‘Seek Funding’ Step Added To Scientific Method

New paper from my lab in Nature Scientific Reports! Using #spinal cord MRIs, we show 1st evidence of decreased cervical gray matter volume in opioid-using #Fibromyalgia cohort, but with less GMV relating to less #pain severity & interference. #Duke_CTPM Full paper here (free!) 👉🏼 rdcu.be/eywsK

Yesterday, the NIH R35 “Outstanding Investigator” grant to fund scientists in my lab studying antibiotic resistance was terminated for reasons not related to the content of the science, or any actions taken by me or members of my lab

New #OpenAccess publication from our lab showing #brain differences in regions involved in #attention during a reward task in individuals with #fibromyalgia , with potential influence of pain duration and opioid use. @dukebrain.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...

If a foreign adversary snuck into our Federal budget and cut science research and education the way we’re cutting it ourselves — strategically undermining America’s long-term health, wealth, and security — we would likely consider it an act of war.

With NIH director Jayanta Bhattacharya dismissing my reporting as "false" and "spreading rumors" hours before releasing a policy that confirmed said "rumors," I feel compelled to respond. Here's an inside look into how this story was reported. It was a weird one. 🧵 www.nature.com/articles/d41...

These boxes are not moving. A mind-bending optical illusion by Japanese artist Jagarikin.

a little pick me up lol for the academics in the room

New at Can We Still Govern: An anonymous NIH employee maps out the GOP budget gameplan to permanently gut our most important science agency. Impoundment, delay and red tape will create artificial "savings" that become the new benchmark for NIH budgets. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-nih-bu...

@ardemp.bskyverified.social with some absolutely incredible writing in CNN today. I hope everyone will read what he has to say: "What began as a curiosity-driven question – “How do you feel?” has implications far beyond the initial scope, potentially leading to new types of treatments for pain..."

This is devastating for pain research. Linda Porter did such an amazing job building a real community from isolated fragments of research scattered across multiple institutes of NIH.

Linda Porter has been an absolute hero to the pain research community for decades. She worked tirelessly and selflessly to promote a better future for people with chronic pain. Absolutely crazy to cut off her and her office’s important leadership.

Thank you for speaking out @iasp.bsky.social! Words from @timothysnyder.bsky.social book, On Tyranny: “Do not obey in advance. Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given… A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.” Institutions need to speak up for their values.

Grad school dreams are shrinking. Universities like Penn, Pitt & Vanderbilt are slashing admissions, NIH funding cuts loom, & hiring freezes stall careers. Aspiring scientists face closed doors, lost opportunities, and a broken pipeline. This isn’t just a pause—it’s a crisis. #SaveScience #HigherEd

In a new editorial from Editor-in-Chief of PAIN @karenddavis.bsky.social reaffirms the journal’s commitment to considering #diversity, #DEI, and #GenderIdentity in pain research and management. bit.ly/3D5WgJO 

Almost all grant-review meetings under Trump 2.0 remain suspended at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), preventing the world’s largest public funder of biomedical research from spending much of its US$47 billion annual budget. https://go.nature.com/4gM6oW4

Looks like the Neurobiology of Pain and Itch Study section meeting was cancelled by the old "Don't allow them to post the meeting 15 days in advance in the Federal Register trick". This is an illegal Trump delay on the NIH funding process. Moreover, a phenomenal waste of reviewers' time!

Our mission is to promote scientific advances that reduce the burden of pain. Our goal is to bring together diverse perspectives to stimulate and support the study of pain, while translating this knowledge into improved pain relief.

Now Accepting Applications for Gratis Membership. IASP is offering 175 memberships to trainees & pain professionals from LMICs through the Sponsor a Member fund. Don’t miss this opportunity! Apply by 21 Feb & share with those who qualify. bit.ly/4hCFXTT #PainResearch #IASP

It’s time for all of us, in the USA and elsewhere, to act against the threats of facism. This article outlines some ideas of HOW & what works newrepublic.com/article/1905...

Listen up @esa.int @ec.europa.eu you have a once-a-century opportunity to wholesale poach the intellectual engine of a continent. Fund some labs, and you’ll reap a century of scientific dominance. Exactly what we did to you in 1930.

