Can't decide whether I'm more jealous of insects, who have their skeleton on the outside and get to see it all the time, or of octopuses, who have no skeleton and are free of the hegemony of the rigid.

We can remember Goodall’s accomplishments and legacy while recognizing that National Geographic created a narrative that erased the local people who contributed to her research. Her African colleagues deserve to be credited, not erased (10/10).

While Goodall received her PhD in the 1960s, it was not until the 2000s that Ugandan Emily Otali became the first African woman to complete a PhD on chimpanzee behavior. The networks that facilitated European and North Americans researchers impeded the same opportunities for Africans (9/10)

When we hear about a lone scientist who made groundbreaking discoveries on their own, it’s usually erasing the truth that science is a team sport, and field research builds on the local knowledge and expertise of the people that live there (8/10)

What the narrative leaves out is the contributions of the local Tanzanians who assisted and facilitated Goodall's early research, as well as preceding and concurrent research. Nat Geo created a story about a lone white woman alone with chimpanzees, erasing the Africans that were beside her (3/10)

Important thread!! The “lone genius” myth of scientists is always wrong, and western science often erases the knowledge and contributions of local and indigenous people. Be inspired, but don’t be fooled by the prevailing narrative.

I've finally read "Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia" by @olivia.science et al, it's really excellent and articulates many points I've been struggling to communicate to colleagues. zenodo.org/records/1706...

ouch

Bayesian humor at SMBC by @zachweinersmith.bsky.social 🤓😁 www.smbc-comics.com/comic/priors

Or to keep throwing dice until you get the numbers you were hoping for, thinking this means you have now become better at throwing dice.

Stephen your ongoing efforts here have not gone unnoticed and I am sure many, including me, appreciate them.

I am so dismayed a the statement today from the President of the @royalsociety.org that I want to publish here the letter I wrote to him yesterday urging him to address the clear concerns of the UK scientific community.

Deeply disappointing. Once again the @royalsociety.org has avoided explaining how *actions* by Elon Musk that clearly repudiate the Society's values are consistent with the code of conduct that Fellows must adhere to. royalsociety.org/news/2025/10...

The University of Lausanne can only manage, but never erase, the stigma of giving Mussolini a doctorate honoris causa in 1937. @royalsociety.org apparently thinks this is a model to follow.

Another record month for bioRxiv - and further evidence the pandemic spike+dip was just that and growth continues. Thanks to all involved and that includes 🫵

And so while I believe in academic freedom as a concept, I can't blame anyone who notices how many of the figures making these arguments either are sex pests or collaborating friends with them, and concludes the whole thing is really about defending the right to sexually harass students.

As the @royalsociety.org council meets on 01 Oct to discuss the repudiation of its core values by one of its fellows, Elon Musk, I respectfully remind them of my proposals for actions that should help the RS recover its standing in the scientific community. occamstypewriter.org/scurry/2025/...

In the official Microsoft communication about their new "Vibework" Excel: "Our results on SpreadsheetBench place Agent Mode at the leading edge of current systems, accurately completing 57.2% of the benchmark’s tasks." techcommunity.microsoft.com/blog/excelbl...

I wrote something on developmental biology and disability and put it up on the node last night: thenode.biologists.com/developmenta... I've been nervous to share because some of it veers a bit personal but they are thoughts that won't stay quiet. Would love to know what people think about it!

Elon Musk FRS. One wonders whether 4.5 million child deathes is enough for the @royalsociety.org . Or maybe 5 million is the magic threshold for expulsion. We shall find out soon I hope.

Assistant/Associate Professor in Structural Biology, Biophysics or Biological Imaging www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/open-positio... #biozentrum #University #Basel #Professor #Structural #Biology #Biophysics #Biological #Imaging

In case the title makes you blame vegetarians: "Nearly 80% of soya beans are used for livestock and aquaculture" www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

Join us at the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht to start your research group! Fantastic scientific environment, strong support, and nice colleagues :) Apply and please share broadly in your network.

