Brendan Harley
@profharley.bsky.social
#blacklivesmatter | #translivesmatter | 🍉
Harvard & MIT trained bioengineer
Professor @ U. Illinois & Cancer Center at Illinois
health | society | Imagination & discovery
Partner @kateclancy.bsky.social | runner | dad | nerd
Harvard & MIT trained bioengineer
Professor @ U. Illinois & Cancer Center at Illinois
health | society | Imagination & discovery
Partner @kateclancy.bsky.social | runner | dad | nerd
Pinned
Brendan Harley
@profharley.bsky.social
· Nov 13
George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Arbery. Deeply ingrained, systemic racism is responsible for an incalculable loss & horrific suffering in our communities. I must do better. Listening, amplifying, celebrating, supporting, fighting. #BlackLivesMatter
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Here we go. Its ALL #NIHGrant applications. Dec 8 is the new deadline. And a one page prelim data update will be accepted for all May Council submissions. grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
NOT-OD-26-012: Updated Guidance on Reopening of NIH Extramural Activities Following the October 1, 2025 - Lapse in Appropriations
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Updated Guidance on Reopening of NIH Extramural Activities Following the October 1, 2025 - Lapse in Appropriations NOT-...
grants.nih.gov
November 24, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Here we go. Its ALL #NIHGrant applications. Dec 8 is the new deadline. And a one page prelim data update will be accepted for all May Council submissions. grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
This is concerning.
NIH is changing their policy so that staff have to prepare justification for every application that is funded BUT NO DOCUMENTATION FOR APPLICATIONS THAT ARE SKIPPED (BASED ON PERCENTILES).
1/2
NIH is changing their policy so that staff have to prepare justification for every application that is funded BUT NO DOCUMENTATION FOR APPLICATIONS THAT ARE SKIPPED (BASED ON PERCENTILES).
1/2
November 24, 2025 at 12:29 AM
This is concerning.
NIH is changing their policy so that staff have to prepare justification for every application that is funded BUT NO DOCUMENTATION FOR APPLICATIONS THAT ARE SKIPPED (BASED ON PERCENTILES).
1/2
NIH is changing their policy so that staff have to prepare justification for every application that is funded BUT NO DOCUMENTATION FOR APPLICATIONS THAT ARE SKIPPED (BASED ON PERCENTILES).
1/2
The satisfaction of being the first car to drive away from the parking lot pay station at my local airport after our flight gets in...
November 22, 2025 at 1:48 AM
The satisfaction of being the first car to drive away from the parking lot pay station at my local airport after our flight gets in...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
It's time for those left at CDC to reevaluate whether staying at the agency is in the public interest.
HOT OFF THE PRESSES: RFK Jr. told me he personally instructed CDC to abandon its longstanding position that vaccines don't cause autism. He acknowledged that large-scale studies of MMR vaccine and thimerosal show no link. But he cited gaps in vaccine safety science.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/u...
Kennedy Says He Told C.D.C. to Change Website’s Language on Autism and Vaccines
www.nytimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 7:35 PM
It's time for those left at CDC to reevaluate whether staying at the agency is in the public interest.
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Can’t believe the whole country has to suffer through the return of Dickensian childhood diseases because the worst, most ignorant attention-demanders decided other people’s expertise makes them feel bad
November 20, 2025 at 4:19 AM
Can’t believe the whole country has to suffer through the return of Dickensian childhood diseases because the worst, most ignorant attention-demanders decided other people’s expertise makes them feel bad
Reposted by Brendan Harley
ICE raided a church in Charlotte, showed no ID, chased congregants into the woods, and left children sobbing.
The Trump administration is beyond inhumanity. This must end.
www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politic...
The Trump administration is beyond inhumanity. This must end.
www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politic...
Church members flee as federal agents arrive at east Charlotte place of worship
Witnesses say one man was detained while doing yard work while his wife and child were inside.
www.charlotteobserver.com
November 19, 2025 at 2:23 PM
ICE raided a church in Charlotte, showed no ID, chased congregants into the woods, and left children sobbing.
