Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by John Hodge

Ian Weissman, DO @drianweissman.bsky.social · 10h

“CDC will have lost its ability to detect outbreaks and respond to them. It will no longer be able to track diseases, in America and around the globe. That includes infectious threats like flu, foodborne illnesses, and Ebola, as well as chronic diseases and injuries.”
time.com/7325192/cdc-...

CDC ‘Not Functional’ After Trump Administration Orders Mass Firings

The layoffs targeted leaders in departments related to respiratory diseases, chronic diseases and global health.

time.com

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Reposted by John Hodge

PBS News @pbsnews.org · 13h

National Guard troops sent to Illinois by President Donald Trump can stay in the state and under federal control, but can’t be deployed to protect federal property or go on patrol for now, an appeals court ruled Saturday.
https://to.pbs.org/473hVNY

Appeals court rules U.S. troops Trump sent to Illinois can stay, but can’t be deployed for now

National Guard troops sent to Illinois by President Donald Trump can stay in the state and under federal control, but can’t be deployed to protect federal property or go on patrol for now, an appeals ...

www.pbs.org

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Reposted by John Hodge

Botanical Society of America @botsocamerica.bsky.social · 9d

🌵Deadline alert! #Botany2026 Symposia & Colloquia Proposals are due October 16. Help shape the scientific program for our Tucson meeting, themed Biodiversity at the Boundaries!

Submit your proposal and get details here: mailchi.mp/botany.org/b...

or here: www.botanyconference.org

#iamabotanist

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 1d

Polarized light can often help to capture a thicker cell wall crystal structures which tends to glisten. Don’t suppose there were tests of that sort to also get a sense of if the walls were variably thick/dense enough to refract light in odd ways in some spp?

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Reposted by John Hodge

Michael Raissig @michaelraissig.bsky.social · 1d

Our paper comparing stomata of the three annual Brachypodium species is out 🌾
bmcplantbiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10....
A great collaborative effort between @lbmountain.bsky.social, & our friends at University of Silesia (Alexander Betekhtin and Anna Milewska-Hendel). Funded by @dfg.de and NAWA

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Reposted by John Hodge

SoCal Leslie @socalleslie.bsky.social · 1d

Loggerhead shrike on ocotillo. Anza Borrego Desert State Park. 🪶🌿

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Reposted by John Hodge

Samuli Reijula @samulireijula.net · 2d

excellent essay: The Origin of the Research University open.substack.com/pub/asterisk...

The Origin of the Research University

Universities have existed for more than a thousand years — and for almost all of that time, they weren’t centers of research. What changed in 19th century Germany?

open.substack.com

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Reposted by John Hodge

David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · Nov 23

Cycling is 10 times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities and 100 times more fun.

Cycling is ten times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities

Active travel can help tackle the climate crisis earlier than electric vehicles – even if you swap the car for a bike for just one trip a day.

theconversation.com

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 2d

Well, yea… But I was also raised Catholic so it tracks with the self-castigating tendencies of the culture?

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 2d

There’s a fractal geometry in that balancing somewhere…

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Reposted by John Hodge

Jennifer Ouellette @jenlucpiquant.bsky.social · 2d

How Easter Island’s giant statues “walked” to their final platforms. It's basic pendulum physics, per new study. Workers with ropes could make the moai "walk" in zig-zag motion along roads tailor-made for the purpose. arstechnica.com/science/2025...

How Easter Island’s giant statues “walked” to their final platforms

Workers with ropes could make the moai “walk” in zig-zag motion along roads tailor-made for the purpose.

arstechnica.com

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 2d

As someone who likes to diligently note take in all caps I don’t know how I feel about seeing this in the wild email chains…

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Reposted by John Hodge

Tiffany Lowe-Power 🌱🦠 @tlowepower.bsky.social · 19d

Please repost -- The Univ. California Davis dept of Plant Pathology is hiring a Fungal biologist / Mycologist

Applications due Dec 1

Application portal: recruit.ucdavis.edu/JPF07339

Screenshot shows part of the job posting (with alt-text of the same text)

he Department of Plant Pathology at the University of California, Davis is seeking applications for a fulltime, tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Mycology, with a focus on plant pathogenic, symbiotic,
or mycotoxigenic fungi and fungal-like organisms (e.g., oomycetes). We are looking for a highly
motivated and creative scientist with a strong background in mycology and/or the biology of fungi and
fungal-like organisms that interact with plants. The successful candidate will be expected to develop a
world-class, externally funded research program that integrates both fundamental and applied aspects
of fungal biology within the context of plant pathology. We welcome applicants pursuing a wide range
of research topics related to plant-associated fungi, including but not limited to mechanisms of fungal
pathogenesis or symbiosis with plants, population genomics and evolution of fungal plant pathogens,
plant-associated fungal microbiomes and plant-microbe interactions, and/or one health approaches to
fungal diseases and antifungal resistance. Applicants working in other relevant research areas involving
pathogenic, symbiotic, or mycotoxigenic fungi or fungal-like organisms that affect plant health are also
encouraged to apply. The successful candidate will have significant opportunities for collaboration with
faculty in plant pathology, microbiology, genomics, and agricultural sciences, and to contribute to
addressing issues of importance to California’s agricultural and natural ecosystems.
The appointee primary teaching responsibilities will be teaching Introductory Mycology, an upperdivision lab class, and SAS 30, Mushroom, Molds & Society, a general education class for non-majors.
Additional graduate and undergraduate teaching responsibilities may be assigned based on
departmental needs and the candidate’s expertise. The department offers modern instructional
facilities, including a newly renovated teaching laboratory.

