Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
@asabpod.bsky.social
A podcast about science fact and fiction, featuring trans scientists. Transcripts on website. Charles runs this account. asabpodcast.com
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Episode 64: Blood-Eating Mosquitoes, Mosquito-Eating Spiders
This episode was originally recorded several years ago and I never got around to editing and posting it – but we’re getting back into the swing of things and I didn’t want to let …
asabpodcast.com
We are back! Hopefully on a more consistent basis this time 😅- but listen, you've seen the news. We live in the USA and we're both academics and at least one of us has multiple diagnosed anxiety disorders. You get it.
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Amazing news!
When you purchase the audiobook of my novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster between now and Feb. 12, ✨ 100 PERCENT ✨ of the purchase price goes to BINC, the nonprofit that helps booksellers who are having a tough time.
I love this audiobook. And BINC. It's a win-win!
libro.fm/binc
When you purchase the audiobook of my novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster between now and Feb. 12, ✨ 100 PERCENT ✨ of the purchase price goes to BINC, the nonprofit that helps booksellers who are having a tough time.
I love this audiobook. And BINC. It's a win-win!
libro.fm/binc
Book Industry Charitable Foundation
Libro.fm is proud to support Binc, the only nonprofit in the United States dedicated to assisting booksellers and comic retailers in need.
libro.fm
February 10, 2026 at 5:26 AM
Amazing news!
When you purchase the audiobook of my novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster between now and Feb. 12, ✨ 100 PERCENT ✨ of the purchase price goes to BINC, the nonprofit that helps booksellers who are having a tough time.
I love this audiobook. And BINC. It's a win-win!
libro.fm/binc
When you purchase the audiobook of my novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster between now and Feb. 12, ✨ 100 PERCENT ✨ of the purchase price goes to BINC, the nonprofit that helps booksellers who are having a tough time.
I love this audiobook. And BINC. It's a win-win!
libro.fm/binc
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Finally, since the astronomy prizes offered by ASU were funded by Epstein, so Lawrence Krauss consulted him for input on who should win these awards! Personal note: I applied for this award (not knowing any of these things at the time), and I am SO glad I did not make that shortlist!
February 10, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Finally, since the astronomy prizes offered by ASU were funded by Epstein, so Lawrence Krauss consulted him for input on who should win these awards! Personal note: I applied for this award (not knowing any of these things at the time), and I am SO glad I did not make that shortlist!
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Hey everyone!
Huge news! Our trans girl scout list has sold a total of 146,000 boxes as of today!
But MANY trans girl scouts only have 20, 30, 40 boxes sold.
I just resorted our list to put those on the top.
Go get your girl scout cookies and make a trans kid's day!
Huge news! Our trans girl scout list has sold a total of 146,000 boxes as of today!
But MANY trans girl scouts only have 20, 30, 40 boxes sold.
I just resorted our list to put those on the top.
Go get your girl scout cookies and make a trans kid's day!
2026 Trans Girl Scouts To Order Cookies From!
This year, consider ordering your Girl Scout cookies from a trans girl scout to make their day!
www.erininthemorning.com
February 3, 2026 at 12:18 AM
Hey everyone!
Huge news! Our trans girl scout list has sold a total of 146,000 boxes as of today!
But MANY trans girl scouts only have 20, 30, 40 boxes sold.
I just resorted our list to put those on the top.
Go get your girl scout cookies and make a trans kid's day!
Huge news! Our trans girl scout list has sold a total of 146,000 boxes as of today!
But MANY trans girl scouts only have 20, 30, 40 boxes sold.
I just resorted our list to put those on the top.
Go get your girl scout cookies and make a trans kid's day!
