Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
@needhibhalla.bsky.social
Cell biologist and geneticist, Professor, mom and consumer of alcohol. Those might all be related. I grind til I own it.
She/her/hers.
ORCID: 0000-0002-6859-0073
personal account
She/her/hers.
ORCID: 0000-0002-6859-0073
personal account
Pinned
Scaling back DEI programmes and the loss of scientific talent
Nature Cell Biology - Programmes that support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in science are under attack in the USA. Data indicate that diversity in the scientific workforce increases...
www.nature.com
@joann-trejo.bsky.social, @marymunson4.bsky.social and I have a commentary in @natcellbio.nature.com on recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research: "If scientific research, especially biomedical research, is meant to serve everyone, then it requires that everyone has an opportunity to participate"
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Keza Macdonald — author of a fantastic new book on the history of Nintendo — is coming on the pod this week to talk about women/non-binary people getting into gaming *as adults.* We need your questions!!
Spectacularly easy question submission form here:
docs.google.com/forms/d/1x-9...
Spectacularly easy question submission form here:
docs.google.com/forms/d/1x-9...
Culture Study Podcast Questions!
Each week, Anne will tug on the thread of our cultural fabric and see what unravels. But she needs your help! What questions do you have about the world around you? You can use this form to answer a s...
docs.google.com
February 16, 2026 at 5:21 PM
Keza Macdonald — author of a fantastic new book on the history of Nintendo — is coming on the pod this week to talk about women/non-binary people getting into gaming *as adults.* We need your questions!!
Spectacularly easy question submission form here:
docs.google.com/forms/d/1x-9...
Spectacularly easy question submission form here:
docs.google.com/forms/d/1x-9...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Reminds me of a recent post by @tressiemcphd.bsky.social about how male loneliness only becomes a social *problem* if lonely men are violent men. Men who feel emasculated are embarrassed, but a particular brand of embarrassment that leads them to become violent.
www.instagram.com/reels/DOMGr0...
www.instagram.com/reels/DOMGr0...
Tressie McMillan Cottom | Another post by #populardemand.
The media construction of loneliness as gendered, a urgent social problem, and an apolitical phenomenon... | Instagram
48K likes, 304 comments - tressiemcphd on September 4, 2025: "Another post by #populardemand.
The media construction of loneliness as gendered, a urgent social problem, and an apolitical phenomenon....
www.instagram.com
February 16, 2026 at 5:21 PM
Reminds me of a recent post by @tressiemcphd.bsky.social about how male loneliness only becomes a social *problem* if lonely men are violent men. Men who feel emasculated are embarrassed, but a particular brand of embarrassment that leads them to become violent.
www.instagram.com/reels/DOMGr0...
www.instagram.com/reels/DOMGr0...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Thought about this a lot lately
February 16, 2026 at 3:02 AM
Thought about this a lot lately
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Inspired by this from @perrybaconjr.bsky.social who's becoming pretty much my go-to political analyst
from the perspective of someone who might want to be president, the best time to run for the white house is now, not later. so if AOC is thinking about it — if the white house is her ambition — then her best bet is to throw her hat in the ring
You Know What? Maybe the Time Is Right for an AOC Presidential Bid
She’s only 36, and there’s a good argument that she should run for Senate and bide her time. But she also could be a formidable White House candidate.
newrepublic.com
February 16, 2026 at 3:49 PM
Inspired by this from @perrybaconjr.bsky.social who's becoming pretty much my go-to political analyst
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Trump backed off calling Renee Good & Alex Pretti domestic terrorists because people didn't like it. But as I wrote, the admin is still doubling down on the use of domestic terrorism investigations to scare Americans away from using their First Amendment rights. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
Trump’s Version of “Domestic Terrorism” vs. the First Amendment
The administration has given itself permission to prosecute people and organizations for their political views.