The Trump administration is beyond inhumanity. This must end.
www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politic...
The Trump administration is beyond inhumanity. This must end.
www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politic...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Notice of early expiration of NIH SBIR/STTR funding announcements.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
If anyone knows the backstory, please share.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
If anyone knows the backstory, please share.
NOT-OD-26-006: Notice of Early Expiration of NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Notices of Funding Opportunity and Guidance for Existing Recipi...
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Notice of Early Expiration of NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STT...
grants.nih.gov
November 19, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Notice of early expiration of NIH SBIR/STTR funding announcements.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
If anyone knows the backstory, please share.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
If anyone knows the backstory, please share.
Reposted by Brendan Harley
The fight has come to NC, and it just hit close to home. Our daughter teaches in Durham public schools and she said almost all of the Latinx kids are not in school today. ICE is targeting everyone who "looks Hispanic", citizen or not. I am even more angry today-kids need to go to school!
November 18, 2025 at 4:34 PM
The fight has come to NC, and it just hit close to home. Our daughter teaches in Durham public schools and she said almost all of the Latinx kids are not in school today. ICE is targeting everyone who "looks Hispanic", citizen or not. I am even more angry today-kids need to go to school!
Reposted by Brendan Harley
AIMBE has been busy with conferences this month!
Last week, @dawnberaud.bsky.social hosted a session titled "The Importance of Advocacy in BME Research" @termisam.bsky.social which featured talks from AIMBE Fellows @cosgriffhernandez.bsky.social, @profharley.bsky.social, and Dr. Joyce Wong.
(1/4)
Last week, @dawnberaud.bsky.social hosted a session titled "The Importance of Advocacy in BME Research" @termisam.bsky.social which featured talks from AIMBE Fellows @cosgriffhernandez.bsky.social, @profharley.bsky.social, and Dr. Joyce Wong.
(1/4)
November 18, 2025 at 10:16 PM
AIMBE has been busy with conferences this month!
Last week, @dawnberaud.bsky.social hosted a session titled "The Importance of Advocacy in BME Research" @termisam.bsky.social which featured talks from AIMBE Fellows @cosgriffhernandez.bsky.social, @profharley.bsky.social, and Dr. Joyce Wong.
(1/4)
Last week, @dawnberaud.bsky.social hosted a session titled "The Importance of Advocacy in BME Research" @termisam.bsky.social which featured talks from AIMBE Fellows @cosgriffhernandez.bsky.social, @profharley.bsky.social, and Dr. Joyce Wong.
(1/4)
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Struck this morning by how the win wasn’t from the UC system itself pushing back—it was its worker power through *unions* and aligned groups like @aaup.org defending UC interests, even though admin itself wasn’t.
There’s some kind of lesson here
There’s some kind of lesson here
One reason why elite schools (Columbia, Brown, Cornell) caving to Trump’s illegal impoundment and extortion is so galling — a betrayal, really — is that they would have won had they fought. By giving up, they guaranteed every other school will have to fight harder.
Judge bars Trump from immediately cutting funding to the University of California | CNN Politics
The Trump administration cannot immediately cut federal funding to the University of California or issue fines against the school system over claims it allows antisemitism or other forms of discrimina...
www.cnn.com
November 15, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Struck this morning by how the win wasn’t from the UC system itself pushing back—it was its worker power through *unions* and aligned groups like @aaup.org defending UC interests, even though admin itself wasn’t.
There’s some kind of lesson here
There’s some kind of lesson here
Reposted by Brendan Harley
INCREASED
NEW: The first two years of Massachusetts' millionaire tax has raised $3 billion more than expected.
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
Millionaire Tax That Inspired Mamdani Fuels $5.7 Billion Haul in Massachusetts
A millionaire levy in Massachusetts that New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani holds up as a model for taxing the rich has generated $3 billion more in revenue than expected without forcing...
www.bloomberg.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:15 AM
INCREASED
I suppose this is also a way to mess with the 'payline'... 🙄🙄
Just got an email from my SRO for the study section that was missed in October. Good news is that they are trying to reschedule ASAP (Dec/Jan). The bad news is that CSR is mandating that only the the top third (not half) of applications will get discussed for the next 2 rounds.