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Current status of the fundraisers for those killed by ICE:
Renee Good: $1,499,580
Alex Pretti: $1,289,249
Keith Porter, Jr. $302,423
Parady La: $45,848
Heber Sanchez Dominguez: $47,991
Luis Beltrán Yanez Cruz: $18,640
Victor Manuel Diaz: $2,538
Geraldo Lunas: $2,260
Luis Gustavo Núñez: $1,935
Renee Good: $1,499,580
Alex Pretti: $1,289,249
Keith Porter, Jr. $302,423
Parady La: $45,848
Heber Sanchez Dominguez: $47,991
Luis Beltrán Yanez Cruz: $18,640
Victor Manuel Diaz: $2,538
Geraldo Lunas: $2,260
Luis Gustavo Núñez: $1,935
January 26, 2026 at 9:27 PM
Current status of the fundraisers for those killed by ICE:
Renee Good: $1,499,580
Alex Pretti: $1,289,249
Keith Porter, Jr. $302,423
Parady La: $45,848
Heber Sanchez Dominguez: $47,991
Luis Beltrán Yanez Cruz: $18,640
Victor Manuel Diaz: $2,538
Geraldo Lunas: $2,260
Luis Gustavo Núñez: $1,935
Renee Good: $1,499,580
Alex Pretti: $1,289,249
Keith Porter, Jr. $302,423
Parady La: $45,848
Heber Sanchez Dominguez: $47,991
Luis Beltrán Yanez Cruz: $18,640
Victor Manuel Diaz: $2,538
Geraldo Lunas: $2,260
Luis Gustavo Núñez: $1,935
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
BREAKING: Media outlets are reporting the Trump administration will expand the global gag rule to target trans people around the world, marking the latest attack in their obsessive crusade against our community. apnews.com/article/trum...
January 22, 2026 at 7:05 PM
BREAKING: Media outlets are reporting the Trump administration will expand the global gag rule to target trans people around the world, marking the latest attack in their obsessive crusade against our community. apnews.com/article/trum...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Money for trans reporting! via @transjournalists.org Spread the word and apply!! www.transjournalists.org/reporting-fe...
TJA Reporting Fellowship
The Trans Journalists Association’s Reporting Fellowship directly invests in accurate, nuanced coverage of trans rights and communities. In its inaugural year, seven journalists will be selected as fe...
www.transjournalists.org
January 21, 2026 at 10:13 PM
Money for trans reporting! via @transjournalists.org Spread the word and apply!! www.transjournalists.org/reporting-fe...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
People really really downplay dental health. Cavities are not the worse case scenario here. Poor oral health can kill you
January 19, 2026 at 1:59 AM
People really really downplay dental health. Cavities are not the worse case scenario here. Poor oral health can kill you
Also huge update, I got two more cats.
Well one of my cats died. And then I was really sad.
And then I got a little less sad and also I got two more cats.
This is one of them. He's 9 years old and huge.
Well one of my cats died. And then I was really sad.
And then I got a little less sad and also I got two more cats.
This is one of them. He's 9 years old and huge.
January 15, 2026 at 10:16 PM
Also huge update, I got two more cats.
Well one of my cats died. And then I was really sad.
And then I got a little less sad and also I got two more cats.
This is one of them. He's 9 years old and huge.
Well one of my cats died. And then I was really sad.
And then I got a little less sad and also I got two more cats.
This is one of them. He's 9 years old and huge.
We are back! Hopefully on a more consistent basis this time 😅- but listen, you've seen the news. We live in the USA and we're both academics and at least one of us has multiple diagnosed anxiety disorders. You get it.
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
Episode 64: Blood-Eating Mosquitoes, Mosquito-Eating Spiders
This episode was originally recorded several years ago and I never got around to editing and posting it – but we’re getting back into the swing of things and I didn’t want to let …
asabpodcast.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:48 PM
We are back! Hopefully on a more consistent basis this time 😅- but listen, you've seen the news. We live in the USA and we're both academics and at least one of us has multiple diagnosed anxiety disorders. You get it.
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
New episode on hematophagous arthropods!
asabpodcast.com/2026/01/15/e...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
About two dozen provider organizations have stopped offering gender-affirming care in response to Trump’s threats. But not all hospitals are complying in advance. Boston Children’s Hospital recently issued a statement saying it would continue care. www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/07/bost...
