Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Kristi Hannam, PhD

Josh Moody @byjoshmoody.bsky.social · 33m

MIT rejects "compact" proposed by the Trump administration.
MIT prez wrote: it "would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution" and "is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone."
orgchart.mit.edu/letters/rega...

Regarding the Compact | MIT Organization Chart

orgchart.mit.edu

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Reposted by Kristi Hannam, PhD

Costa Samaras @costasamaras.com · 9h

Picture how big the Hoover Dam is. An absolute unit. The Hoover Dam has a power capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW).

The solar farm that the Admin just cancelled could have produces 6.2 GW of power. That's more than 3 Hoover Dams.

jael holzman @jael.bsky.social · 10h

SCOOP: The Bureau of Land Management says the largest solar project in Nevada — the Esmeralda 7 mega-farm — has been canceled

The news was quietly dropped via a sudden website update with no public word from any of the companies involved or a statement from the agency

@heatmap.news

Esmeralda 7 Solar Project Has Been Canceled, BLM Says

It would have delivered a gargantuan 6.2 gigawatts of power.

heatmap.news

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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 1h

Also, a total lie that American students have been crowded out by international students. International students effectively subsidize the tuition of American students!

Jameel Jaffer @jameeljaffer.bsky.social · 1h

Quite a feat to go from this to "and therefore universities must ban faculty and students from belittling conservative ideas"

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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 17h

Republicans have had 15 years to come up with an Obamacare replacement plan. They still haven’t

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d

Thune: "The president would like to overhaul Obamacare and give people health insurance that is higher quality and more affordable."

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John Fasullo @jfasullo.bsky.social · 18h

"By most metrics, 2025 has been the worst year for the American scientific enterprise in modern history". The result - we are "essentially ending America’s longstanding role as the world leader in science and innovation,” www.nytimes.com/2025/07/10/s...

Trump Seeks to Cut Basic Scientific Research by Roughly One-Third, Report Shows

www.nytimes.com

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Zachary J. Smith @vocabulist.bsky.social · 1d

In case anyone thinks this is paranoid, Trump’s junta has defined terrorism to include trespass, naming ICE agents on the internet, and whatever “civil disorder” is.

politically motivated terrorist acts such as organized doxing campaigns, swatting, rioting, looting, trespass, assault, destruction of property, threats of violence, and civil disorder

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Paul Macklin @mathcancer.bsky.social · 19h

So proud of this multidisciplinary project, showing in particular the power of community science when enabled by user-friendly design, bolstering deep expertise.

In the 2024 solar eclipse, 11k observations from 1700 laypeople via a jointly developed, user-friendly smartphone app.🔭🧪

Community observations of bird behaviors across the path of the 2024 total solar eclipse, via a user-friendly smartphone app.

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Matt Shipman (he/him) @shiplives.bsky.social · 19h

I don't know who needs to hear this*, but you do not have to incorporate generative AI tools into your work. Depending on the nature of your work, it will not necessarily make your work better or more efficient.

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Amy Maxmen, PhD @amymaxmen.bsky.social · 19h

When I was reporting in Sudan several years ago, a driver warned me not to tell government officials when I was leaving because the airport is where they stop and detain writers.

So, yeah, this is a very bad sign. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

US anti-fascism expert blocked from flying to Spain at airport

Rutgers University professor who published book on antifa was informed at boarding gate that his trip was cancelled

www.theguardian.com

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Brendan Nyhan @brendannyhan.bsky.social · 19h

Why we need to invest in basic science. Sometimes discoveries like these lead to important benefits for society!

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 19h

Why does the naked mole rat have the longest lifespan of any rodent, nearly 40 years?
A 30-year long mystery unraveled @ScienceMagazine today!
Its cGAS enzyme in cells has 4 missense mutations that upends its function, promoting DNA repair and suppressing inflammation
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

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Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 21h

With $75 billion and thousands of masked agents, ICE is just getting started.

We take a look at ICE's skyrocketing expansion, the agency's failing standards, and where detention centers are planned for next. bit.ly/4nIoFrB

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Rising Sun NorCal Man @risingsonncalman.bsky.social · 21h

The only reason to wear a mask is to hide one’s face. The only reason to hide one’s face is to hide one’s identity. The only reason to hide one’s identity is to act out against society with impunity.

ICE Goes Masked for a Single Reason’ www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/o...

Opinion | ‘ICE Goes Masked for a Single Reason’

www.nytimes.com

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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 21h

Hey US scientists, the NY Times wants to hear from you if you've had your funding cut. 🌊🧪

Has Your Scientific Work Been Cut? We Want to Hear.

www.nytimes.com

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David W. Sanders! @davidwsanders.bsky.social · 1d

Humbled to announce that we received a New Innovator award. I thank the NIH’s civil servants for their hard work during a stressful funding cycle. I thank the leadership (and chair, Marc Diamond) at UTSW for betting on my lab’s high risk, high reward research. www.utsouthwestern.edu/newsroom/art...

