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brendanoloughlin.bsky.social
Brendan O'Loughlin
@brendanoloughlin.bsky.social
1K followers 560 following 720 posts
He/him PhD student in the Carstens Lab at The Ohio State University
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brendanoloughlin.bsky.social
Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · Mar 2
I would like to announce that I'm starting my PhD this fall in the Carstens Lab at Ohio State University!

I haven't nailed down a specific topic yet, but it will most likely be in computational evolutionary biology using insects as a study system.

I'm very excited to take this next step!
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 1d
Or not, looks like i cant
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 1d
It would be very helpful! I'll send you a DM
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 1d
The coloration is essentially identical, but the genitalia and barcodes are very different.
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 1d
Anyone want to describe a new moth species with me lol?

I just discovered that a super common holartic species are two different species between North America and Europe, but I don't have any experience with Lepidoptera taxonomy
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
I will!
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
I will be! They are not my advisors but I will be working with the evolution wasps and some other small arthropods
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
Thanks I'll remember this!
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
I'm very curious if an accurate 3D model can be made of a ~1 mm wasp
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
Its possible! Speaking of which, I've been looking into using microCT for some of my small wasps. I believe we have a machine at my institution, but would you be willing to answer questions I have when I get around to trying to do it?
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
The "spiral" is a little more scrunched inwards than I would expect. Doesn't change the ID though!
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 3d
This is Agelenopsis pennsylvanica if you want a species ID!

Looks a little weird though, maybe due to drying?
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 5d
Long shot here but does anyone recognize this small harvestman? I collected it from under a rock in central Ohio

#arachnology
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 7d
I came from the future to tell you there's an error in your figure
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 8d
😭😭😭
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 8d
I assume it was the curse of fake old subspecies? I'm convinced subspecies are a useless category for 90% of arthropod groups
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 8d
There is a reason they usually are slide mounted haha
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 8d
Wait were these reared from galls or just caught in a trap?
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 8d
This is a weird one. I found a leafmine on Amur honeysuckle. Didn't know they even had herbivore damage!
Small leafmine on a honeysuckle leaf.
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 9d
Yup, male Phorid!
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 10d
Speaking of aquatic critters, do you recognize this tiny Ostracod? I found it in an Ohio River
Tiny see-through ostracod
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 11d
It would be amazing to do a Linyphiid phylogeny with UCEs or other genomic markers...
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 12d
And what population is...
And what life is....
And what reality is
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 12d
Illegal, next ask them what a species is
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 16d
Modern academia feels like a part-time marketing job sometimes lol
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Brendan O'Loughlin @brendanoloughlin.bsky.social · 16d
Imo its moreso the expectation of "novelty" plus publish or perish that drives researchers to overstate the novelty and impact of their research in general
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