Congrats CD on your well-earned achievement! (This is _actually_ on the "journal" website) ＼(〇_ｏ)／

Hello #fish 🐟 🐠 researchers and PIs of tomorrow! We would be excited to sponsor you for an Ecology, Evolution and Behavior (EEB) Presidential #Postdoc Fellowship application @michiganstateu.bsky.social. Application deadline is Nov 10, so get in touch soom! #EndlessFishMostBeautiful

@bretdevereaux.bsky.social being @bretdevereaux.bsky.social 😁 "This is the fourth thread of the fourth part of our series (I, II, IIIa, IIIb, IVa, IVb, IVc)" acoup.blog/2025/09/26/c...

Love the opening "C. elegans is a real animal". Indeed!

I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA 10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)

Il est sorti aujourd'hui

Hard to overstate what a *huge* win this is for OpenAI in its strategy to spread its malign, brain- and planet-destroying tentacles all through the education sector. Oxford’s global standing will create a permission structure for many other schools to do likewise. “If Oxford’s doing it, then…”

So while there are reasons to pick one pain killer over another, and those reasons go in both directions: the rantings of a deeply unqualified quack who knows next to nothing about medicine are not, in fact, a good reason to go one way or another.

In case any editors, or authors who suggest me as reviewer, are reading this: I only review papers available as preprints.

New interpretation of Occam's rasor has dropped @existentialcomics https://existentialcomics.com/comic/621

I’ve been combating medical misinformation for over two decades, and this feels not just quantitatively different, but qualitatively different.

Beautiful #Ediacaran fossil light on the E surface at Mistaken Point 🤩

“We are not working on building an AI agent. We are working to protect Signal from the invasion of AI agents that threaten privacy and that are being implemented in irresponsible ways”

Finally read this excellent article about @signal.org and @meredithmeredith.bsky.social. We need these pockets of resistance (like mastodon) more than ever. english.elpais.com/technology/2...

De l'intérêt de garder au moins une présence sur Mastodon, même si aujourd'hui beaucoup de la discussion est sur Bluesky ou autre réseau privé. From: @bouletcorp2 https://mastodon.social/@bouletcorp2/115235797571669696

Bonjour! Je reçois beaucoup de messages concernant mon ban temporaire de BS. Donc merci. En vrai je n'avais pas encore remarqué, je suis en week-end. C'est pour 24h pour une blague que j'avais faite sur le départ de Bayrou. J'ai signalé à la modération que […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I wanted to get a video of this ghost crab but every time I got close to their hole they scuttled back in, so I tried getting clever with it. I made a little sandcastle and shoved my phone into it, hit record, and walked away. Crab was VERY suspicious of this addition to their environment.

It's Signal. It's worth using. Good interview with @Mer__edith https://english.elpais.com/technology/2025-09-14/signal-president-meredith-whittaker-in-technology-its-way-too-easy-for-marketing-to-replace-substance-thats-whats-happened-with-telegram.html h/t #signal

Heterozygosity. Never get it right first try.

bioRxiv partners with Dryad to enable easier, better linking to curated datasets connect.biorxiv.org/news/2025/09...

Senegal just introduced a single shot hexavalent vaccine which covers: Tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough, polio, hepatitis B, and Haemophilus influenzae type b www.gavi.org/vaccineswork...

A welcome, if belated, awakening to the disconnect between Musk's actions and the stated values of the Royal Society?

New paper! We use rarely produced parthenogenetic males to examine what happens to dosage compensation when it is no longer needed. Surprisingly, we find dosage compensation is maintained in our parthenogenetic stick insects in the absence of selection! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

This may just be the parasite talking, but I'm going to climb that super tall building over there and release all my spores.

He would like everyone to know that his outdoor feline friends kill far more birds than wind turbines.

My new book is published today, and my cats highly recommend it. www.penguin.co.uk/books/462676...