UT Southwestern researcher receives NIH Director’s New Innovator Award

David Sanders, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Center for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases and Molecular Biology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, has been awarded $2.4 million over five ...

www.utsouthwestern.edu

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Emissary Of Night | ليلى @diplomatofnight.com · 21h

Netanyahu's mouthpiece, Amit Segal, casually admits on Twitter that his country has been holding 1,700 people from Gaza hostage, including children.

Among other things, according to the decision:

- 250 security prisoners will be released.
- 1,700 residents of the Gaza Strip who were not involved in the events of October 7 and were arrested after the massacre will be released.
- 22 minors under the age of 18, residents of the Gaza Strip who were not involved in the events of October 7 and were arrested after the massacre, will be released.
- 360 bodies of terrorists will be returned.

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Kevin Collins @kwcollins.bsky.social · 1d

Why is the President of the United States trying to communicate with the Attorney General about government business via direct messages on the social media site he owns?

And is a direct message on a privately owned social media site kind of like a private email server?

Sean O’Kane @seanokane.bsky.social · 1d

WSJ is reporting that the Truth Social post where Trump told Pam Bondi to prosecute Comey *really was supposed to be a private message*

www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Inside the Justice Department Where the President Calls the Shots

The president has executed a wholesale transformation of the Justice Department, taking control in ways he could have only dreamed of in his first term.

www.wsj.com

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Reposted by Kristi Hannam, PhD

Kai Ryssdal @kairyssdal.bsky.social · 1d

This is the lesson of 2025

Quinta Jurecic @qjurecic.bsky.social · 1d

he's going to come after you either way, so you might as well act with integrity

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James @gravitysra1nbow.bsky.social · 1d

Underrated part of this story is that official USG business is done by Truth Social DM. It almost makes you miss the good old days of the PC small group Signal Chat.

Sean O’Kane @seanokane.bsky.social · 1d

WSJ is reporting that the Truth Social post where Trump told Pam Bondi to prosecute Comey *really was supposed to be a private message*

www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Inside the Justice Department Where the President Calls the Shots

The president has executed a wholesale transformation of the Justice Department, taking control in ways he could have only dreamed of in his first term.

www.wsj.com

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Reposted by Kristi Hannam, PhD

David Roberts @volts.wtf · 1d

It really can't be said enough: the goal of the "anti-woke" movement was always to destroy social norms against bigotry. And it worked. And there's a whole lot of purportedly "left" thinkers & commentators who helped it -- indeed, it couldn't have been done without them.

They should feel bad.

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Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 1d

Crucial from former prosecutor @kristyparker.bsky.social: Trump might have immunity, but those who commit corrupt or illegal orders for him do not. That's why DOJ insiders are leaking word that cases against Comey and Letitia James are collapsing.

All on the pod:
newrepublic.com/article/2015...

Trump Threats to Jail Foes Take Darker Turn with Damning New DOJ Leaks

As ugly new information emerges about Trump’s efforts to prosecute James Comey and other enemies, a former federal prosecutor explains how his corrupt schemes are running into stiff internal resistanc...

newrepublic.com

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patfromthestix @patfromthestix.bsky.social · 1d

www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

The Moral Foundation of America

The idea that everyone has intrinsic rights to life and liberty was a radical break with millennia of human history. It’s worth preserving.

www.theatlantic.com

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Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 1d

My gosh. After the US bombed multiple boats in the middle of the ocean, murdering people on grounds that they were allegedly "carrying drugs," the US Attorney General says "Just like we did with cartels, we're going to take the same approach, President Trump, with Antifa."

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Anna O. Law @unlawfulentries.bsky.social · 1d

I teach in my undergrad class on the history of the US jury system that the institution's roots are in colonial juries serving as a counterweight to abuses of imperial power. The American jury has problems for sure but still can serve that roll. Don't blow off jury service.

Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 1d

Jury Refuses To Indict Chicago ICE Protesters In Latest Revolt Against Trump Overreach talkingpointsmemo.com/where-things...

Jury Refuses To Indict Chicago ICE Protesters In Latest Revolt Against Trump Overreach

A grand jury Tuesday night declined to indict two protesters in the...

talkingpointsmemo.com

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☠️deadward niedermurder☠️ @niedermeyer.online · 3d

what if I told you that taking accountability for your actions was traditionally considered a load-bearing feature of masculinity?

Rolling Stone @rollingstone.com · 3d

“I voted for none of this."

Prominent influencers, including Theo Von, Joe Rogan, and Andrew Schulz, are starting to distance themselves from the president they helped propel to the White House.

Story: www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...

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Matthew Kirschenbaum @mkirschenbaum.bsky.social · 1d

Virginia State Senate Dems just brought down fire and fury regarding the “Compact,” notifying the President and Rector that UVA would lose ALL STATE APPROPRIATIONS if it signs and cedes the University to “federal political control.” Notably, their letter directly restates points made here by @siva.

Siva @sivav.bsky.social · 1d

The “compact” for higher ed is an unserious document written by unserious people from a position of spectacular ignorance. No one should take it seriously. Sadly, my bosses are taking it seriously.

newrepublic.com/article/2013...

Why This Essay Could Cause the University of Virginia to Shut Down

How Linda McMahon’s latest “compact” would do deep and permanent harm to American higher education

newrepublic.com

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