Angie Voyles Askham
@avaskham.bsky.social
senior reporter at The Transmitter, where I write about neuroscience research / neuroscience PhD / mom of three
Email: angie at thetransmitter dot org
Signal: avaskham.54
Email: angie at thetransmitter dot org
Signal: avaskham.54
“I am very concerned about the minimal scientific expertise on the committee, and the degree to which it is stacked with vocal proponents of the discredited notion that vaccines contribute to autism,” says Joshua Gordon, former NIMH director.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
bit.ly/3Z8Gs0y
By @avaskham.bsky.social
bit.ly/3Z8Gs0y
Latest iteration of U.S. federal autism committee comes under fire
The new panel “represents a radical departure from all past rosters,” says autism researcher Helen Tager-Flusberg.
bit.ly
January 30, 2026 at 3:23 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
“As long as we can remain optimistic about the future of science and communicate that optimism to young people, we’re going to be fine,” says Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
‘Peer review is our strength’: Q&A with Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director
In his first week off the job, the former National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke director urges U.S. scientists to remain optimistic about the future of neuroscience research…
www.thetransmitter.org
January 27, 2026 at 9:03 PM
“As long as we can remain optimistic about the future of science and communicate that optimism to young people, we’re going to be fine,” says Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Former NINDS director Walter Koroshetz sat down with @avaskham.bsky.social to reflect on his tenure and share his thoughts on the "attempts at influence" from politicians www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
‘Peer review is our strength’: Q&A with Walter Koroshetz, former NINDS director
In his first week off the job, the former National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke director urges U.S. scientists to remain optimistic about the future of neuroscience research…
www.thetransmitter.org
January 27, 2026 at 9:24 PM
Former NINDS director Walter Koroshetz sat down with @avaskham.bsky.social to reflect on his tenure and share his thoughts on the "attempts at influence" from politicians www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
A letter signed by 40 neuroscience groups asks Congress to ensure that scientific expertise remains a priority in the search for a new director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
After NINDS director ouster, 40 neuroscience organizations press U.S. Congress for oversight over hiring process
A letter signed by the groups asks Congress to ensure that scientific expertise remains a priority in the search for a new director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 23, 2026 at 9:39 PM
A letter signed by 40 neuroscience groups asks Congress to ensure that scientific expertise remains a priority in the search for a new director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/science-and-...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
The bill includes a 33 percent budget increase for the NIH’s BRAIN Initiative, which has faced significant funding cuts over the past two years.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/neur...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/neur...
Neuroscience, BRAIN Initiative gain budget in ‘bad’ NIH funding bill
The bill goes before the House of Representatives today and outlines increases for neuroscience-related research—including a 33 percent increase to the BRAIN Initiative—but maintains a multiyear…
www.thetransmitter.org
January 22, 2026 at 8:54 PM
The bill includes a 33 percent budget increase for the NIH’s BRAIN Initiative, which has faced significant funding cuts over the past two years.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/neur...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/neur...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
🚨 New from me: Grant review at more than half of NIH's institutes could be frozen by the end of the year.
That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027.
A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications.
A short 🧵
That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027.
A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications.
A short 🧵
Exclusive: key NIH review panels due to lose all members by the end of 2026
Thirteen of the agency’s advisory councils, which must review grant applications before funding is awarded, are on track to have no voting members.
www.nature.com
January 22, 2026 at 7:46 PM
🚨 New from me: Grant review at more than half of NIH's institutes could be frozen by the end of the year.
That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027.
A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications.
A short 🧵
That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027.
A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications.
A short 🧵
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
A new method for delivering genes to the primate brain enables researchers to apply existing genetic tools across the monkey brain.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/pre...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/pre...
Prenatal viral injections prime primate brain for study
The approach makes it possible to deploy tools such as CRISPR and optogenetics across the monkey brain before birth.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 22, 2026 at 2:39 PM
A new method for delivering genes to the primate brain enables researchers to apply existing genetic tools across the monkey brain.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/pre...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/pre...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Good news from NIH!
Michael Chiang has apparently been reappointed as Director of the National Eye Institute
www.nei.nih.gov/about/our-mi...
Michael Chiang has apparently been reappointed as Director of the National Eye Institute
www.nei.nih.gov/about/our-mi...
Michael F. Chiang, M.D. | National Eye Institute
Michael F. Chiang is director of the National Eye Institute, at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.
www.nei.nih.gov
January 21, 2026 at 8:40 PM
Good news from NIH!
