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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 1h

#SilentSunday Rocky Gorge Falls, Swift River New Hampshire

Water cascades over granite blocks from upper left to lower right. Granite stands to the left and right with a border of shrubs on the upper right.

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Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 1d

MIT President Sally Kornbluth just issued a statement to the campus community saying NO to Trump’s authoritarian compact

“And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.”

Dear Madam Secretary,
I write in response to your letter of October 1, inviting MIT to review a "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education." I acknowledge the vital importance of these matters.
I appreciated the chance to meet with you earlier this year to discuss the priorities we share for American higher education.
As we discussed, the Institute's mission of service to the nation directs us to advance knowledge, educate students and bring knowledge to bear on the world's great challenges. We do that in line with a clear set of values, with excellence above all. Some practical examples:
• MIT prides itself on rewarding merit.
Students, faculty and staff succeed here based on the strength of their talent, ideas and hard work. For instance, the Institute
was the first to reinstate the SAT/ACT requirement after the pandemic. And MIT has never had legacy preferences in admissions.

• MIT opens its doors to the most talented students regardless of their family's finances. Admissions are need-blind. Incoming undergraduates whose families earn less than $200,000 a year pay no tuition. Nearly 88% of our last graduating class left MIT with no debt for their education. We make a wealth of free courses and low-cost certificates available
to any American with an internet
connection. Of the undergraduate degrees we award, 94% are in STEM fields. And in service to the nation, we cap enrollment of international undergraduates at roughly
10%.
• We value free expression, as clearly described in the MIT Statement on Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom. We must hear facts and opinions we don't like - and engage respectfully with those with whom we disagree.

These values and other MIT practices meet or exceed many standards outlined in the document you sent. We freely choose these values because they're right, and we live by them because they support our mission - work of immense value to the prosperity, competitiveness, health and security of the United States. And of course, MIT abides by the law.
The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific
funding should be based on scientific merit alone.
In our view, America's leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence. In that tree marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences.
Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach to addressing the issues facing higher education.

As you know, MIT's record of service to the nation is long and enduring. Eight decades ago, MIT leaders helped invent a scientific partnership between America's research universities and the
U.S. government that has delivered extraordinary benefits for the American people.
We continue to believe in the power of this partnership to serve the nation.
Sincerely,
Sally Kornbluth
CC
Ms. May Mailman
Mr. Vincent Haley

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Joshua Weitz @joshuasweitz.bsky.social · 1d

MIT says no to the Trump admin higher-ed compact clearly and emphatically. Other universities would be well served to read, remix, and respond similarly.

"In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences."

orgchart.mit.edu/letters/rega...

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Mike Grillo @mikegrillo.bsky.social · 1d

I am hiring a postdoc to examine the genomic and evolutionary basis of plant microbiome variation in legumes. There are opportunities to gain teaching experience. Chicago is a great city to live in! Please help spread the word.
share.google/gukbzS1zdIx6...

Postdoctoral Researcher in Plant Evolutionary Genomics

The postdoctoral researcher will work in Dr. Michael Grillo’s plant evolutionary genetics lab. The goal of this research project is to understand the genomic basis of plant-microbiome variation in leg...

share.google

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 1d

MIT Rejects Proposed Federal Compact - "Massachusetts Institute of Technology has rejected the Trump administration’s proposal to sign on to the 'Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education.'" - I hope others wheo were invited will follow MIT's lead.

MIT Rejects Proposed Federal Compact

MIT is the first institution to reject a proposal by the Trump administration that would trade preferential treatment on federal funding in exchange for far-reaching changes.

www.insidehighered.com

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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 2d

My quote of the day

We have managed to unite a country tearing down the barriers the regime built to divide us. Ours is a fight of a nation united against a criminal tyranny, in defense of its human rights, freedom, and democracy. That is why we have no alternative but victory

María Corina Machado

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Harmit Singh Malik @harmitmalik.bsky.social · 2d

I don’t think this is a controversial opinion but …

Indian style mutter-paneer definitely deserves the Nobel peas prize this year

www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/matar-paneer...

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Michael Brockhurst @brockhurstlab.bsky.social · 2d

Three Bicentenary research fellowships on offer at @officialuom.bsky.social @fbmh-uom.bsky.social for exceptional ECRs with <3y postdoc experience

3yrs salary + £30k pa research expenses

Do you have a great idea & want to join @mermanchester.bsky.social?

www.bmh.manchester.ac.uk/research/sup...

Bicentenary Early Career Research Fellowships | Biology, Medicine and Health | University of Manchester

Find out about and apply for a Bicentenary Early Career Research Fellowship.

www.bmh.manchester.ac.uk

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Harmit Singh Malik @harmitmalik.bsky.social · 2d

Just saw a post which misspelled 'Machine learning' as 'Machine earning', and I wondered if that was a Freudian slip.

