Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Karolina Muchova Fan Club @irvineghost20.bsky.social · 4h

We're all 99.9% peaceful in Chicago, too, just not as creative. Maybe we need to start dressing up as the Blues Brothers at protests?

9 3 60

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

ACLU @aclu.org · 4h

All servicewomen serving in combat roles already have to meet stringent gender-neutral physical standards.

But Secretary Hegseth is intent on smearing those women as unqualified — and pushing all women out of military service.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Moves to Push Women Out of the Military

From eliminating the Pentagon’s gender advisory committee to misrepresenting women’s combat readiness, Hegseth’s record shows a clear campaign against women in uniform.

www.aclu.org

25 180 500

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Triangle Blog Blog @triangleblogblog.bsky.social · 4h

We will have our election guide up this week - all the stuff we usually do: endorsement roundups, voting times/locations, etc.

Would anyone be up for an early blogblog voting day, where we all go to the polls together? Or not - your call.

1 2

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

闵娅(Min Ya; Minya) PhD @minyaaa.bsky.social · 4h

Here you go dear sir 😎

3 2 25

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 3h

Nice!!!

1

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Dr. Michael D. L. Johnson @copperbae.bsky.social · 4h

I do biomedical research to help people. When people come in this space making things up, it makes it harder for people not in the field to trust the extensive studies that we do and distinguish fact from fiction. Baseless claims reduce future cures. Willful ignorance drives us backwards.

4 33 110

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Charmaine Chua @charmainechua.bsky.social · 4h

The lawsuits that @aaup.org and CUCFA have filed are crucial ways to take a proactive stance against the Trump administration. Lawsuits like AAUP v Rubio have been successful so far and are needed to stop the improper purposes that the Trump admin has been committing

1 2 11

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Jess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 4h

I have to fan-girl for a minute here. My friend @rosvall-lab.bsky.social built an app to gather data on bird behavior during the 2024 solar eclipse. 10,000+ citizen scientists contributed (including my kids), and the resulting paper was published in Science today!

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Total solar eclipse triggers dawn behavior in birds: Insights from acoustic recordings and community science

On 8 April 2024, a total solar eclipse disrupted light-dark cycles for North American birds during the lead-up to spring reproduction. Compiling more than 10,000 community observations and artificial ...

www.science.org

6 80 260

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 3h

Thank you--you and your colleagues are inspirations for the extramural community

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

I-75 Scientist @flscitriguy.bsky.social · 4h

My portfolio had 100s of UG & Grad students lose their funding in the previous 9mo. PIs that had their training programs canceled for bogus reasons. I’m ok holding out for congress to get a spine and remember it’s a system of checks & balances.

Jenna Norton @jenna-m-norton.bsky.social · 5h

“What kind of person would I be if I went with what works best for me versus what works best for the collective?”

Spoken like a true civil servant.

www.huffpost.com/entry/govern...

Federal Workers Have A Request Of Democrats As The Shutdown Drags On

Furloughed federal employees are about to start missing paychecks, but they aren't ready to give in yet: "We are willing to take some temporary pain."

www.huffpost.com

1 8 39

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 3h

I'm doing another print run of these "Biology is Bigger than Binaries" shirts!

Back, quite literally, by popular demand. Bullying works, sure, but so does a bunch of nice cutie patooties politely asking!

Order 'em now, I'll mail 'em in early November.

SquidFacts.net

a woman with short bown hair, glasses, and tassel earrings, wears a purple KN95 and looks cool as hell in her biology is bigger than binaries shirt, in orange

a woman with green glasses takes a selfie lookin' cool as hell in her pink biology is bigger than binaries shirt. She's also got ice cream, that lucky dog.

a woman with long brown hair and glasses hangs out in the back yard with her pink biology is bigger than binaries shirt

A man with a hat and sunglasses stands in hero-pose with his biology is bigger than binaires shirt (orange)

6 95 280

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

San Francisco Public Press @sfpublicpress.bsky.social · 8h

What happens when science funding disappears?
At UCSF and the SF VA, labs are laying off staff, trials are paused, and patients are left waiting.
Our new Civic episode breaks down how federal cuts — and now a shutdown — are reshaping science in the Bay Area.
🎧

Effects of Research Funding Cuts Ripple Through San Francisco Labs, Clinics and Lives - San Francisco Public Press

Federal funding cuts to medical research and new rules for grants are dismantling projects at the University of California, San Francisco, and the San Francisco Veterans Administration Medical…

www.sfpublicpress.org

2 11 15

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Andrea Pitzer @andreapitzer.bsky.social · 4h

Still amazed that the Vatican has been more responsive to the threat Trump represents than the vast majority of American institutions.

7 87 380

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 3h

2

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Indivisible SF @indivisiblesf.bsky.social · 3h

October 18 is NO KINGS Day!
Come in your favorite costume and scare the Big Bad Baby Kingy.

Meet north end of Embarcadero Plaza at 1:30 PM.

3 5 12

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 3h

Yay!! You got this!

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Drew McKevitt @drewmckevitt.bsky.social · 4h

Years ago I was teaching my gun history class and at the end of the quarter one of the students said that he was in the campus TPUSA chapter and they put him up to taking the class to spy on me but he felt bad about that because he loved the class and learned a lot and had a great time

28 210 1.5K

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Daniel Bolnick @danielbolnick.bsky.social · 5h

@sse-evolution.bsky.social just announced the following:

Call for Proposals: Research Synthesis Working Groups
The Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE) invites proposals for sponsored Research Synthesis Working Groups at the 2026 Evolution meeting (up to two in-person and one virtual). ...

1 8 13

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Rachel Maddow @maddow.msnbc.com · 4h

"...including while she was praying with her eyes closed and hands lifted, wearing a clerical collar and stole."

religionnews.com/2025/10/07/i...

250 3K 8.1K

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 12h

Talking to Congressional staff is a great way for scientists to inform Congress about the impact of science in their state and the nation. We just had a superb meeting with Abigail Lancaster of NC Senator Budd's office. She was knowledgeable and emphasized their support for science funding 1/2

1 8 33

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Princess Vimentin PhD | Cancer Biologist @princess-vimentin.bsky.social · 10h

Yet another study shows that annual COVID vaccines save lives. When you vaccinate, you prevent severe illness, complications & high medical bills.

COVID vaccines reduced:
1. Risk of ER visits by 29%

2. Hospital visits by 39%

3. Risk of death by 64%

🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-...

Annual COVID Vaccines Save Lives, New Study Shows

A new study shows that receiving an updated COVID vaccine reduced people’s risk of severe disease and death in all age groups, regardless of immunity from prior infection or vaccination

www.scientificamerican.com

2 30 58

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Princess Vimentin PhD | Cancer Biologist @princess-vimentin.bsky.social · 10h

As we see a senseless 100k price tag placed on H- 1B visas, potentially leading to significant loss to higher education and progress of science, let this be a reminder that nearly half of the Nobel Prize winners in science this year are immigrants.

🧪 www.forbes.com/sites/stuart...

Half Of The 2025 U.S. Nobel Prize Winners In Science Are Immigrants

Three of the six U.S. winners in the 2025 Nobel Prize science categories immigrated to the United States, one of them as a teenager.

www.forbes.com

2 25 39

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Robert “The Bobby Yaga” McNees @mcnees.bsky.social · 4h

Hard not to see these bans as Apple collaborating with the Trump administration.

Apple Banned an App That Simply Archived Videos of ICE Abuses

Eyes Up's purpose is to "preserve evidence until it can be used in court." But it has been swept up in Apple's crackdown on ICE-spotting apps.

www.404media.co

1 7 20

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

Dorit Reiss @doritreiss.bsky.social · 5h

6 in 10 adults disapprove of Kennedy's work; even among MAHA supporters, 30% disapprove. via @cnn.com www.cnn.com/2025/10/09/h...

Trust in federal health leadership is failing under RFK Jr., new poll finds | CNN

Most of the American public does not approve of the way Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is running the nation’s health agencies, according to a new KFF poll, and there’s erosion of trust in reliable vaccine inf...

www.cnn.com

39 65

Reposted by Mark Peifer (He, him)

John Logsdon @johnlogsdon.bsky.social · 4h

I’m excited to host Melissa Toups @meltoups.bsky.social for our Department seminar tomorrow. I recruited her here on @bsky.app

University of Iowa Department of Biology @uiowabiology.bsky.social · 1d

Our seminar this week will be led by Melissa Toups, PhD, an Assistant Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The seminar will begin at 3:30pm on October 10th in Kollros Auditorium (BBE101).

All are welcome to attend, and we hope to see you there!

2 8