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Items tagged with: science
"Cuts of 30 to 70% are rumored at USDA next week. NIH & NSF funding is being destroyed & the agencies themselves facing cuts.
About 3,500 nonfederal entomologists depend on these agencies. We're🚨risking research that protects #ecosystems & #foodsecurity."
It's difficult to keep up with all the atrocities, but we amplify the gravity of the losing these experts, the firings, existential threats... of the #TrumpMusk admin.
#DOGE #Firings #Science #USDA #NIH #NSF #USPol https://www.govexec.com/management/2025/04/some-usda-rif-plans-take-shape-department-warns-employees-major-cuts/404247/
Some USDA RIF plans take shape as department warns employees of major cuts
Some regional offices are expected to be cut as some headquarters offices will be "hollowed out."Eric Katz (Government Executive)
About 250M years ago, 90% of species on Earth died during the Permian extinction. All of that loss created a lot of vacant niches to fill.
And not long after, the first mammals, our ancestors, appeared.
Life on this pale blue dot will be resilient - whether we’re part of it or not. #science #nature #history
With spring 🌱 upon us in the northern hemisphere, it is the time for the spring bloom in many lakes and oceans. To grow, #phytoplankton require #nutrients and #light, so start reproducing rapidly due to an abundance of nutrients mixed in the water column and increased light intensity 🌞. Zooplankton grazers have yet to increase, and warming conditions help to retain algae near the surface euphotic zone via stratification.
https://serc.carleton.edu/eet/phytoplankton/primer.html
#Science #climate
A 7-year longitudinal study of over 280,000 individuals indicates that the shingles vaccine was associated with a 20% lower frequency of dementia.
Summary: https://www.sciencealert.com/shingles-vaccine-guards-against-dementia-study-reveals
Original paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08800-x
#Science #Health #Dementia #Alzheimers #Shingles #Vaccination #Vaccines
Shingles Vaccine Guards Against Dementia, Study Reveals : ScienceAlert
A vaccine for shingles could protect against dementia according to a new study that took advantage of a quirk in Wales' vaccine rollout scheme.Jess Cockerill (ScienceAlert)
Interesting article on #arXiv - I wasn't aware of the early history. Quite a story!
"Inside arXiv—the Most Transformative Platform in All of Science"
https://www.wired.com/story/inside-arxiv-most-transformative-code-science/
Do you love tardigrades? We love tardigrades! And thanks to nearly 30,000 Danish schoolchildren and a citizen science project, we now have NINE new species of tardigrade to love. Congratulations!
It's hard to say this, but science (& research more generally) is just being **stopped** in the US right now. This is just one university, losing nearly a billion dollars in project funding pretty much overnight. That's people's jobs, and the research that could save lives.
The death sentence for science in the US: killing running grants for political reasons.
"Exclusive: NIH to terminate hundreds of active research grants"
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00703-1
If this stands, #science in the US is dead.
Exclusive: NIH to terminate hundreds of active research grants
Studies that touch on LGBT+ health, gender identity and DEI in the biomedical workforce could be terminated, according to documents obtained by Nature.Mallapaty, Smriti
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00562-w
After all, this is what he and his ilk have been pushing for all along, since 2016: to abolish publicly funded science. Just one example from back then:
“Do we really need government-funded research at all?”
https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2016/12/21/14012552/trump-budget-director-research-science-mulvaney
There are plenty more. #Science is the antithesis to #fascism, so one of them must go.
1/8
#USpol
Trump’s budget director pick: “Do we really need government-funded research at all”
Mick Mulvaney suggested Zika science is uncertain, so we shouldn’t bother to fund it.Julia Belluz (Vox)
PSA: Do not have “measles parties.”
https://arstechnica.com/health/2025/02/texas-official-warns-against-measles-parties-as-outbreak-keeps-growing/ #health #science
Texas official warns against “measles parties” as outbreak keeps growing
Twenty people have been hospitalized. Most cases are in children.Beth Mole (Ars Technica)
"An @NSF employee with knowledge of the process could confirm only that a 'significant number' of employees were switched from permanent to on probation. The source spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation."
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/trump-takes-a-giant-wrecking-ball-to-u-s-research/ #science #uspol
Government Agencies, Universities, Nonprofits Pause Critical Work Over Trump Administration Executive Orders
America's status as a global science leader is in doubt as the administration freezes funding and targets research that references climate or diversityChelsea Harvey (Scientific American)
#OTD in 1930.
While studying photographs taken in January, Clyde Tombaugh discovers Pluto, making it by far the first known object in the Kuiper belt. It was immediately hailed as the ninth planet.