Michael Chiang has apparently been reappointed as Director of the National Eye Institute
www.nei.nih.gov/about/our-mi...
Michael Chiang has apparently been reappointed as Director of the National Eye Institute
www.nei.nih.gov/about/our-mi...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Reposting with comments.
NIDDK budget appears to be cut because there is a separate fund for diabetes, elsewhere in the bill.
NINDS budget is increased because of funds transferred from the Office of the Director (OD) for ALS, Alzheimer's.
NIEHS seems like a real cut.
OD cut is related to NINDS.
NIDDK budget appears to be cut because there is a separate fund for diabetes, elsewhere in the bill.
NINDS budget is increased because of funds transferred from the Office of the Director (OD) for ALS, Alzheimer's.
NIEHS seems like a real cut.
OD cut is related to NINDS.
January 21, 2026 at 1:35 PM
Reposting with comments.
NIDDK budget appears to be cut because there is a separate fund for diabetes, elsewhere in the bill.
NINDS budget is increased because of funds transferred from the Office of the Director (OD) for ALS, Alzheimer's.
NIEHS seems like a real cut.
OD cut is related to NINDS.
NIDDK budget appears to be cut because there is a separate fund for diabetes, elsewhere in the bill.
NINDS budget is increased because of funds transferred from the Office of the Director (OD) for ALS, Alzheimer's.
NIEHS seems like a real cut.
OD cut is related to NINDS.
A mathematical glitch means that lesion network mapping, which aims to find condition-specific dysfunctional networks, produces strikingly similar results regardless of the condition being studied:
More than 200 published studies and at least seven ongoing clinical trials rely on potentially faulty brain network maps, according to a study published yesterday.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/brain-imagin...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/brain-imagin...
Methodological flaw may upend network mapping tool
The lesion network mapping method, used to identify disease-specific brain networks for clinical stimulation, produces a nearly identical network map for any given condition, according to a new study.
www.thetransmitter.org
January 16, 2026 at 3:25 PM
A mathematical glitch means that lesion network mapping, which aims to find condition-specific dysfunctional networks, produces strikingly similar results regardless of the condition being studied:
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
What can the Brain Knowledge Platform do for you? 🧠📈
Join us on Jan. 14, 11am-12pm PT for a webinar on the new features and data in world's most comprehensive brain cell atlas.
🔗 https://alleninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Le5E4CXGSA2clMJ2VesyBw#/registration
Join us on Jan. 14, 11am-12pm PT for a webinar on the new features and data in world's most comprehensive brain cell atlas.
🔗 https://alleninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Le5E4CXGSA2clMJ2VesyBw#/registration
January 5, 2026 at 9:14 PM
What can the Brain Knowledge Platform do for you? 🧠📈
Join us on Jan. 14, 11am-12pm PT for a webinar on the new features and data in world's most comprehensive brain cell atlas.
🔗 https://alleninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Le5E4CXGSA2clMJ2VesyBw#/registration
Join us on Jan. 14, 11am-12pm PT for a webinar on the new features and data in world's most comprehensive brain cell atlas.
🔗 https://alleninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Le5E4CXGSA2clMJ2VesyBw#/registration
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
“It’s giving mechanistic insight into how estrogen modulates reinforcement learning—all the way down to the molecular mechanism,” says Ilana Witten.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/sex-hormones...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/sex-hormones...
Sex hormone boosts female rats’ sensitivity to unexpected rewards
During the high-estradiol stages of their estrus cycle, female rats learn faster than they do during other stages—and than male rats overall—thanks to a boost in their dopaminergic response to reward…
www.thetransmitter.org
November 26, 2025 at 2:36 PM
“It’s giving mechanistic insight into how estrogen modulates reinforcement learning—all the way down to the molecular mechanism,” says Ilana Witten.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/sex-hormones...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/sex-hormones...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Given the issues facing neuroscience around government policy and funding, the naming of an outsider to SfN’s top position caught some neuroscientists by surprise.
By Natalia Mesa
#neuroskyence #SfN2025 #SfN25
www.thetransmitter.org/teaching/kev...
By Natalia Mesa
#neuroskyence #SfN2025 #SfN25
www.thetransmitter.org/teaching/kev...
A change at the top of SfN as neuroscientists gather in San Diego
Kevin B. Marvel, longtime head of the American Astronomical Society, will lead SfN after a year of uncertainty in the neuroscience field.
www.thetransmitter.org
November 17, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Given the issues facing neuroscience around government policy and funding, the naming of an outsider to SfN’s top position caught some neuroscientists by surprise.
