Avery Russell
@draverbee.bsky.social
#RussellLab studies #bees #behaviour #microbes & #flower #evolution @MissouriState https://therusselllab.net/
| #PUI | #SciComm #DiversityInSTEM #BLM #WomenInSTEM #Humanities | he/him
| #PUI | #SciComm #DiversityInSTEM #BLM #WomenInSTEM #Humanities | he/him
Pinned
Avery Russell
@draverbee.bsky.social
· Dec 10
Bacteria accumulate quicker on shorter lived flowers, but abiotic factors affect flower aging and bacterial accumulation
Abstract. Outcomes of ecological interactions often depend on the abundance and identity of the organisms involved. Flower-bacteria interactions can strong
academic.oup.com
Wonder how flower longevity affects bacterial populations? Excited to share how environ, 🥀longevity, and 🦠pop interact, now in Integrative & Comparative Biology! @sicb.bsky.social @sicbjournals.bsky.social by grad Rita Afagwu & undergrad Ciara Stewart from our lab!
academic.oup.com/icb/advance-...
academic.oup.com/icb/advance-...
Reposted by Avery Russell
Yes it’s Valentine’s Day. But it’s also the chosen birthday of Frederick Douglass who was born in 1818 on a plantation in Talbot County, Maryland. He escaped from slavery & rose to become the most eloquent and forceful voice for the abolition of slavery & for Black voting rights in the U.S.
February 14, 2026 at 6:45 PM
Yes it’s Valentine’s Day. But it’s also the chosen birthday of Frederick Douglass who was born in 1818 on a plantation in Talbot County, Maryland. He escaped from slavery & rose to become the most eloquent and forceful voice for the abolition of slavery & for Black voting rights in the U.S.
Reposted by Avery Russell
North Carolina lawmakers have voted to remove all college campus voting sites. Specifically at the largest HBCU in the US NC A&T. They now have to walk 30 minutes to their nearest polling place. Students are protesting this - pls share and support.
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThx29BJ9/
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThx29BJ9/
Even without an on-campus voting site, NCAT students still marched to the polls. 💙💛 Students at North Carolina A&T showed that barriers won’t stop their voices. When access isn’t easy, they organize. ...
TikTok video by HBCU Student Action Alliance
www.tiktok.com
February 14, 2026 at 1:55 PM
North Carolina lawmakers have voted to remove all college campus voting sites. Specifically at the largest HBCU in the US NC A&T. They now have to walk 30 minutes to their nearest polling place. Students are protesting this - pls share and support.
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThx29BJ9/
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThx29BJ9/
Reposted by Avery Russell
It's like the little prince on his tiny planet
Oh to be a little Tardigrade walking around a microscopic volvox algae colony. 🫧🐻🧪
February 14, 2026 at 7:25 PM
It's like the little prince on his tiny planet
Reposted by Avery Russell
One thing I found interesting about Politico's database of judges who ruled for/against Trump's mass detention policy: 80 percent of Trump 2.0 judges sided with the administration vs. 27 percent of Trump 1.0 judges.
Not a huge sample size, but notable! nominationnotes.substack.com/p/trump-20-j...
Not a huge sample size, but notable! nominationnotes.substack.com/p/trump-20-j...
Trump 2.0 judicial appointees are much more likely to side with the administration over its mass detention policy
It’s a small sample size, but it could offer a preview of what’s to come.
nominationnotes.substack.com
February 13, 2026 at 1:58 AM
One thing I found interesting about Politico's database of judges who ruled for/against Trump's mass detention policy: 80 percent of Trump 2.0 judges sided with the administration vs. 27 percent of Trump 1.0 judges.
Not a huge sample size, but notable! nominationnotes.substack.com/p/trump-20-j...
Not a huge sample size, but notable! nominationnotes.substack.com/p/trump-20-j...
Reposted by Avery Russell
NEW writing: a letter to these brave Angelenos
"I see your efforts to oppose the terrible actions of la migra, which has terrorized our Black and Brown communities in Los Angeles for generations, as part of a proud tradition of STEM students and practitioners who refuse to shut up and calculate."
"I see your efforts to oppose the terrible actions of la migra, which has terrorized our Black and Brown communities in Los Angeles for generations, as part of a proud tradition of STEM students and practitioners who refuse to shut up and calculate."