However, its planetary status was questioned when it was found to be much smaller than expected. In 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formally redefined the term planet to exclude dwarf planets such as Pluto.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clyde_Tombaugh
In September 2024, Hurricane Helene roared into western North Carolina. Record-breaking winds, rain & floods damaged & destroyed homes, businesses, roads & forests across the region.
Over two dozen of the area’s best writers & artists contributed to “Stronger than the Storm” & all profits benefit local recovery efforts.
My copy just arrived & I encourage you to support the communities hit hardest by the Helene. https://a.co/d/9BeCdKn #science #books
https://www.un.org/en/observances/women-and-girls-in-science-day
US to cut billions in medical research funding
“Sick kids may not get the treatment they need. Clinical trials may be shut down abruptly with dangerous consequences. Just because Elon Musk doesn’t understand indirect costs doesn’t mean Americans should have to pay the price with their lives"
#AcademicChatter #NIH #science #medicine
Trump administration to cut billions in medical research funding
National Institutes of Health said the $4bn loss will affect ‘indirect’ funding of buildings, equipment and staffOliver Milman (The Guardian)
US government is absolutely detrimental to #science and its applications.
Scientific society under pressure after Trump DEI crackdown.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00372-0
US funding freezes are endangering global health.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00385-9
Scientists globally are racing to save vital health databases taken down amid Trump chaos.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00374-y
“We are a target”: scientific society under pressure after Trump DEI crackdown
The American Society for Microbiology deleted terms such as equity from its website, sparking protests from members.Basilio, Humberto
Fake papers are contaminating the world’s scientific literature, fueling a corrupt industry and slowing legitimate lifesaving medical research.
This detailed breakdown of a serious problem is a must read. And it is getting worse, much worse.
#Fraud #ScientificMisconduct
#PaperMills #Science #Scicomm
Fake papers are contaminating the world’s scientific literature, fueling a corrupt industry and slowing legitimate lifesaving medical research
‘Paper mills’ are contaminating the world’s scholarly output with fake papers that hinder research. Lifesaving biomedical fields are especially hard hit.The Conversation
https://youtu.be/idpEPW2Uk_4?si=dMCzJEHXIsnSwiRF I broke down the #science of how spice - the chemical compound capsaicin - affects our bodies & brains 🌶️
Did you know red meat contributes up to 30% of agricultural emissions? It's one reason the ag sector is the 2nd-largest greenhouse gas emitter after energy. But not all meats have the same impact - on the planet or our personal health.
The new episode of Serving Up Science considers the best options for both our bodies & the environment! 🥩 (And don't worry, we're not out to take anyone's steak away). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa6SWm99_rY #science #food #environment #climatechange
- YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music that you love, upload original content and share it all with friends, family and the world on YouTube.www.youtube.com
Alcohol consumption is the 3rd leading preventable cause of cancer.
Risk communication scientists have been talking about this for a long time, but it’s v interesting to see this as the top headline at NYT. It’s about time. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/03/health/alcohol-surgeon-general-warning.html?unlocked_article_code=1.mU4.pNJV.R5903V-Md-27&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&tgrp=off #science #health
Eight Clams Control This Polish City’s Water Supply
In the city of Poznań, Poland, a group of eight clams controls the local water supply through a clever bio-monitoring system: Tkottke.org
A little science with your Monday evening repast?
Ghost leaves!
Post oak (Quercus stellata) dead leaves were lying on the concrete driveway. It rained, then we had a couple of days of heavy fog. The rain & fog leached the quercitannic acid out of the leaves, bleaching the concrete under them. #science
#christmas #rudolphtherednosedreindeer #rudolph #science #queer
You see, males drop their antlers after the Autumn mating season, so since the world’s most celebrated reindeer are always depicted with spectacular antlers, we must assume that Ol’ Saint Nick’s entire intrepid team - including Rudolph - are female. #science #Christmas
#Introduction Hi #fediverse ! We’re the European Southern Observatory, and we design, build and operate ground-based telescopes.
One of them is our Extremely Large Telescope, currently under construction in #Chile. It will have a 39 m mirror, and its rotating enclosure will weigh 6100 tonnes, or about 700 mastodons!
We’re looking forward to chatting with all of you about #astronomy
📷 ESO/G. Vecchia
#astrodon #astrophysics #space #science
Would highly recommend Every Living Thing by Jason Roberts - wonderful dual biography of Linnaeus and Buffon. Many fascinating anecdotes about both - especially Linnaeus, who was a bit of a character.
#books #science #ScienceHistory #evolution
Modeling the mosaic structure of bacterial genomes to infer their evolutionary history
#evolution #genomics #bacteria #bioinformatics #science