I started in journalism in 2017 and I can’t really express how different it is in only less than a decade.

I’ll be at the SLEEP 2026 meeting in Baltimore next month….anyone else? #neuroskyence

SCOOP: The F.D.A. blocked the release of studies finding that Covid and shingles vaccines were safe. In the case of Covid, FDA staff had to withdraw studies heading toward publication: www.nytimes.com/2026/05/05/u...

Breaking: Trump has fired the membership of the National Science Board, which is oversees NSF. I have confirmed separately with multiple now-former members of NSB.

We’re on strike today! Support our fight for a fair contract by NOT visiting the @propublica.org website or engaging with ProPublica stories today. Tell ProPublica’s management you won’t cross the picket line: actionnetwork.org/petitions/te...

I’m quoted in this important Guardian article by @whatsitlike.me about colon cancer. I got the bad news today that chemo didn’t do the trick after 24 treatments. I start immunotherapy next week. Get tested folks; don’t ignore your health. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Breaking News: The Nobel laureate Richard Axel said he was resigning as co-director of a Columbia brain institute over his friendship with Jeffery Epstein.

Never in a million years did I ever fathom when I resurrected the Epstein story in 2018 that it would lead to first arrest of a British Royal in four centuries. Not since King Charles I was arrested in 1647. open.substack.com/pub/jkbjourn...

Scoop: Ring's CEO told staff Search Party is not going to be just for dogs, according to a leaked email I obtained. Said it is "first for finding dogs" before suggesting it would be expanded to be used for crime: www.404media.co/leaked-email...

A journal has retracted the largest leucovorin trial in people with autism—one of just five randomized clinical trials assessing this treatment in autistic people. By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/lar...

I wrote about an extremely strange fellow from 410 million years ago defector.com/who-the-hell...

Just got back from CES, and on a related note I want to live off-grid now

BREAKING: Federal health officials on Monday announced dramatic revisions to the slate of vaccines recommended for American children, reducing the number of diseases prevented by routine shots to 11 from 17. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/h...

Neuroscientists are working to solve a behavior problem in preclinical psychedelics research: Instead of identifying a simple test yielding a universal result, they are designing more nuanced tasks that better reflect human behavior. By @callimcflurry.bsky.social #neuroskyence bit.ly/4jc24lW

One of the funniest things I ever did was quit academia because I thought finding a job in journalism would be easier

I know my work is kind of silly now but we all do need a pillow. Should you get a custom pillow? www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/r...

I’m going to CES next month! Anyone else?

“Basic neuroscience hasn’t produced new drugs.” 💊 Not true - zuranolone (PPD), suzetrigine (pain), gepants (migraine), and more... were born out of a long arc of studies in the lab. I wrote a Perspective on why this matters. @thetransmitter.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/drug-develop...

Just got off the list for 11/22/63 at the library. Chat what do we think about this book?

Are you wondering hey, what’s the best memory foam pillow out there? I have some options for you in my FIRST GUIDE as a staff writer for Wirecutter! I seriously never thought I’d get to have a job this cool so I am not gonna shut up about this for a while… www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/r...

The work with bats on barren, 7-acre Latham Island was Nachum Ulanovsky’s most complex undertaking yet. By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...

The FDA wants to expand the use of leucovorin to treat autism traits, based on an analysis of the scientific research. @thetransmitter.bsky.social has obtained the list of 23 studies. By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/exc...

They got me

As we're all taught, you can (usually) only directly date the age of a rock if it cooled from lava. But here, scientists have dated dinosaur eggs, using uranium-lead ratios in the calcite. Hugely exciting, maybe groundbreaking. My take @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

We lost Mark Norell today. Dinosaur hunter extraordinaire. The coolest dude alive. My PhD supervisor. Wherever you are, raise a glass of your favorite lager or single malt, as it is what Mark would want.

Just so saddened to lose my doctoral supervisor and mentor Mark Norell today. He was one of a kind and his personality almost defies description. A legendary scientist but also human. I will be missing him so much.

New: I teamed up with @elenashao.bsky.social and nytgraphics to map more than 100 public TV and radio stations that are at risk of closing as a result of tonight's vote: www.nytimes.com/interactive/... This is a time bomb that will go off in the fall, when the last federal grants run out.