To the Students of Synergy Quantum Academy and their teacher, Mr. Lopez
You did the right thing by protesting ICE and protecting students.
news.chanda.science
February 13, 2026 at 5:37 PM
NEW writing: a letter to these brave Angelenos
"I see your efforts to oppose the terrible actions of la migra, which has terrorized our Black and Brown communities in Los Angeles for generations, as part of a proud tradition of STEM students and practitioners who refuse to shut up and calculate."
"I see your efforts to oppose the terrible actions of la migra, which has terrorized our Black and Brown communities in Los Angeles for generations, as part of a proud tradition of STEM students and practitioners who refuse to shut up and calculate."
Reposted by Avery Russell
USAID money that saved people’s lives now reallocated to create a paid entourage for the guy who promised to put federal employees in trauma
there's fierce competition, but this is one of the most stomach-turning things I've read in some time
Exclusive: White House uses USAID funds for budget director Vought's security, documents show
The White House budget office is using millions of dollars from the former U.S. foreign aid agency to pay for the security detail of Russell Vought, President Donald Trump's budget chief and an archit...
www.reuters.com
February 13, 2026 at 4:45 PM
USAID money that saved people’s lives now reallocated to create a paid entourage for the guy who promised to put federal employees in trauma
Reposted by Avery Russell
As the last few years have seen some serious yield challenges in West African cocoa, leading to global price volatility (and noticeable increases in the price of chocolate bars, changes in recipes, etc.), let's think about just one part of this system: pollination.
A thread 🧵
[1/]
A thread 🧵
[1/]
February 13, 2026 at 4:07 PM
As the last few years have seen some serious yield challenges in West African cocoa, leading to global price volatility (and noticeable increases in the price of chocolate bars, changes in recipes, etc.), let's think about just one part of this system: pollination.
A thread 🧵
[1/]
A thread 🧵
[1/]
Reposted by Avery Russell
You can't... repeal... a scientific finding. At that point it's just called lying about it.
Breaking News: The Trump administration repealed the bedrock scientific finding that greenhouse gases threaten human life and well being, meaning that the EPA can no longer regulate them. nyti.ms/4rSszQu
February 12, 2026 at 8:38 PM
You can't... repeal... a scientific finding. At that point it's just called lying about it.
Reposted by Avery Russell
Has your CDC grant been terminated? Please use this form: grant-witness.us/submit-cdc.h... to share your story!
Share this post & form!
Share this post & form!
February 12, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Has your CDC grant been terminated? Please use this form: grant-witness.us/submit-cdc.h... to share your story!
Share this post & form!
Share this post & form!
Reposted by Avery Russell
This is a devastating blow to Canadian dipterology, entomology, ecology, and beyond. Please share.
#diptera
@dipterists.bsky.social @teamdiptera.bsky.social @canentomologist.bsky.social @entsocamerica.bsky.social @entsocontario.bsky.social @entsocbc.bsky.social @royentsoc.bsky.social
#diptera
@dipterists.bsky.social @teamdiptera.bsky.social @canentomologist.bsky.social @entsocamerica.bsky.social @entsocontario.bsky.social @entsocbc.bsky.social @royentsoc.bsky.social
From Chris Borkent: Fellow Dipterists/systematists/ecologists: Agri./Agri-Food Canada plans to eliminate the Diptera Unit at the Canadian National Collection of Insects. Dr. Art Borkent has prepared an open letter to support keeping the unit open. To sign, please read & follow the instructions here.
February 12, 2026 at 10:23 AM
This is a devastating blow to Canadian dipterology, entomology, ecology, and beyond. Please share.
#diptera
@dipterists.bsky.social @teamdiptera.bsky.social @canentomologist.bsky.social @entsocamerica.bsky.social @entsocontario.bsky.social @entsocbc.bsky.social @royentsoc.bsky.social
#diptera
@dipterists.bsky.social @teamdiptera.bsky.social @canentomologist.bsky.social @entsocamerica.bsky.social @entsocontario.bsky.social @entsocbc.bsky.social @royentsoc.bsky.social
Reposted by Avery Russell
easy slogan for the next democratic presidential candidate is “i will reform the corrupt supreme court and repeal citizens united”
“When Citizens United was decided in 2010, billionaires had spent $18 million on the 2000 election, $13M 2004 and $16M in 2008. Then came the deluge. In 2012 it was $231M, and nearly doubled again in next three election cycles —to $682M in 2016, $1.2 billion in 2020 and $2.6 billion in 2024.” Gift:
Opinion | Affordability and the ‘Epstein Class’ Will Define American Politics
www.nytimes.com
February 12, 2026 at 2:26 AM
easy slogan for the next democratic presidential candidate is “i will reform the corrupt supreme court and repeal citizens united”
Reposted by Avery Russell
This is incredible. Like the previous few years, near all of the electricity capacity added to the grid was clean energy. The Inflation Reduction Act helped this - it made solar & wind cheaper but it also for the first time had a standalone incentive for grid storage. Look at the growth in storage!
