James Van Dyke
@jamesuvandyke.bsky.social
Biologist studying reproduction and its consequences in vertebrates. Views my own.
Duduroa and Wiradjuri country
www.jamesuvandyke.com
www.1millionturtles.com
www.turtlesat.org.au
Duduroa and Wiradjuri country
www.jamesuvandyke.com
www.1millionturtles.com
www.turtlesat.org.au
The longer I'm in this biz, the bigger fan I become of the lottery concept.
“The costs of competing for grants can exceed what the grants are worth”, wasting public money.
Two models minimise the overhead of grant writing and evaluation:
– lottery
– per capita funding
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Two models minimise the overhead of grant writing and evaluation:
– lottery
– per capita funding
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
February 16, 2026 at 6:03 AM
The longer I'm in this biz, the bigger fan I become of the lottery concept.
Reposted by James Van Dyke
"Pete Hegseth might consider adding another task to his many duties, one that would be of immense help to the nation and to the armed forces: He should shut up."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Pete Hegseth Should Sit This One Out
By inserting himself into the situation in Minnesota, the secretary of defense is only making things worse.
www.theatlantic.com
January 25, 2026 at 1:27 AM
"Pete Hegseth might consider adding another task to his many duties, one that would be of immense help to the nation and to the armed forces: He should shut up."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Even the Conservative subreddit, which is full-on MAGA, has a consensus that this is a bad, idiotic idea
Trump: "I may put a tariff on countries if they don't go along with Greenland because we need Greenland for national security"
January 18, 2026 at 1:00 AM
Even the Conservative subreddit, which is full-on MAGA, has a consensus that this is a bad, idiotic idea
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Trump: "I may put a tariff on countries if they don't go along with Greenland because we need Greenland for national security"
January 16, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Trump: "I may put a tariff on countries if they don't go along with Greenland because we need Greenland for national security"
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Reposted by James Van Dyke
First CES panel. Intuit CMO Thomas Ranese is proud of his company's integration with OpenAI, which involves giving AI read/write access to tax data. Since prompt injection attacks are unavoidable, I asked him who will be liable when customer data is exposed: Intuit, OpenAI, etc?
He had no idea.
He had no idea.
January 6, 2026 at 5:58 PM
First CES panel. Intuit CMO Thomas Ranese is proud of his company's integration with OpenAI, which involves giving AI read/write access to tax data. Since prompt injection attacks are unavoidable, I asked him who will be liable when customer data is exposed: Intuit, OpenAI, etc?
He had no idea.
He had no idea.
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Devastating news that marine biologist, science communicator, and UniMelb VC Professor Emma Johnston has died after a short illness.
She really was an extraordinary and visionary leader, and I have no doubt she would have made a fine Chief Scientist one day.
theconversation.com/emma-johnsto...
She really was an extraordinary and visionary leader, and I have no doubt she would have made a fine Chief Scientist one day.
theconversation.com/emma-johnsto...
Emma Johnston was a visionary scientist, environmentalist and leader, with an abiding hope for humanity
The University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor, who has died aged 52, was driven by a deep love of science and a desire to safeguard the planet’s future.
theconversation.com
December 29, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Devastating news that marine biologist, science communicator, and UniMelb VC Professor Emma Johnston has died after a short illness.
She really was an extraordinary and visionary leader, and I have no doubt she would have made a fine Chief Scientist one day.
theconversation.com/emma-johnsto...
She really was an extraordinary and visionary leader, and I have no doubt she would have made a fine Chief Scientist one day.
theconversation.com/emma-johnsto...
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Come and work with us! Please share widely!
Applications close 18 January 2026 at 11.55pm.
www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...
@ecolsocaus.bsky.social @deakinuniversity.bsky.social
Applications close 18 January 2026 at 11.55pm.
www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...
@ecolsocaus.bsky.social @deakinuniversity.bsky.social
Deakin University hiring Lecturer, Environmental Botany in Burwood, Victoria, Australia | LinkedIn
Posted 2:37:03 AM. Drive innovation with Deakin’s Environmental & Science programs through teaching excellence…See this and similar jobs on LinkedIn.
www.linkedin.com
December 23, 2025 at 4:37 AM
Come and work with us! Please share widely!
Applications close 18 January 2026 at 11.55pm.
www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...
@ecolsocaus.bsky.social @deakinuniversity.bsky.social
Applications close 18 January 2026 at 11.55pm.
www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...