www.brennancenter.org
February 16, 2026 at 2:17 PM
Trump backed off calling Renee Good & Alex Pretti domestic terrorists because people didn't like it. But as I wrote, the admin is still doubling down on the use of domestic terrorism investigations to scare Americans away from using their First Amendment rights. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Trump backed off calling Renee Good & Alex Pretti domestic terrorists because people didn't like it. But as I wrote, the admin is still doubling down on the use of domestic terrorism investigations to scare Americans away from using their First Amendment rights. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
Trump’s Version of “Domestic Terrorism” vs. the First Amendment
The administration has given itself permission to prosecute people and organizations for their political views.
www.brennancenter.org
February 16, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
I'm going to promote the heck out of this:
The Minneapolis Foundation has $4 million in grants available to small businesses for everything from rent and payroll costs to legal help and temporary relocation.
More details and the application here: www.minneapolisfoundation.org/stories/comm...
The Minneapolis Foundation has $4 million in grants available to small businesses for everything from rent and payroll costs to legal help and temporary relocation.
More details and the application here: www.minneapolisfoundation.org/stories/comm...
Economic Response Fund Grant Guidelines
Small businesses in Minnesota that have experienced operational disruptions in recent weeks may now apply for emergency financial support through the Economic Response Fund.
www.minneapolisfoundation.org
February 15, 2026 at 8:10 PM
I'm going to promote the heck out of this:
The Minneapolis Foundation has $4 million in grants available to small businesses for everything from rent and payroll costs to legal help and temporary relocation.
More details and the application here: www.minneapolisfoundation.org/stories/comm...
The Minneapolis Foundation has $4 million in grants available to small businesses for everything from rent and payroll costs to legal help and temporary relocation.
More details and the application here: www.minneapolisfoundation.org/stories/comm...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Former NPR Host Accuses Google Of Copying His Voice For AI Offering https://gizmodo.com/former-npr-host-accuses-google-of-copying-his-voice-for-ai-offering-2000722402
Former NPR Host Accuses Google Of Copying His Voice For AI Offering
Google is sued over the AI podcast generation in NotebookLM.
gizmodo.com
February 16, 2026 at 5:07 PM
Former NPR Host Accuses Google Of Copying His Voice For AI Offering https://gizmodo.com/former-npr-host-accuses-google-of-copying-his-voice-for-ai-offering-2000722402
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
🧵 New preprint! Our 4-lab team evolved Streptococcus pneumoniae in antibiotic-treated mice of varying immune states and discovered something surprising: bacteria rarely evolved resistance. Instead, they found a different way to survive — by rewiring RNA turnover.
🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org
February 16, 2026 at 4:39 PM
🧵 New preprint! Our 4-lab team evolved Streptococcus pneumoniae in antibiotic-treated mice of varying immune states and discovered something surprising: bacteria rarely evolved resistance. Instead, they found a different way to survive — by rewiring RNA turnover.
🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Terrific piece by @rexhuppke.bsky.social on Elon Musk, White Nationalist
Wow, Elon Musk sure does like White people | Opinion
Elon Musk, the world's richest man and a guy whose social media platform most companies still use, is a BIG fan of White people. Problematically so.
www.usatoday.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:57 PM
Terrific piece by @rexhuppke.bsky.social on Elon Musk, White Nationalist
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
When people say “I hate writing but I love having written,” they are not saying “I love that some completed text exists.”
They are saying “I love getting to the end of the process and realizing that all the work was worth it, that this sentence really pops, that I nailed it.”
They are saying “I love getting to the end of the process and realizing that all the work was worth it, that this sentence really pops, that I nailed it.”
February 16, 2026 at 11:48 AM
When people say “I hate writing but I love having written,” they are not saying “I love that some completed text exists.”
They are saying “I love getting to the end of the process and realizing that all the work was worth it, that this sentence really pops, that I nailed it.”
They are saying “I love getting to the end of the process and realizing that all the work was worth it, that this sentence really pops, that I nailed it.”
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
I don’t know how many times people have to say this, but if you really are and feel like a writer, you *need* to write. It’s the best part of your job, it’s the part that you find satisfying, it’s why you chose to do what you do. Writers are not trying to escape the writing part!
February 16, 2026 at 11:45 AM
I don’t know how many times people have to say this, but if you really are and feel like a writer, you *need* to write. It’s the best part of your job, it’s the part that you find satisfying, it’s why you chose to do what you do. Writers are not trying to escape the writing part!
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
“These jobs are 100 percent reporting,” said as if the writing of the report is not a part of reporting. What an absolute embarrassment.
February 16, 2026 at 11:38 AM
“These jobs are 100 percent reporting,” said as if the writing of the report is not a part of reporting. What an absolute embarrassment.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Looking through the e-mails, I was disappointed how many astronomers/physicists were in contact w Epstein. People who interviewed me for faculty jobs, were friends' PhD advisors, selected professional prize winners, were in charge of promotion & tenure. I felt like the tree is rotten to the roots.
The victims and survivors of Epstein’s crimes deserved better than these men (and sometimes women) looking the other way.
I’m also very conscious that these same people have had a lot of power over the lives of women and girls in science.
Epstein liked powerful people. These were powerful people.
I’m also very conscious that these same people have had a lot of power over the lives of women and girls in science.
Epstein liked powerful people. These were powerful people.
February 16, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Looking through the e-mails, I was disappointed how many astronomers/physicists were in contact w Epstein. People who interviewed me for faculty jobs, were friends' PhD advisors, selected professional prize winners, were in charge of promotion & tenure. I felt like the tree is rotten to the roots.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Since it’s a holiday weekend and this published on saturday, I wanted to reshare this essay about a culture of nihilism that seems to be evolving. Maybe it’ll help connect a few dots for you as it did for me writing it (gift link) www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
This Is What It Looks Like When Nothing Matters
Welcome to the internet’s nihilism crisis.
www.theatlantic.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Since it’s a holiday weekend and this published on saturday, I wanted to reshare this essay about a culture of nihilism that seems to be evolving. Maybe it’ll help connect a few dots for you as it did for me writing it (gift link) www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
For me one of the most disturbing aspects of the links between Epstein and academia is that the power and incentive structures that encouraged this entanglement are all still in place. Structurally, nothing has changed.
I‘ve mentioned that thanks to the Epstein tranche I learned that one of my PhD advisors, Lee Smolin, continued to have contact with Epstein after 2007, which is not the impression I had
It’s weird to say the least for my professional past to become a public story that demands feminist analysis
It’s weird to say the least for my professional past to become a public story that demands feminist analysis
Lee Smolin pauses working relationship with Perimeter Institute after being named in Epstein files
Lee Smolin has been asked to “pause” his work by the Perimeter Institute as they review ties to Jeffrey Epstein
www.therecord.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:21 PM
For me one of the most disturbing aspects of the links between Epstein and academia is that the power and incentive structures that encouraged this entanglement are all still in place. Structurally, nothing has changed.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
NEW:
One of the most progressive institutions in the U.S., The New School, has begun destroying its humanities departments.
They have cancelled one of their most popular classes, "Global Soccer and World Politics."
We are going to teach it anyway.
karenattiah.substack.com/p/the-new-sc...
One of the most progressive institutions in the U.S., The New School, has begun destroying its humanities departments.
They have cancelled one of their most popular classes, "Global Soccer and World Politics."
We are going to teach it anyway.
karenattiah.substack.com/p/the-new-sc...
The New School Cancelled Their Class on Global Soccer and World Politics. We Are Going To Teach it Anyway.
When institutions abandon critical thinking, we build our own classrooms.
karenattiah.substack.com
February 16, 2026 at 3:58 PM
NEW:
One of the most progressive institutions in the U.S., The New School, has begun destroying its humanities departments.
They have cancelled one of their most popular classes, "Global Soccer and World Politics."
We are going to teach it anyway.
karenattiah.substack.com/p/the-new-sc...
One of the most progressive institutions in the U.S., The New School, has begun destroying its humanities departments.
They have cancelled one of their most popular classes, "Global Soccer and World Politics."
We are going to teach it anyway.
karenattiah.substack.com/p/the-new-sc...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Them: "If you want students to engage, you have to meet them where they are!"
Me: "No argument there."
Them: "For this generation, that means making short videos to address concepts."
[spends a lot of time making videos going over content in bite-size chunks]
Students: [do not watch the videos]
Me: "No argument there."
Them: "For this generation, that means making short videos to address concepts."
[spends a lot of time making videos going over content in bite-size chunks]
Students: [do not watch the videos]
February 16, 2026 at 1:20 PM
Them: "If you want students to engage, you have to meet them where they are!"
Me: "No argument there."
Them: "For this generation, that means making short videos to address concepts."
[spends a lot of time making videos going over content in bite-size chunks]
Students: [do not watch the videos]
Me: "No argument there."
Them: "For this generation, that means making short videos to address concepts."
[spends a lot of time making videos going over content in bite-size chunks]
Students: [do not watch the videos]
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
My takeaway from this is that I shouldn't be spending time trying to focus on what the students *say* they want (however loudly), but to continue what I have done and use my experience and class data to determine what students end up using and what helps them.
February 16, 2026 at 1:24 PM
My takeaway from this is that I shouldn't be spending time trying to focus on what the students *say* they want (however loudly), but to continue what I have done and use my experience and class data to determine what students end up using and what helps them.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
"OUR NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCKS ICE" banner hangs on Chicago Avenue and 38th Street at George Floyd Square.
Minneapolis, February 2026
Minneapolis, February 2026
February 16, 2026 at 4:29 AM
"OUR NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCKS ICE" banner hangs on Chicago Avenue and 38th Street at George Floyd Square.
Minneapolis, February 2026
Minneapolis, February 2026
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
👇👇👇
For the 1,000th time, —IT’S-NOT-ABOUT-THE-TOP-LINES—
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
US scientists gear up for next battle over funding cuts
Science leaders warn of uncertainty caused by Trump administration after avoiding sharpest cuts this year
www.ft.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:29 PM
👇👇👇
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
For the 1,000th time, —IT’S-NOT-ABOUT-THE-TOP-LINES—
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
US scientists gear up for next battle over funding cuts
Science leaders warn of uncertainty caused by Trump administration after avoiding sharpest cuts this year
www.ft.com
February 16, 2026 at 4:03 PM
For the 1,000th time, —IT’S-NOT-ABOUT-THE-TOP-LINES—
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
It’s about what gets funded, who makes the decisions about funding, whether the systems that support funded work are functioning, and the terms under which the funding is executed.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
I’m a fan of WFP!
The progressive party is now active in 18 states, and much of its expansion happened in the past five years.
@workingfamilies.org
The progressive party is now active in 18 states, and much of its expansion happened in the past five years.
@workingfamilies.org
Working Families bet on 2026 as the right time for a third US party after a wave of wins
The progressive party is now active in 18 states and much of its expansion happened in the past five years
www.theguardian.com
February 15, 2026 at 4:59 PM
I’m a fan of WFP!
The progressive party is now active in 18 states, and much of its expansion happened in the past five years.
@workingfamilies.org
The progressive party is now active in 18 states, and much of its expansion happened in the past five years.
@workingfamilies.org
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Genome size and phenotypic change: insights on contemporary evolution across biological groups.
New analysis of the PROCEED database in J Evol Biol.
Led by Lucas Gorne with @photopidge.bsky.social & F Pelletier
New analysis of the PROCEED database in J Evol Biol.
Led by Lucas Gorne with @photopidge.bsky.social & F Pelletier
February 16, 2026 at 4:11 PM
Genome size and phenotypic change: insights on contemporary evolution across biological groups.
New analysis of the PROCEED database in J Evol Biol.
Led by Lucas Gorne with @photopidge.bsky.social & F Pelletier
New analysis of the PROCEED database in J Evol Biol.
Led by Lucas Gorne with @photopidge.bsky.social & F Pelletier