Final EIA-860 is out, and 2025 really did it: 54 GW of new U.S. electric capacity, 96% clean. Solar again carries the offense, and we built more storage in 2025 than the cumulative total through 2023. More and more and more additions... but also record low retirements.
February 12, 2026 at 4:38 AM
This is incredible. Like the previous few years, near all of the electricity capacity added to the grid was clean energy. The Inflation Reduction Act helped this - it made solar & wind cheaper but it also for the first time had a standalone incentive for grid storage. Look at the growth in storage!
Reposted by Avery Russell
Students applying for NSF funding are having their applications “returned without review” for being “ineligible,” despite their proposed research falling squarely within the application guidelines. eos.org/research-and...
Graduate Students’ NSF Fellowship Applications Are Being “Returned Without Review” - Eos
Graduate students applying for NSF funding have had their applications returned without review—even though their proposed research appears to fall squarely within the fields of study outlined in the p...
eos.org
February 6, 2026 at 8:58 PM
Students applying for NSF funding are having their applications “returned without review” for being “ineligible,” despite their proposed research falling squarely within the application guidelines. eos.org/research-and...
Reposted by Avery Russell
February 11, 2026 at 4:25 PM
Reposted by Avery Russell
“We must abolish ICE and the entire DHS. We must proclaim a general amnesty to all undocumented immigrants currently residing in America. We must decriminalize unauthorized immigration. And we must enshrine freedom of movement in the constitution.” www.liberalcurrents.com/abolition-am...
Abolition, Amnesty, Decriminalization, Open Borders
You may not believe immigration restrictions are racist, but racists believe immigration restrictions are racist.
www.liberalcurrents.com
February 11, 2026 at 4:02 PM
“We must abolish ICE and the entire DHS. We must proclaim a general amnesty to all undocumented immigrants currently residing in America. We must decriminalize unauthorized immigration. And we must enshrine freedom of movement in the constitution.” www.liberalcurrents.com/abolition-am...
Reposted by Avery Russell
How do we know our research results are REAL? We replicate them! Most folks agree but lament on how hard it is to publish these replications.
My dearest gentle reader, lament no more! Delighted to unveil: Replication Studies, a new section of Behavioral Ecology 1/
academic.oup.com/beheco/artic...
My dearest gentle reader, lament no more! Delighted to unveil: Replication Studies, a new section of Behavioral Ecology 1/
academic.oup.com/beheco/artic...
Replication studies: a win-win for early-career training and behavioral ecology
Replicating previous research builds confidence that results are real and meaningful. But close replications are rare due to limitations in resources and d
academic.oup.com
February 10, 2026 at 7:42 PM
How do we know our research results are REAL? We replicate them! Most folks agree but lament on how hard it is to publish these replications.
My dearest gentle reader, lament no more! Delighted to unveil: Replication Studies, a new section of Behavioral Ecology 1/
academic.oup.com/beheco/artic...
My dearest gentle reader, lament no more! Delighted to unveil: Replication Studies, a new section of Behavioral Ecology 1/
academic.oup.com/beheco/artic...
Reposted by Avery Russell
Politicians assuming new identities to run as democrats seems a decent barometer of how toxic the Republican brand has become.
Texas Democratic Congressional Candidate CHANGES HIS NAME To Avoid Conservative Past
A Texas conservative CHANGED HIS NAME to run for Congress as a Democrat!
www.buzzfeed.com
February 11, 2026 at 3:37 PM
Politicians assuming new identities to run as democrats seems a decent barometer of how toxic the Republican brand has become.