By Natalia Mesa
#neuroskyence #SfN2025 #SfN25
www.thetransmitter.org/teaching/kev...
By Natalia Mesa
#neuroskyence #SfN2025 #SfN25
www.thetransmitter.org/teaching/kev...
While I was out on maternity leave, the Transmitter team produced this incredibly rich and informative special report on the state of neuroscience as a field. It's out now — go explore it here!!
#neuroskyence
#neuroskyence
@thetransmitter.bsky.social presents a portrait of the state of neuroscience in 2025 through four lenses: its focus, its output, its people and its funding. Each view features analyses of major trends and more. Explore the end of year report: bit.ly/4oNeTVC
#neuroskyence #StateofNeuro
#neuroskyence #StateofNeuro
November 17, 2025 at 4:14 PM
While I was out on maternity leave, the Transmitter team produced this incredibly rich and informative special report on the state of neuroscience as a field. It's out now — go explore it here!!
#neuroskyence
#neuroskyence
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Join us on Dec. 2 for a webinar on the major advances in basal ganglia mapping, including cross-species cellular mapping and open-access visualization tools.
📅 Dec. 2, 9-10:30am PT
📍 Online
🔗 Register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/neuroscience-cell-types-webinars/
#studyBRAIN #neuroskyence
📅 Dec. 2, 9-10:30am PT
📍 Online
🔗 Register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/neuroscience-cell-types-webinars/
#studyBRAIN #neuroskyence
Neuroscience Cell Types Webinars
Neuroscience webinars from the Allen Institute to hear about latest cell types researchers from various scientists.
alleninstitute.org
November 13, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Join us on Dec. 2 for a webinar on the major advances in basal ganglia mapping, including cross-species cellular mapping and open-access visualization tools.
📅 Dec. 2, 9-10:30am PT
📍 Online
🔗 Register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/neuroscience-cell-types-webinars/
#studyBRAIN #neuroskyence
📅 Dec. 2, 9-10:30am PT
📍 Online
🔗 Register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/neuroscience-cell-types-webinars/
#studyBRAIN #neuroskyence
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
This article in The Transmitter covering our paper may be one of the best scientific content headlines of all time. www.thetransmitter.org/fmri/timing-...
Timing tweak turns trashed fMRI scans into treasure
Leveraging start-up “dummy scans,” which are typically discarded in imaging analyses, can shorten an experiment’s length and make data collection more efficient, a new study reveals.
www.thetransmitter.org
November 13, 2025 at 12:29 PM
This article in The Transmitter covering our paper may be one of the best scientific content headlines of all time. www.thetransmitter.org/fmri/timing-...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
14 months after submission, our article “Stimulus-modulated approach to steady state (SASS): a flexible paradigm for event-related fMRI" is now out in @natmethods.nature.com . You can read it here rdcu.be/ePJo6
It is the first first author paper from my student @renilmathew.bsky.social 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 …1/N
It is the first first author paper from my student @renilmathew.bsky.social 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 …1/N
Stimulus-modulated approach to steady state (SASS): a flexible paradigm for event-related fMRI
Nature Methods - Stimulus-modulated approach to steady state (SASS) is an acquisition scheme for event-related fMRI that generates data with high temporal signal-to-noise ratios interspaced with...
rdcu.be
November 13, 2025 at 12:23 PM
14 months after submission, our article “Stimulus-modulated approach to steady state (SASS): a flexible paradigm for event-related fMRI" is now out in @natmethods.nature.com . You can read it here rdcu.be/ePJo6
It is the first first author paper from my student @renilmathew.bsky.social 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 …1/N
It is the first first author paper from my student @renilmathew.bsky.social 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 …1/N
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
The U.K. has released its plan to phase out animal testing in research, as a number of countries move toward reducing the use of animals.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/11/u...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/11/u...
U.K. releases plan to phase out animal testing in research
The U.K. has released its plan to phase out animal testing in research, as a number of countries move toward reducing the use of animals.
www.statnews.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:36 PM
The U.K. has released its plan to phase out animal testing in research, as a number of countries move toward reducing the use of animals.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/11/u...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/11/u...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
“This neural configuration before amputation remains after the amputation. And it’s not ‘use it or lose it,’” says John W. Krakauer.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/plasticity/a...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/plasticity/a...
