeds this is for you! dx.doi.org/10.1002/csc2... Get the designs free here: www.printables.com/model/135088...

'I am grateful that #PlantScience is so international and so full of people who are really motivated to try to improve the world for many living things.' – Dominique Bergmann Explore New Phytologist's Profiles 👇 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/...

UK to re-join Erasmus+ – here are six benefits of the European exchange scheme Brexit didn't have to mean the end of Erasmus+, and the government has now announced we will join the scheme again @centralbylines.co.uk

The New Phytologist Foundation supports symposia, conferences, meetings and other initiatives that further innovation and advancement in #PlantScience research around the world 👇 www.newphytologist.org/grants-award...

I’ll never look at avocados in quite the same way: The latest from UC Berkeley Miller Fellow Jeff Groh who sits in my lab and Ben Blackman’s lab. He works on balancing selection and molecular mechanisms underlying the coevolutionary phenomenon of mating type alternation (PhD with Graham Koop).