Reposted by Avery Russell
Photos from the @mobotgarden.bsky.social Orchid show! I'll share a few photos here and the full album is on my blog. #photography #orchids #flora #botanical #garden
February 11, 2026 at 12:09 AM
Photos from the @mobotgarden.bsky.social Orchid show! I'll share a few photos here and the full album is on my blog. #photography #orchids #flora #botanical #garden
Reposted by Avery Russell
Reposted by Avery Russell
UNC Admin Can Now, Officially, Secretly Record Faculty
UNC Admin Can Now, Officially, Secretly Record Faculty
The new policy prohibits students from recording class without permission but explicitly allows administrators to surveil professors for any “lawful purpose.”
www.insidehighered.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:38 PM
UNC Admin Can Now, Officially, Secretly Record Faculty
Reposted by Avery Russell
‘Historically Underrepresented’ Faculty Overrepresented in Adjunct Ranks
New data shows that 40 percent of the professoriate is composed of adjuncts who work for meager wages. And compared to their peers on the tenure track, adjuncts are more likely to be Black or female. https://bit.ly/4ts3m0L
New data shows that 40 percent of the professoriate is composed of adjuncts who work for meager wages. And compared to their peers on the tenure track, adjuncts are more likely to be Black or female. https://bit.ly/4ts3m0L
February 10, 2026 at 5:37 PM
‘Historically Underrepresented’ Faculty Overrepresented in Adjunct Ranks
New data shows that 40 percent of the professoriate is composed of adjuncts who work for meager wages. And compared to their peers on the tenure track, adjuncts are more likely to be Black or female. https://bit.ly/4ts3m0L
New data shows that 40 percent of the professoriate is composed of adjuncts who work for meager wages. And compared to their peers on the tenure track, adjuncts are more likely to be Black or female. https://bit.ly/4ts3m0L
Reposted by Avery Russell
The kidnappings in LA were happening before Trump, have accelerated under Trump, and haven’t stopped even though the media doesn’t really cover them
thelalocal.org/immigration/...
thelalocal.org/immigration/...
LA County identifies the ZIP codes hit hardest by ICE. Here’s where they are | LA Local
A new report from LA County offers a closer look at the economic damage to the region caused by federal immigration enforcement — and at the neighborhoods most affected.
thelalocal.org
February 11, 2026 at 4:00 AM
The kidnappings in LA were happening before Trump, have accelerated under Trump, and haven’t stopped even though the media doesn’t really cover them
thelalocal.org/immigration/...
thelalocal.org/immigration/...
Reposted by Avery Russell
It is absolutely outrageous that Moderna’s flu vaccine was met with a “refusal-to-file” even after their approved their protocol with FDA and carried out the trial as agreed. This vaccine works better in older adults than the current flu vaccines.
apnews.com/article/mode...
apnews.com/article/mode...
Moderna says FDA refuses its application for new mRNA flu vaccine
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is refusing to consider Moderna’s application for a new flu vaccine made with mRNA technology.
apnews.com
February 11, 2026 at 12:13 AM
It is absolutely outrageous that Moderna’s flu vaccine was met with a “refusal-to-file” even after their approved their protocol with FDA and carried out the trial as agreed. This vaccine works better in older adults than the current flu vaccines.
apnews.com/article/mode...
apnews.com/article/mode...
Reposted by Avery Russell
Today's vaccine outrage from RFK Jr.'s crew:
The FDA won't review Moderna's vaccine application for a new mRNA based flu shot that it reports is 26% more effective than the licensed jab.
I write over at LinkedIn about the shadow banning effect that makes the decision even worse than it appears.
The FDA won't review Moderna's vaccine application for a new mRNA based flu shot that it reports is 26% more effective than the licensed jab.
I write over at LinkedIn about the shadow banning effect that makes the decision even worse than it appears.
Books - Random House Books | Thomas Levenson
I was hoping to write about something not infuriating today--maybe that pulsar that has been tentatively detected near the center of our galaxy, or, more on my usual focus these days, on the accumulat...
www.linkedin.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:48 PM
Today's vaccine outrage from RFK Jr.'s crew:
The FDA won't review Moderna's vaccine application for a new mRNA based flu shot that it reports is 26% more effective than the licensed jab.
I write over at LinkedIn about the shadow banning effect that makes the decision even worse than it appears.
The FDA won't review Moderna's vaccine application for a new mRNA based flu shot that it reports is 26% more effective than the licensed jab.
I write over at LinkedIn about the shadow banning effect that makes the decision even worse than it appears.
Reposted by Avery Russell
One of every thousand American residents has been taken into custody by ICE in the last year.
A stunning detail the ICE chief shared in this hearing that was supposed to be a brag, except it isn't: ICE has arrested 379,000 people between Jan. 2025-Jan. 2026 -- but only 8,700 were suspected gang members or known suspected terrorists.
That's 2%! www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...
That's 2%! www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...
Congresswoman Uses Simple Math To Show How Broken ICE Is
www.huffpost.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:11 PM
One of every thousand American residents has been taken into custody by ICE in the last year.