@ecolsocaus.bsky.social @deakinuniversity.bsky.social
We need more whimsy
You know, I'm not sure I ever really read the Pond Rules at our local nature preserve all that closely before
November 25, 2025 at 2:54 AM
We need more whimsy
Reposted by James Van Dyke
This is utterly outrageous by the Group of Eight unis, and deeply insulting and undermining for environment and climate experts trying their hardest to achieve a more sustainable future for society. Shameful stuff.
1/ No surpirise that Business Council of Australia's leading the charge for further regressive changes to Watt's already regressive EPBC package
But 🤯 that the Group of 8 Unis (ANU, Monash, UAdelaide, UMelb, UNSW, USyd, UQ, UWA) have signed the 'Letter from the Alliance of 26 industry Groups' 🤬🤬🤬
But 🤯 that the Group of 8 Unis (ANU, Monash, UAdelaide, UMelb, UNSW, USyd, UQ, UWA) have signed the 'Letter from the Alliance of 26 industry Groups' 🤬🤬🤬
Alliance of Industry Groups: Letter on EPBC - Business Council of Australia
www.bca.com.au
November 21, 2025 at 5:30 AM
This is utterly outrageous by the Group of Eight unis, and deeply insulting and undermining for environment and climate experts trying their hardest to achieve a more sustainable future for society. Shameful stuff.
Reposted by James Van Dyke
This is why for a long time I've found the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science a rather insulting propaganda exercise
www.abc.net.au/news/science...
CSIRO funding as a percentage of GDP:
1982-83 = 0.17
2024-25 = 0.03
...
Scientific extinction event imminent?
www.abc.net.au/news/science...
CSIRO funding as a percentage of GDP:
1982-83 = 0.17
2024-25 = 0.03
...
Scientific extinction event imminent?
The CSIRO cuts are just the tip of the iceberg for Australia's science funding
Australia is known as a country of innovators, but with a combination of brain drain, continuous cuts, and a loss of critical science projects, is Australia losing its edge?
www.abc.net.au
November 19, 2025 at 7:01 AM
This is why for a long time I've found the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science a rather insulting propaganda exercise
www.abc.net.au/news/science...
CSIRO funding as a percentage of GDP:
1982-83 = 0.17
2024-25 = 0.03
...
Scientific extinction event imminent?
www.abc.net.au/news/science...
CSIRO funding as a percentage of GDP:
1982-83 = 0.17
2024-25 = 0.03
...
Scientific extinction event imminent?
First turtle checking out our new Wodonga floating island last sunday
November 10, 2025 at 9:52 PM
First turtle checking out our new Wodonga floating island last sunday
Reposted by James Van Dyke
My pet gar that I donated to Shedd Aquarium would recognize me and swim over to say hi when I visited her exhibit ❤️🐠
A rare hybrid gar, I raised her since she was 2 inches long, and had to re-home her when I moved to Chicago. I was happy I could visit her in her new home!
TO BE CONTINUED…
A rare hybrid gar, I raised her since she was 2 inches long, and had to re-home her when I moved to Chicago. I was happy I could visit her in her new home!
TO BE CONTINUED…
May 1, 2025 at 4:32 PM
My pet gar that I donated to Shedd Aquarium would recognize me and swim over to say hi when I visited her exhibit ❤️🐠
A rare hybrid gar, I raised her since she was 2 inches long, and had to re-home her when I moved to Chicago. I was happy I could visit her in her new home!
TO BE CONTINUED…
A rare hybrid gar, I raised her since she was 2 inches long, and had to re-home her when I moved to Chicago. I was happy I could visit her in her new home!
TO BE CONTINUED…
New paper out! Christina Hunter used artificial nests to compare floating islands, fenced beaches, and individual nest protection to protect turtle nests from invasive foxes. The outcome was that all three methods worked, but islands are probably the best.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Mitigating Fox Predation on Freshwater Turtle Nests: Comparing Effectiveness of Three In Situ Protection Methods
Floating islands provide the best protection for freshwater turtle nests, compared to fenced nesting beaches and individually protected nests. However, all three methods are better than leaving nests...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 9, 2025 at 11:56 PM
New paper out! Christina Hunter used artificial nests to compare floating islands, fenced beaches, and individual nest protection to protect turtle nests from invasive foxes. The outcome was that all three methods worked, but islands are probably the best.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Good luck to everyone tonight, you're all amazing! #EurekaPrizes
The 2025 Australian Museum Eureka Prize recipients will be announced during a live, broadcast event — and you're invited to attend!