History is unerased for the moment! Another judicial victory!

WashU is the second highest NIH grant recipient, receiving $683 million. WashU is in St Louis. St Louis is in a red state. Afaik red states aren’t included in the judge’s order restoring the allocated NIH funding. medicine.washu.edu/news/washu-m...

Reversal of NIH indirect cuts only applies to states who sued. Not Ohio. I wonder how many jobs Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost just lost.

Breaking news: 22 states are suing to block NIH’s cutting of indirect costs. See our updated story on the Friday night news and its aftermath. scim.ag/4hTJQ6v

The states jump into action to fight the NIH cuts! www.politico.com/news/2025/02...

Something in the NIH Edict on indirects doesn’t add up. The average indirect is 27-28%? Since when? Maybe 27-28% of TOTAL costs goes to indirects? I’m suspecting that these assholes can’t even use the right math to screw up NIH. grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...

Easy link on Society For Neuroscience to write your senators and representatives about the NIH fiascos. DO IT!DO IT EARLY! DO IT OFTEN! FIGHT BACK FAST! www.sfn.org/advocacy/adv...

The SfN site automates the process of writing your reps—you can also edit the message to add specific concerns about the indirects cap using the template below: fromthescienceclass.substack.com/p/biomedical... (H/t bsky.app/profile/scie... )

The National Institutes of Health plans to severely cut the percentage of its grant money that can be used for overhead costs rather than research.

This is what amounts to an ILLEGAL & indiscriminate funding cut for research centers everywhere. It will mean shuttering labs across the country, layoffs in red & blue states, and derailing lifesaving research on everything from cancer to opioid addiction. We all need to speak out to save lives.

Looks like the plan for gutting NIH is rolling out now. Let’s see how much of this plays out. d1dth6e84htgma.cloudfront.net/NIH_Reform_R...

NIH indirects cut to 15%. This will kill biomedical research. grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...

Hello, IASP Early Career Members! The Early Career Network (ECN) is working with IASP to support you with exciting initiatives. We want your input to help shape the ECN and ensure your voice is heard. Share your ideas, concerns, and wishes with us at [email protected]! #IASP #ECN

HHMI kills program aimed at boosting inclusivity in STEM education | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the nation’s largest private funder of biomedical research, yesterday killed a $60 million program aimed at making universities’ STEM education more inclusive. scim.ag/3EtS0US

Another crazed change from the Trump Administration: removing the NIH No-cost extension form

The CSR comm I'm on just pulled all Diversity F grants from the current review cycle. These apps are reviewed alongside (and by the same criteria) as all other F grants. So, instead of helping these trainees, they will actually be punished by having their grant reviews delayed at least 1 cycle !?!?

I am extraordinarily proud to be a USASP member. Among a lot of societies making bad choices, they are making good choices for the long-term health of our field, our trainees, and our sanity!

Excellent writing from @dereklowe.bsky.social : What's Happening Inside the NIH and NSF | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/blog... I think I would have appreciated it equally with the curse words.

The thirty dirty words you can’t say in an NSF grant.

And now the censorship begins. If you’ve got the words gender, transgender, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) and nonbinary in your manuscript that is under review , you have to retract it. www.reuters.com/world/us/us-...

Won the first battle! Trump caved on federal grants! www.politico.com/news/2025/01...

Now the fight begins! www.politico.com/news/2025/01...

Some thoughts on the confusion and anxiety created by the current freeze on communications, hiring, grant reviews, travel, etc at NIH (gift link):

Is the "temporary pause" of disbursement of all federal grants/loans an unlawful impoundment? It almost certainly is. A brief 🧵

White House pauses all federal grants, sparking confusion

Looks like the White House is pausing the awarding of new grants AND stopping payments on currently funded grants.

www.science.org/content/arti... Multiple grant NIH grant review panels and advisory council meetings shut down mid-stream. What a colossal waste of tax dollars!!!!!! Also, no public communications without Trump approval. Time to start writing congress again.

journals.lww.com/pain/pages/a... Our new paper on pain radiation is out now in PAIN. Congratulations to Waci on a really cool study. Not the prettiest preview image but there are far cooler images in the paper.