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Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 3d

Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE

nyti.ms

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 4d

I am deeply skeptical of the argument presented here, but it is worth reading. - Trump’s Imperfect Compact Is a Perfect Opportunity www.chronicle.com/article/trum...

Trump’s Imperfect Compact Is a Perfect Opportunity

Colleges shouldn’t sign. But they also shouldn’t dismiss the need for a new framework.

www.chronicle.com

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Benjamin Dreyer @bcdreyer.social · 5d

If you want to irritate your readers, do it on purpose, do it for a reason, and do it knowledgeably.

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Lars Brudvig @lars-brudvig.bsky.social · 4d

Apply to become the next MSU EEB Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow!

These are two year positions with research stipend, working with 2+ MSU EEB faculty. Applications due 10 November 2025. More here:

eeb.msu.edu/initiatives/...

Postdoctoral Fellowship - Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior

eeb.msu.edu

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Harmit Singh Malik @harmitmalik.bsky.social · 5d

Visiting UT Austin in Integrative Biology and came across this fantastic opportunity for senior grad students in the life sciences.

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 4d

Restacking this to make sure that @carlbergstrom.com sees it.

April Wright @wrightam.bsky.social · 5d

Continuing my tour of books I should have already read, Calling Bullshit by @carlbergstrom.com and @jevinwest.bsky.social. Just a delight - an accessible, entertaining, insightful look at various forms of BS. Much like Weapons of Math Destruction, would love a 2025 update of this one.

Calling Bullshit: Data Reasoning in a Digital World

The world is awash in bullshit. Politicians are unconstrained by facts. Science is conducted by press release. Higher education rewards bullshit over analytic thought. Startup culture elevates bullshi...

www.callingbullshit.org

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 5d

Tariffs weigh on US manufacturing as activity contracts for 7th straight month www.straitstimes.com/business/eco...

Tariffs weigh on US manufacturing as activity contracts for 7th straight month

Only five industries reported growth. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.

www.straitstimes.com

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Wil Eelsing @wileelsing.bsky.social · 6d

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Benjamin Dreyer @bcdreyer.social · 5d

Saw a T-shirt today that said "If CrossFit were easy, it would be called your mother," in case you were wondering whether people still use the subjunctive.

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 6d

What Makes a Great Op-Ed? An “L.A. Times” Editor Explains www.insidehighered.com/opinion/colu...

What Makes a Great Op-Ed? An “L.A. Times” Editor Explains

Op-ed editor Philip Gray shares advice for academics on how to get published in a national paper and how submitting pieces is a numbers game.

www.insidehighered.com

keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 6d

AAC&U Statement on the Trump Administration’s “Compact for… | AAC&U

www.aacu.org

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Benjamin Dreyer @bcdreyer.social · 7d

Y'know I'm not supposed to say that word things are correct or incorrect because that's classist and snobby and gatekeeping etc.?

"Woah" is incorrect.

Daniel Radosh @radosh.bsky.social · 7d

How about doing your copy editing better?

=
& Wirecutter
• Do your laundry better: If you're confused about how to launder an item of clothing, just take a photo of a laundry-care label. Then, tap the Info button at the bottom of the screen (or sometimes a washing machine icon with sparkles) and tap Look Up Laundry
Care. Woah.

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 7d

#SilentSunday Diana’s Pool, Natchaug River, CT

Granite boulders in the foreground lead to a quiet pool and rapdis beyond. Oaks and maples stand to the side with a clear blue sky overhead.

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Kirk Amundson @kirkamundson.bsky.social · 7d

UMass Amherst Biology is recruiting a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the area of Plant Physiology. Deadline Nov 1. Please spread the word and apply!

careers.massachusetts.edu/mob/en-us/jo...

Assistant Professor - Plant Physiology

The Department of Biology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor position in the area of Plant Physiology. The successful can...

careers.massachusetts.edu

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Journal of Systematics and Evolution @journalsysevo.bsky.social · 9d

In this systematic performance evaluation of #STRUCTURE, the most popular #population clustering method, Xiao-Xu Pang and Da-Yong Zhang offer praise--but also caution.
Find out why!⬇️

doi.org/10.1111/jse....

#JSE #evolution #technology #systematics

A cautionary note on using STRUCTURE to detect hybridization in a phylogenetic context

Using simulations, we provide the first systematic evaluation of the performance of STRUCTURE under a variety of cross-species hybridization scenarios. We find that STRUCTURE performs well in identif...

doi.org

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keholsinger.bsky.social @keholsinger.bsky.social · 9d

Claus Wilke’s follow up advice. His first post gave advice to NSF GRFP applicants on writing personal statements. Now he has advice on writing research plans. - How to write an NSF GRFP research plan open.substack.com/pub/clauswil...

How to write an NSF GRFP research plan

This is my second post about the NSF GRFP.

open.substack.com

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