📆 Wednesday 3 September
🕖 6.30 pm AEST
Registration now open 👇
secure.australian.museum/48926
📆 Wednesday 3 September
🕖 6.30 pm AEST
Registration now open 👇
secure.australian.museum/48926
September 2, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Good luck to everyone tonight, you're all amazing! #EurekaPrizes
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Come join us in the @biology.ox.ac.uk at @ox.ac.uk! New Associate Professor position in Animal Behaviour, with Merton College:
my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...
my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...
Job Details
my.corehr.com
August 26, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Come join us in the @biology.ox.ac.uk at @ox.ac.uk! New Associate Professor position in Animal Behaviour, with Merton College:
my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...
my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Our EEB department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is hiring an assistant professor in evo-devo. See go.illinois.edu/EEBAsstProf for details. Please share!
August 26, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Our EEB department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is hiring an assistant professor in evo-devo. See go.illinois.edu/EEBAsstProf for details. Please share!
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Have you voted for Australia's most underrated animal yet? www.abc.net.au/news/science... Want to learn more about the species in the running? Take a look at www.abc.net.au/listen/progr... There's a new one each day! #NationalScienceWeek
Ugly animals are important too. Which should be the next Aussie icon?
Move over, roos and emus — this National Science Week, we're looking for the most underrated Australian animal. Meet the contestants, and vote for who you think should win.
www.abc.net.au
August 4, 2025 at 11:28 PM
Have you voted for Australia's most underrated animal yet? www.abc.net.au/news/science... Want to learn more about the species in the running? Take a look at www.abc.net.au/listen/progr... There's a new one each day! #NationalScienceWeek
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Glad to have this work out, led by Donald McKnight with collaboration from many turtle researchers across the USA and Australia. It came about to answer a critique that fox predation mightn't drive low juvenile abundance in Australian systems.
Glad to have this work out, led by Donald McKnight with collaboration from many turtle researchers across the USA and Australia. It came about to answer a critique that fox predation mightn't drive low juvenile abundance in Australian systems.
Does a lack of juveniles indicate a threat? Understanding body size distributions in a group of long‐lived vertebrates
We used a large dataset to examine turtle size distributions and found that for most species in most areas, distributions are typically skewed towards large adults, with few juveniles present. Theref....
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 2, 2025 at 1:44 AM
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Glad to have this work out, led by Donald McKnight with collaboration from many turtle researchers across the USA and Australia. It came about to answer a critique that fox predation mightn't drive low juvenile abundance in Australian systems.
Glad to have this work out, led by Donald McKnight with collaboration from many turtle researchers across the USA and Australia. It came about to answer a critique that fox predation mightn't drive low juvenile abundance in Australian systems.
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Trump shuts down fish restoration pact that took decades to build
Trump shuts down fish restoration pact that took decades to build
Trump called the regional plan to save salmon "radical environmentalism."
www.sfgate.com
July 3, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Trump shuts down fish restoration pact that took decades to build
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Posting because I have a lot of friends who might want to reach out but afaik literally none of them use Mastodon.
July 3, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Posting because I have a lot of friends who might want to reach out but afaik literally none of them use Mastodon.
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Memo to legislators in Hawaii, Florida and Palau:
Australia’s consumer regulator is taking the owners of popular sunscreen brands to court, alleging they have misled consumers by claiming their products are “reef-friendly” and a cure for coral bleaching.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
Australia’s consumer regulator is taking the owners of popular sunscreen brands to court, alleging they have misled consumers by claiming their products are “reef-friendly” and a cure for coral bleaching.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
July 1, 2025 at 2:29 AM
Memo to legislators in Hawaii, Florida and Palau:
Australia’s consumer regulator is taking the owners of popular sunscreen brands to court, alleging they have misled consumers by claiming their products are “reef-friendly” and a cure for coral bleaching.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
Australia’s consumer regulator is taking the owners of popular sunscreen brands to court, alleging they have misled consumers by claiming their products are “reef-friendly” and a cure for coral bleaching.
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
Reposted by James Van Dyke
The three academic positions (Lecturer/Senior Lecturer) in the School of Biological Sciences at Monash University are now advertised. Details here:
Ecology:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Genomics:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Ecology:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Genomics:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
June 26, 2025 at 8:01 AM
The three academic positions (Lecturer/Senior Lecturer) in the School of Biological Sciences at Monash University are now advertised. Details here:
Ecology:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Genomics:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Ecology:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Genomics:
careers.pageuppeople.com/513/cw/en/jo...
Reposted by James Van Dyke
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity. - Hanlon’s razor
June 25, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity. - Hanlon’s razor