Boston Children's Hospital says it won't be bullied into abandoning trans youth - LGBTQ Nation
The hospital has faced bomb threats, hate campaigns, and threats to funding over the years but has never wavered in supporting gender-affirming care.
www.lgbtqnation.com
August 7, 2025 at 7:55 PM
About two dozen provider organizations have stopped offering gender-affirming care in response to Trump’s threats. But not all hospitals are complying in advance. Boston Children’s Hospital recently issued a statement saying it would continue care. www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/07/bost...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
hoping that when they say the LLM talks like a Ph.D.-level expert, they mean "holds indecipherable decades-long academic grudges expressed largely in the form of questions that are actually more of a comment"
August 7, 2025 at 8:43 PM
hoping that when they say the LLM talks like a Ph.D.-level expert, they mean "holds indecipherable decades-long academic grudges expressed largely in the form of questions that are actually more of a comment"
Not really even broadly relevant to the podcast but I'm so happy! No water-wasting data centers in the DESERT.
THE DESERT!!!!! IT'S A DESERT.
😘 - me at all the beautiful deserts
THE DESERT!!!!! IT'S A DESERT.
😘 - me at all the beautiful deserts
The Tucson city council unanimously rejected the Project Blue data center today.
That comes after weeks of dogged organizing plus our little team @azluminaria.org going hard on helping Tucson understand who was behind this project and its impact on our community
azluminaria.org/2025/08/06/t...
That comes after weeks of dogged organizing plus our little team @azluminaria.org going hard on helping Tucson understand who was behind this project and its impact on our community
azluminaria.org/2025/08/06/t...
Tucson City Council rejects Project Blue data center amid intense community pressure - AZ Luminaria
The Tucson city council voted unanimously Wednesday against bringing the massive and water-devouring Project Blue data center — tied to tech giant Amazon — into city limits. After weeks of escalating ...
azluminaria.org
August 7, 2025 at 2:44 AM
Not really even broadly relevant to the podcast but I'm so happy! No water-wasting data centers in the DESERT.
THE DESERT!!!!! IT'S A DESERT.
😘 - me at all the beautiful deserts
THE DESERT!!!!! IT'S A DESERT.
😘 - me at all the beautiful deserts
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
I wrote up what the new World Athletics policy actually means, who is exempt, and what might come next, along with a little *hot take* about the financial piece of this. buttondown.com/tested/archi...
World Athletics is indeed going back to mandatory sex testing.
In unsurprising, but still pretty unfortunate news: Yesterday, World Athletics announced that it would indeed be bringing back genetic sex testing for all...
buttondown.com
August 1, 2025 at 2:27 AM
I wrote up what the new World Athletics policy actually means, who is exempt, and what might come next, along with a little *hot take* about the financial piece of this. buttondown.com/tested/archi...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Sex testing is officially back in sports -- which is a huge bummer and also contradicts so much ethics, human rights law, and actual science. More on all that (and the history) on my podcast Tested: www.tested-podcast.com
July 30, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Sex testing is officially back in sports -- which is a huge bummer and also contradicts so much ethics, human rights law, and actual science. More on all that (and the history) on my podcast Tested: www.tested-podcast.com
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
i think a lot about how zotero is actually one of the technologies academia actually should be pushing on students and faculty versus the lake-guzzling, town poisoning, and labor exploiting chatbots
Zotero has changed my life for the better. What a marvelous piece of software.
July 27, 2025 at 7:57 PM
i think a lot about how zotero is actually one of the technologies academia actually should be pushing on students and faculty versus the lake-guzzling, town poisoning, and labor exploiting chatbots
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Because a lot of people won't appreciate this: also, university presses have a habit of making authors handover copyright of their academic manuscripts, so a lot of authors won't even have the ability to say "no" to this kind of shit as more presses do it
bsky.app/profile/hype...
bsky.app/profile/hype...
“Authors have until the end of August to opt out of the licensing agreement. If they do not, their work will be used to help train AI models.”