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Reposted by John Hodge

Jim Bliss @jimbliss.bsky.social · 5d

Something that's been going on for a while now. This is Einstein writing in 1949...

monthlyreview.org/articles/why...

Paragraph from Why Socialism? by Albert Einstein. It reads: "This crippling of individuals I consider the worst evil of capitalism. Our whole educational system suffers from this evil. An exaggerated competitive attitude is inculcated into the student, who is trained to worship acquisitive success as a preparation for his future career."

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Reposted by John Hodge

Jessica C. Huss @j2huss.bsky.social · 3d

One day in the lab, we accidentally discovered that the spines of a cactus 🌵 straighten when exposed to fog. I was intrigued and so were my collaborators. How does this work and what can be gained from it? Here are some of the answers in our new preprint:
doi.org/10.1101/2025...

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Reposted by John Hodge

Karolina Heyduk @kheyduk.bsky.social · 3d

Anna has some cool results from a pretty bonkers hybrid system - hit her up if you're looking for a speaker in your PAG workshop!

Anna Pardo, Ph.D. @annapardo-phd.bsky.social · 3d

Are you organizing a talk session at PAG 33? I would love to speak about my postdoc work on the genomics of variable facultative CAM photosynthesis in a hybrid Yucca species! Possible workshop topics include: hybrid genomics, abiotic stress, non-model species. Please DM me if you're interested!

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Reposted by John Hodge

MSU Plant Resilience Institute @msupri.bsky.social · 3d

We're excited to welcome Christopher Topp to the Plant Resilience Institute! Dr. Topp uses powerful imaging tools to envision the future of sustainable agriculture, and he will soon bring his expertise in root biology to MSU. Read the full story: plantresilience.msu.edu/pri-news/202...

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Reposted by John Hodge

Arif Ashraf @aribidopsis.bsky.social · 10d

🍀🔬

MSL10 is a high-sensitivity mechanosensor in the tactile sense of the Venus flytrap @natcomms.nature.com from Toyota lab.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Reposted by John Hodge

Jennifer Mach (she/they) @jennifermach.bsky.social · 4d

Just started reading Maize for the Gods––so good! Had not heard the theory about maize initially being used to make beer from the sugary juice in the stems. Thanks for the recommendation, @jrossibarra.bsky.social Wish there was a newer edition--this one is 10 years out of date! 📚

Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra @jrossibarra.bsky.social · Sep 8

www.ucpress.edu/books/maize-...

Maize for the Gods by Michael Blake - Paper

Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.

www.ucpress.edu

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 4d

At least some apple jobs are proving recalcitrant to the AI takeover

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Reposted by John Hodge

FrontRangeWildflowers @frwildflowers.bsky.social · 4d

The Homeobox gene in bobcats dictates that any 📦 is instantly a home 🏠 👍🤪

Oregon 🕎🎲 @oregonthedm.bsky.social · 4d

Boxes also work on bobcats

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 5d

Great to see this out!

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Reposted by John Hodge

Carolyn Rasmussen @carolynplants.bsky.social · 5d

Excited to share this preprint on the microtubule severing protein Katanin, and its role in cell elongation and division in maize. First author Stephanie Martinez worked collaboratively with many folks to bring you this preprint. Check it out! 🔬🌽 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

KATANIN promotes cell elongation and division to generate proper cell numbers in maize organs

Microtubule severing is essential for proper eukaryotic cell elongation and division. Here we show that the microtubule severing protein, KATANIN, is encoded by two genes in Zea mays (maize) called Di...

www.biorxiv.org

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Reposted by John Hodge

Mingyuan Zhu @mingyuanzhu.bsky.social · 5d

🌱 Join us for our upcoming workshop Quantifying Plant Morphogenesis: 4D Insights with MorphoGraphX!
Learn how to quantitatively analyze plant confocal imaging data using MorphoGraphX.

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John Hodge @jghodge.bsky.social · 5d

For this week’s #Zeavolution we’ll have Hui Liu from Sanzhen Liu’s lab presenting on “CRISPRa in maize”. See everyone Wednesday!

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