Adult human cortex does not reorganize after amputation
The results from a new longitudinal study contradict classic findings in monkeys but may not warrant a rewriting of the textbooks just yet.
www.thetransmitter.org
August 21, 2025 at 1:59 PM
“This neural configuration before amputation remains after the amputation. And it’s not ‘use it or lose it,’” says John W. Krakauer.
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/plasticity/a...
By @avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/plasticity/a...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
The Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling NIH grants, slowing new awards, a scathing report by GAO finds. Story via @mmolteni.bsky.social and @aniloza.bsky.social for @statnews.com www.statnews.com/2025/08/05/g...
Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling NIH grants, slowing new awards, GAO finds
The Government Accountability Office found that the Trump administration, by abruptly canceling NIH grants, had violated a 1974 federal law
www.statnews.com
August 5, 2025 at 6:13 PM
The Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling NIH grants, slowing new awards, a scathing report by GAO finds. Story via @mmolteni.bsky.social and @aniloza.bsky.social for @statnews.com www.statnews.com/2025/08/05/g...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Thanks @avaskham.bsky.social & @thetransmitter.bsky.social for including me in this discussion of why individual differences matter. My work & others show that tracking individual behavior can reveal circuits & mechanisms that group averages miss #neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/animal-behav...
www.thetransmitter.org/animal-behav...
Escaping groupthink: What animals’ behavioral quirks reveal about the brain
Neuroscientists have long ignored the variability in animals’ behavioral responses in favor of studying differences across groups. But work on the brain differences that underlie that variability is…
www.thetransmitter.org
August 4, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Thanks @avaskham.bsky.social & @thetransmitter.bsky.social for including me in this discussion of why individual differences matter. My work & others show that tracking individual behavior can reveal circuits & mechanisms that group averages miss #neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/animal-behav...
www.thetransmitter.org/animal-behav...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
Our award-winning news team is looking for an enthusiastic trade journalist to join our fast-paced newsroom in NYC. This is an excellent opportunity for a science journalist to develop a beat in the field of neuroscience. For more info, please visit: bit.ly/4nvAy4k
#neuroskyence
#neuroskyence
Reporter, The Transmitter
The Transmitter offers up-to-date news and analysis of the field of neuroscience and is dedicated to helping scientists at all career stages stay current and build connections. Our award-winning news ...
simonsfoundation.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
July 2, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Our award-winning news team is looking for an enthusiastic trade journalist to join our fast-paced newsroom in NYC. This is an excellent opportunity for a science journalist to develop a beat in the field of neuroscience. For more info, please visit: bit.ly/4nvAy4k
#neuroskyence
#neuroskyence
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
In a head-spinning pair of announcements on Wednesday, the National Institutes of Health told staff that it would lift its monthslong freeze on all research funding to Columbia University — then reversed its reversal, emails show.
New from me: www.chronicle.com/article/colu...
New from me: www.chronicle.com/article/colu...
Columbia Got Some NIH Funding Back. Then It Didn’t.
In a confusing turn of events, the National Institutes of Health told staff that it would free up some frozen funding to the Ivy League campus — then quickly backtracked.
www.chronicle.com
June 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM
In a head-spinning pair of announcements on Wednesday, the National Institutes of Health told staff that it would lift its monthslong freeze on all research funding to Columbia University — then reversed its reversal, emails show.
New from me: www.chronicle.com/article/colu...
New from me: www.chronicle.com/article/colu...
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
I'd like to make a list of PhD programs that (1) are in Europe (which does include the UK); (2) offer opportunities in systems neuroscience; and obviously (3) pay a stipend. Please share and/or respond to add your suggestions?
June 17, 2025 at 5:25 PM
I'd like to make a list of PhD programs that (1) are in Europe (which does include the UK); (2) offer opportunities in systems neuroscience; and obviously (3) pay a stipend. Please share and/or respond to add your suggestions?
Great reporting from @claudia-lopez.bsky.social:
Neuroscience research and training has taken a $323 million hit in the form of grants rescinded by the U.S. NIH, according to an analysis by @thetransmitter.bsky.social.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/nih-...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/nih-...
NIH cuts quash $323 million for neuroscience research and training
“I am frightened for the state of the future of our field if this isn't reversed rapidly,” says Joshua Gordon, professor of psychiatry at Columbia University and former director of the National…
www.thetransmitter.org
June 16, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Great reporting from @claudia-lopez.bsky.social: