A huge thank you to @erichjarvis.bsky.social, Lauren Shalmiyev, Giulio Formenti, Sadye Paez, our VGP co-chairs, and members of the Jarvis Labs for organizing the event, @amnh.org for hosting us at their planetarium, and our attendees for the lively and productive discussions!

🦜✨ What can unraveling songbird genomes tell us about human speech and vocal learning in other species? Erich Jarvis, visionary and head of the Vertebrate Genomes Project, explains how genome comparisons reveal insights about vocal learners. 🗣️✨ 🧬 Tune in 👉 bit.ly/3Jv9C5f @erichjarvis.bsky.social

🌍 Hear from Erich Jarvis, chair of the EBP-affiliated Vertebrate Genomes Project at Rockefeller University, as he explains why high-quality reference genomes across the Tree of Life are essential. 👉 bit.ly/401IbWl @vertebrategenomes.bsky.social @rockefelleruniv.bsky.social @erichjarvis.bsky.social

On May 19, @bcmgenetics.bsky.social proudly hosted @erichjarvis.bsky.social, professor at Rockefeller Univ. & Investigator w/the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, for the 2025 Jeanette Oshman Efron Distinguished Lecture. His talk: “Evolution of Brain Pathways for Vocal Learning and Spoken Language.”

We are proud to announce that we have been selected as one of the inaugural grantees in the @bezosearthfund.org’s groundbreaking AI Grand Challenge for Climate and Nature. MERMAID, a WCS initiative, was chosen for its innovative potential and real-world impact. datamermaid.org 🌎

The authors suggest this may have allowed “speech-relevant neurons to accommodate elevated levels of FOXP2 without toxicity associated with protein aggregation”. This reminded me of the discussion of Parvalbumin in this paper on vocal learning by @erichjarvis.bsky.social

(1/3) 🌏 Join DongAhn Yoo and others, including EBP all-star @erichjarvis.bsky.social, on a journey through the complete #genome sequencing of ape genomes and how these little-understood #genes hidden in the densely packed #telomere and #centromere regions of #chromosomes can untangle ape #evolution!

Our cover this week.

Massive protest in New York against the current administration.

Some messages from the Apr 19 2025 protest march in New York.

Some messages from the Apr 19 2025 protest march in New York.

Went for a walk to Central Park, New York and ran into a massive protest. Decided to join and document. Thousands of marchers were protesting everything the Trump administration and his supporters represent, walking around Trump Tower and then onto the park. I post the messages that resonated most.

#ERGAReads | This week, we spotlight a #review on #pangenome graphs and their applications in #biodiversity genomics. 🔗 Read here: doi.org/10.1038/s415... 🎥 Watch a talk by author Giulio Formenti on the topic: youtu.be/XbDA1ACkIrU?... @rockefelleruniv.bsky.social @erichjarvis.bsky.social

Fridays have been tough for researchers and federal workers, but let’s make this one for the books. Huge thanks to @jpflores.bsky.social for chatting with me about the whirlwind of events leading up to this moment! Let’s rally. @standupforscience.bsky.social www.the-scientist.com/stand-up-for...

Also big thanks to @erichjarvis.bsky.social and Christina Nowicki for their comments! 🙏

We continue our #BlackHistoryMonth spotlight series with @erichjarvis.bsky.social, Professor at @rockefelleruniv.bsky.social and Scientific Investigator @hhmi.bsky.social. We were pleased to host him at Banbury in 2024. (1/5)

Many thanks to 👥 Authors: Amazing collaboration with @erichjarvis.bsky.social @neuro-cesar.bsky.social #YokoTajima asiepel.bsky.social 🔬 Funded by @hhmi.bsky.social #ninds @simonsfoundation.org @naturecomms.bsky.social RT & follow for more science updates! 🧬🗣️

NOVA1, a neuron-specific RNA binding protein & splicing factor, likely impacted language function in human evolution. Human NOVA1 is unique (vs mammals, Neanderthals), & it changes vocalization in CRISPR’d mice! TY @NatureComms @RockefellerUniv team, collaborators @erichjarvis @asiepel labs 🧵👇

My very first post on Bluesky Happy to be here. Check out our collaborative study with Bob Darnell @darnelr.bsky.social, where mice humanized for a NOVA1 gene variant unique to humans, produce more varied and complex vocalizations: www.science.org/content/arti... www.nature.com/articles/s41...