Johns Hopkins Press will license its books to train AI models
Authors at the Johns Hopkins University Press will be able to opt out of the AI licensing agreement until the end of August; if they do not, their work will be used to train AI models.
www.thebaltimorebanner.com
July 26, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Because a lot of people won't appreciate this: also, university presses have a habit of making authors handover copyright of their academic manuscripts, so a lot of authors won't even have the ability to say "no" to this kind of shit as more presses do it
bsky.app/profile/hype...
bsky.app/profile/hype...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
You don't have to think about this if you aren't impacted by it, but it becomes way easier to just not go out in public.
And so we don't.
People sometimes comment that trans folks have a huge online presence - do you think that this is because we have thriving offline social lives?
And so we don't.
People sometimes comment that trans folks have a huge online presence - do you think that this is because we have thriving offline social lives?
July 20, 2025 at 5:05 AM
You don't have to think about this if you aren't impacted by it, but it becomes way easier to just not go out in public.
And so we don't.
People sometimes comment that trans folks have a huge online presence - do you think that this is because we have thriving offline social lives?
And so we don't.
People sometimes comment that trans folks have a huge online presence - do you think that this is because we have thriving offline social lives?
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
I can confirm the PBS Passport is a very good deal for $5/month or $2.50/month if you do yearly.
Thousands of hours of top notch content. NOVA is great. The new Ken Burns doc on Leonardo da Vinci is excellent.
You can sign up at the link below!
www.pbs.org/passport/lea...
Thousands of hours of top notch content. NOVA is great. The new Ken Burns doc on Leonardo da Vinci is excellent.
You can sign up at the link below!
www.pbs.org/passport/lea...
July 18, 2025 at 7:49 PM
I can confirm the PBS Passport is a very good deal for $5/month or $2.50/month if you do yearly.
Thousands of hours of top notch content. NOVA is great. The new Ken Burns doc on Leonardo da Vinci is excellent.
You can sign up at the link below!
www.pbs.org/passport/lea...
Thousands of hours of top notch content. NOVA is great. The new Ken Burns doc on Leonardo da Vinci is excellent.
You can sign up at the link below!
www.pbs.org/passport/lea...
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Local librarians and booksellers (including us) weigh in on what you should be reading this summer!
(Spoiler: we suggested @mskellymhayes.bsky.social, @prisonculture.bsky.social, @shanehawk.com, @tvayyyy.bsky.social, and #MargePiercy 🔥📚)
(Spoiler: we suggested @mskellymhayes.bsky.social, @prisonculture.bsky.social, @shanehawk.com, @tvayyyy.bsky.social, and #MargePiercy 🔥📚)
Summer reading recs from local bookstores + libraries
Keep the summer reading going by finding your next page-turner, including recommendations from local bookstores.
avltoday.6amcity.com
July 15, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Local librarians and booksellers (including us) weigh in on what you should be reading this summer!
(Spoiler: we suggested @mskellymhayes.bsky.social, @prisonculture.bsky.social, @shanehawk.com, @tvayyyy.bsky.social, and #MargePiercy 🔥📚)
(Spoiler: we suggested @mskellymhayes.bsky.social, @prisonculture.bsky.social, @shanehawk.com, @tvayyyy.bsky.social, and #MargePiercy 🔥📚)
Someday I'm going to get into a throuple with a geologist and a botanist and we're going to go on the best hikes anyone's ever even heard of.
July 15, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Someday I'm going to get into a throuple with a geologist and a botanist and we're going to go on the best hikes anyone's ever even heard of.
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
Reposted by Assigned Scientist at Bachelor's 🏳️⚧️
The GOP plans to slash $2.1 Billion from the National Science Foundation. It won’t just hurt labs—it hurts students, startups, and the future economy. From clean energy to advanced manufacturing, these are jobs of tomorrow. These cuts hand American jobs and opportunity to our foreign competitors.
July 14, 2025 at 6:10 PM
The GOP plans to slash $2.1 Billion from the National Science Foundation. It won’t just hurt labs—it hurts students, startups, and the future economy. From clean energy to advanced manufacturing, these are jobs of tomorrow. These cuts hand American jobs and opportunity to our foreign competitors.