November 14, 2025 at 12:12 AM
I suppose this is also a way to mess with the 'payline'... 🙄🙄
Reposted by Brendan Harley
A bad thing is unfolding at NIH this week: It looks like the Trump administration is trying to replace key civil servant scientific leaders, the Institute Directors, with political hires. These directors control the NIH budget, tens of billions.
A bit of a video explainer here: 1/ 🧪
A bit of a video explainer here: 1/ 🧪
November 13, 2025 at 10:31 PM
A bad thing is unfolding at NIH this week: It looks like the Trump administration is trying to replace key civil servant scientific leaders, the Institute Directors, with political hires. These directors control the NIH budget, tens of billions.
A bit of a video explainer here: 1/ 🧪
A bit of a video explainer here: 1/ 🧪
Advances from Fortuitous Failures - Abstract submission site: meetings.biomaterials.org/abstracts
November 13, 2025 at 10:39 PM
Advances from Fortuitous Failures - Abstract submission site: meetings.biomaterials.org/abstracts
🚨 Call for Abstracts - Soc for Biomaterials 2026 Annual Meeting 🧪
Have your #biomaterials experiments failed!? Don’t worry, ours have too! We are organizing a session, “Advances from Fortuitous Failures” to showcase resilience & unexpected findings
Deadline: Nov 21. Please submit & share widely!
Have your #biomaterials experiments failed!? Don’t worry, ours have too! We are organizing a session, “Advances from Fortuitous Failures” to showcase resilience & unexpected findings
Deadline: Nov 21. Please submit & share widely!
November 13, 2025 at 10:36 PM
🚨 Call for Abstracts - Soc for Biomaterials 2026 Annual Meeting 🧪
Have your #biomaterials experiments failed!? Don’t worry, ours have too! We are organizing a session, “Advances from Fortuitous Failures” to showcase resilience & unexpected findings
Deadline: Nov 21. Please submit & share widely!
Have your #biomaterials experiments failed!? Don’t worry, ours have too! We are organizing a session, “Advances from Fortuitous Failures” to showcase resilience & unexpected findings
Deadline: Nov 21. Please submit & share widely!
Congrats to #HarleyLab PhD#20, Dr. Gunnar Thompson, on his successful defense: Advancing techniques for engineered tissue models of the bone marrow! Cool work blending hematopoietic stem cells, granular materials, & rheology.
Thanks to committee members Simon Rogers, Mary Kraft, & Andres Garcia
Thanks to committee members Simon Rogers, Mary Kraft, & Andres Garcia
November 11, 2025 at 8:04 PM
Congrats to #HarleyLab PhD#20, Dr. Gunnar Thompson, on his successful defense: Advancing techniques for engineered tissue models of the bone marrow! Cool work blending hematopoietic stem cells, granular materials, & rheology.
Thanks to committee members Simon Rogers, Mary Kraft, & Andres Garcia
Thanks to committee members Simon Rogers, Mary Kraft, & Andres Garcia
Reposted by Brendan Harley
I would strongly recommend to anyone in the #NWSL who is trying to learn from "subject matter experts," go listen to "Tested," by @reveleth.com (from @npr.org & CBC). It's a full education on the history of sex testing in women's sports & DSD athletes today
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
November 11, 2025 at 3:20 PM
I would strongly recommend to anyone in the #NWSL who is trying to learn from "subject matter experts," go listen to "Tested," by @reveleth.com (from @npr.org & CBC). It's a full education on the history of sex testing in women's sports & DSD athletes today
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Next week, Nov 13 at 4:00pm EST, the @taftcenter.bsky.social welcomes @kateclancy.bsky.social for a discussion of her revolutionary book, Period, which challenges the myths and false assumptions that have long defined the study of the uterus.
Register for this free, in-person event: buff.ly/v50JoXw
Register for this free, in-person event: buff.ly/v50JoXw
November 7, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Next week, Nov 13 at 4:00pm EST, the @taftcenter.bsky.social welcomes @kateclancy.bsky.social for a discussion of her revolutionary book, Period, which challenges the myths and false assumptions that have long defined the study of the uterus.
