I’m going to try to use the verb “prompt” instead of “ask” when referring to LLMs. I don’t “ask Google”, I “google”. We don’t “ask Grok” or Claude or ChatGPT, we submit a prompt. I’ve fallen to easily into the anthropomorphized language. Jeeves? … I’ll still ask him.

We don't get a ton of winter around here. We make the most of it when we do.

I really can't formulate a coherent response to this. Trump Says U.S. Is ‘Locked and Loaded’ if Iran Kills Protesters www.nytimes.com/2026/01/02/w...

SAT scores are notoriously biased by access to for profit, pre-testing prep courses. I think we should rely on universal and unbiased measures, like how early did they say "mama" or their weight percentile at 12 months.

Barthes: The author is dead Foucault: The text is dead All of us: ... Musk/Altman/Zuck: ... hold our beer

I had a cocktail from recipe generated by Gemini based on the ingredients a friend had available. I recommend everyone try it. It was bland and lifeless. Not bad, but absolutely not good. There is a reason that, in a world of exquisite differences, no one celebrates things that are "average"

If I accomplish nothing else this year, I made my dog happy today.

Happy New Midterm

Measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000. In 2009, the WHO updated its outbreak response guidance to recommend community vaccination to stop outbreaks. I'm now writing two talks for health care groups in 2026 on lessons for US policy from outbreak response in OTHER endemic countries

It's worth noting that there are no fewer than 3 places where I can legally buy marijuana in my town of ~120k people. We have never been targeted for airstrikes.

I would support the use of LLMs in scientific writing as long as they are trained only on public domain text. Editing Hemingway's or Faulkner's voice would be kind of hilarious.

Any legal historians out there want to do a deep dive on the history of the "The evidence of my involvement is so clear, I'd have to be an idiot to have done this so openly. And I'm not an idiot." defense? It feels like it's more and more common, but perhaps it is as old as humanity.

Larry Ellison Personally Guarantees Paramount Bid for Warner Brothers ... this seems like the financial equivalent of the Xkcd dependency cartoon. Banking this much trust on the word and solvency of one individual seems like a weak guarantee. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/22/b...

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.” Desmond Tutu www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/u...

You know who has a general recommendation for HPV vaccination in 12yo boys and girls? I'll give you a hint: 🇩🇰

I turned in my grades on Friday and I already have no idea what day it is.

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference

Bill Clinton is not too big a price to pay. He's at best a hidden surcharge that most of us wouldn't even notice on the receipt.

Somehow (checks notes) "Real American Dadass" took the Responsible Conduct of Research training that those who approved the Guinea-Bissau Hep B study didn't.

Not for nothing, but in 2024 I helped* to increase access** to vaccination for 10 million children per year. I don't plan on stopping. *lots of people helped **access means possible, not yet realized

In a time of lots of bad news, it feels like today was particularly bad. Anyway, Lucy is still very cute.

If this administration hasn't already done irreparable harm to someone or something that you care about, you might have to ask yourself whether you care about anything at all.

This won't solve the world's problems. But I'm pretty sure it will make you forget about them for a while ... then there's a good chance it might introduce a few new problems later.

3 out of 5 headlines reference a delay to the finale of Survivor (and The Floor?!?).

A shout out to everyone who, despite the world crumbling around them, is building something better in the hopes that there is a world to receive it in the future. Some must focus on the current crisis. Some must look past its end.

Remember the scene in Ozark when Marty Byrde realizes he can launder money by slow building a church? The grift is compounded by the utter lack of creativity.

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but the president has recently had an unexplained MRI and is acting increasingly bellicose. I kind of think we are playing out the plot of Season 4 of Madame Secretary.

Amazing that The Princess Bride and Spinal Tap are going to be referenced in history textbooks as a turning point in US politics.

We are excited to invite abstract submissions for talks and posters for the 2026 Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases meeting at Virginia Tech (June 2-4). Abstract submissions should be made by February 3, 2026 for consideration, using the google form here: cpe.vt.edu/eeid2026/abs...

Has Ted Cruz commented yet?

I'm always struck by how much more hydrated my Gen Z students are that I have ever been. They bring more water to an exam than I drink all day.

Ask not what you can do for your country's image. Ask what your country can do for yours.

Morning clarity

I found out that a multi-institutional effort to safeguard hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for childhood vaccinations globally has been successful. Details forthcoming, but I needed to hear about at least one good thing today.

Same girl, same.

UF Biology is searching for an Asst Prof in Evolution, Ecology of Infectious Disease - spread the word! @ufresearch.bsky.social @ufgeog.bsky.social @sse-evolution.bsky.social explore.jobs.ufl.edu/en-us/job/53...

It's good to see that the Republican health plan is being developed with the rigor of C student's term paper.

The typeface for Truth Social is Inter ... which is sans serif Ironically the Trump administration, in 2019, released Public Sans as an official typeface, which is sans serif. help.truthsocial.com/branding/

As a side note - I have always wanted someone to do a modern photo-essay, in the style Bill Cunningham, about what people wear in airports. I love it that folks will wear sweats with their best boots so they don't have to pack them. Or full suits. The range is fabulous.

Listen, I'm not a statistician, but my understanding is that US birthrates over time have been negatively correlated with ChatGPT usage ... so, not a ringing endorsement.

I've known a lot of people who work in very real, life threatening, acute crises. I've occasionally tagged along on MUCH less severe deployments. I've always been struck by how important active disengagement is. Time off is sacrosanct. It is mission critical to prevent burnout & operational failure

Excellent use of a Saturday

My students asked me what I thought might turn the tide of vaccine sentiment in the US. I don't honestly know what will, or if any horrific outbreak or loss of life will make a difference. But my nightmare scenario looks something like this ... 1/

In case anyone else is wondering what "peer" countries' schedules look like. vaccine-schedule.ecdc.europa.eu

In the same day, the president hailed European countries as the medical gold standard and suggested that soccer was the "real football". So, that happened.

Just flipping through my carte jaune while waiting for my flu and COVID shots and reflecting on how absolutely magical it is that you can prevent disease this easily.

Between this and the tiny cars thing, this has to be a bit, right? I don't know that I want trucks and football in the national divorce, but I'm 100% certain I didn't expect to get them.

I hereby announce my candidacy for the FIFA Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Brought to you by the creators of "autism rates are soaring"