Today is my first day at @nytwirecutter.bsky.social! Beginning my journey of learning about sleep products such as mattresses, sunrise alarm clocks and more. 💤

Leafcutter ants’ specialized roles can be reprogrammed by adjusting two neuropeptides, a new Cell study shows. And the molecular mechanisms that control the labor roles of ants may also be conserved in mammals. By @shaena.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...

Bittersweet: today is my last day at The Transmitter. I had a great time working here and writing about fascinating work in the field of neuroscience. Also if you just follow me for brain stuff there won't be as much of that anymore, so I apologize. Although...new exciting things are on the horizon!

Trump Seeks to Cut Basic Scientific Research by Roughly One-Third, Report Shows. Gift link: nyti.ms/44KFFFv

A 2022 Nature paper identifying a cell type linked to the brain cancer medulloblastoma has been retracted after an independent reanalysis questioned the cell type’s existence, despite objections from the original authors. By @shaena.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/cell-types/n...

Our award-winning news team is looking for an enthusiastic trade journalist to join our fast-paced newsroom in NYC. This is an excellent opportunity for a science journalist to develop a beat in the field of neuroscience. For more info, please visit: bit.ly/4nvAy4k #neuroskyence

My favorite writer wrote about sleep! Or lack thereof...a predictably excellent story from Jennifer Senior at The Atlantic. www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

Are you a science journalist who loves neuroscience? There's an opening for you here! Happy to answer any questions.

The neurons that encode sequential information into working memory do not fire in that same order during recall, a finding that is at odds with a long-standing theory. Read more in this month’s Null and Noteworthy. By @ldattaro.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/null-and-not...

Interesting new idea about what the hippocampus does: "contextualize our experiences and provide a scaffold onto which we can form memories" 🧪 www.thetransmitter.org/memory/expan... from @thetransmitter.bsky.social

Applications are open for the first Cephalopod Neuroscience Gordon Conference, to be held February 2026! Hope to see many of you there! 🐙🧠🔬 www.grc.org/cephalopod-n...

Election worker: “Emily Mandel. Isn’t that a writer’s name?” Me: “I’m a writer.” Election worker: “Oh, I was thinking Hilary Mantel, never mind”

Super entertaining story about the miraculous migration of Bogong moths in Australia--they travel 600 miles to a cave they've never been to before. How do they do it?! www.thetransmitter.org/animal-model...

Loma Linda University Health has launched an inquiry into the work of stroke researcher John H. Zhang after a data sleuth flagged issues with 98 of his papers. By @callimcflurry.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/publishing/e...

BREAKING: The U.S. Supreme Court upholds Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. Robert, for the 6-3 court, holds that the law is not subject to heightened scrutiny under equal protection and passes rational basis review. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24p...

$323 million worth of neuroscience funding has been cut from NIH according to a new analysis from @thetransmitter.bsky.social/ @claudia-lopez.bsky.social www.thetransmitter.org/funding/nih-...

I'm back to work at The Transmitter after my leave! Let me know about any new neuroscience-related papers, preprints, controversies, gripes, etc. [email protected]

A man with a severe speech disability is able to speak expressively and sing using a brain implant that translates his neural activity into words almost instantly. https://go.nature.com/4jPup00

Is it true you use only 10 bits / s of your brain? @andpru.bsky.social and I provide a motor systems perspective on a proposed speed limit for human information processing. Out today in @natneuro.nature.com: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

For black-capped chickadees, looking out at a location activates the same place cells as actually being there, a study from Columbia University shows. By @martajhill.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/hippocampus/...

Data-integrity expert Elisabeth Bik noticed repeat structures in a 2019 Nature Communications paper by Peixin Yang. A deeper look revealed “multiple” issues across more than 20 of his papers. By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social #neuroskyence www.thetransmitter.org/academia/mor...

HIV vaccine researchers felt they were on the cusp of finally making significant progress in developing an effective vaccine, after nearly 40 years of trying and failing. Then came the Trump administration. www.npr.org/sections/goa...