Register for this free, in-person event: buff.ly/v50JoXw
Register for this free, in-person event: buff.ly/v50JoXw
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Jesus, the horribleness of these people is unending.
JUST IN: The Trump administration late Saturday directed states that they must "immediately undo" any actions they have made to provide benefits to low-income families via SNAP.
Trump tells states to 'immediately undo' steps to fund November SNAP benefits
The Trump administration late Saturday directed states that they must "immediately undo" any actions they have made to provide benefits to low-income families via SNAP.
n.pr
November 9, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Jesus, the horribleness of these people is unending.
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Pre-writing your enemy's obituary in case you go first is top-tier hating
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 1:39 AM
Pre-writing your enemy's obituary in case you go first is top-tier hating
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Buried in the Big Beautiful Bill were changes to food assistance that demanded “any future change be cost-neutral. Translation: no more benefit increases, even if food prices skyrocket.”
The result was “institutionalized hunger.”
@kristencrowell.bsky.social
www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
The result was “institutionalized hunger.”
@kristencrowell.bsky.social
www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
November 7, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Buried in the Big Beautiful Bill were changes to food assistance that demanded “any future change be cost-neutral. Translation: no more benefit increases, even if food prices skyrocket.”
The result was “institutionalized hunger.”
@kristencrowell.bsky.social
www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
The result was “institutionalized hunger.”
@kristencrowell.bsky.social
www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
Also, looking at that original tweet - "yet we fund predictability?" What the F does that mean? First off, science needs to get off this stupid "innovation" horse as if its something we can identify, predict, and evaluate. We can't.
Director Bhattacharya "Let's fund emerging investigators"
Yeah, who's the idiot running NIH who allowed 15% or few fewer early stage investigators be funded in FY2025 compared to FY2024?
(Estimate: The official numbers are not yet available (at least publicly)
Yeah, who's the idiot running NIH who allowed 15% or few fewer early stage investigators be funded in FY2025 compared to FY2024?
(Estimate: The official numbers are not yet available (at least publicly)
November 6, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Also, looking at that original tweet - "yet we fund predictability?" What the F does that mean? First off, science needs to get off this stupid "innovation" horse as if its something we can identify, predict, and evaluate. We can't.
Good morning New England
November 4, 2025 at 1:02 PM
Good morning New England
Reposted by Brendan Harley
"Two student-led organizations in Texas raised over $30,000 to help undocumented students pay for tuition and other expenses after a federal judge overturned the Texas Dream Act" thedailytexan.com/2025/10/31/t...
Texas student groups financially support undocumented students after overturning of Texas Dream Act
Editor’s note: The professor quoted in the article is speaking independently and not on behalf of the University. Two student-led organizations in Texas raised over $30,000 to help undocumented studen...
thedailytexan.com
November 3, 2025 at 10:56 PM
"Two student-led organizations in Texas raised over $30,000 to help undocumented students pay for tuition and other expenses after a federal judge overturned the Texas Dream Act" thedailytexan.com/2025/10/31/t...
Reposted by Brendan Harley
They fired every Black woman at Teen Vogue and every trans staffer.
It is astonishing watching the American media ecosystem just falling like dominoes, bowing its knees to fascism.
It is astonishing watching the American media ecosystem just falling like dominoes, bowing its knees to fascism.
thank you for all the support; the statement from our union is now live here with some more reporting.
now that this is public I can confirm that the majority of today’s layoffs were women of color. there are no longer any Black women working at Teen Vogue.
now that this is public I can confirm that the majority of today’s layoffs were women of color. there are no longer any Black women working at Teen Vogue.
November 4, 2025 at 1:20 AM
They fired every Black woman at Teen Vogue and every trans staffer.
It is astonishing watching the American media ecosystem just falling like dominoes, bowing its knees to fascism.
It is astonishing watching the American media ecosystem just falling like dominoes, bowing its knees to fascism.