Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Jun 24

One of my favorite posters among those I visited yesterday! Awesome graphics and color palette.

Reposted by Walid Mawass

John Novembre @jnovembre.bsky.social · Jun 5

Excited for our publication on how the geographic scale of a sample affects the discovery of rare, deleterious variants to be out this week. With a mix of theory, simulation, and data analysis, we show when samples are narrow vs broad, the number of variants discovered and their frequencies change

PNAS

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...

www.pnas.org

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Mar 31

Yikes!!!

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Reposted by Walid Mawass

Murillo R. @mufernando.bsky.social · Mar 24

We are excited to share our new preprint describing the inclusion of selection models to stdpopsim, our community-maintained library with an extensive catalog of population genetic models. 1/n
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

www.biorxiv.org

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Reposted by Walid Mawass

Joanna Masel @joannamasel.bsky.social · Mar 19

Our latest paper revisits Haldane 1957 on speed limits to adaptation, the paper that triggered neutral theory. We clarify and then significantly extend the theory, and apply the resulting model to @mexpositoalonso.bsky.social's data doi.org/10.1093/gene... 1/14

Substitution load revisited: a high proportion of deaths can be selective

Abstract. Haldane's Dilemma refers to the concern that the need for many “selective deaths” to complete a substitution (i.e. selective sweep) creates a spe

doi.org

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Reposted by Walid Mawass

NSF-Simons NITMB @nitmb.bsky.social · Mar 12

This week’s Research-In-Progress meeting features Walid Mawass (@wmawass.bsky.social), postdoctoral scholar in the Berg Lab at the University of Chicago!

Research-In-Progress is a venue for the NITMB community to discuss planned or in-progress work

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Reposted by Walid Mawass

Journal of Evolutionary Biology @jevbio.bsky.social · Feb 25

How does the quality of pedigrees impact genetic studies? Based on genealogical data, bigger and deeper pedigrees improve precision, but even small errors skew results! Our work highlights the need for careful sensitivity analyses:

doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...

@wmawass.bsky.social and E. Milot

Assessing the impact of pedigree attributes on the validity of quantitative genetic parameter estimates

Abstract. Investigating the evolution of complex traits in nature requires accurate assessment of their genetic basis. Quantitative genetic (QG) modeling i

doi.org

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Feb 23

I truly don't understand the whole "report on your work, or get fired". These people were EMPLOYED! They didn't go into the government saying "I'll be doing this job then". They applied to a job ad that DESCRIBES their job duties and they were HIRED because someone judged them to be a good fit 🤦🏾‍♂️

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Feb 22

This is scary for the sheer illegality of these actions that the administration is taking and the jeopardy it puts people's life in! These employees can't even rely on their unions if the admin can just ignore unions outright!
www.reuters.com/world/us/us-...

US science agency reclassifies hundreds of workers as probationary, US lawmaker says

National Science Foundation administrators reclassified hundreds of employees from permanent to probationary status in violation of labor contracts, according to a U.S. lawmaker and agency employee.

www.reuters.com

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Feb 4

🥳My work on the reliability of pedigrees used in quantitative genetic estimations of the genetic basis of phenotypic trait is out now in @jevbio.bsky.social! It also serves as a good intro for the use of pedigrees to infer genetic signals of phenotypes in populations
academic.oup.com/jeb/advance-...

Assessing the impact of pedigree attributes on the validity of quantitative genetic parameter estimates

Abstract. Investigating the evolution of complex traits in nature requires accurate assessment of their genetic basis. Quantitative genetic (QG) modeling i

academic.oup.com

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Jan 12

This is good news! Even if not all demands were met, this is a clear demonstration of scientists ceizing the power to negotiate over compensation for their labor to the academic scientific enterprise. Add to it that the negotiations were with the government directly!
www.science.org/content/arti...

NIH postdocs, graduate students win union contract

Historic deal will boost researcher pay—if Congress provides funding

www.science.org

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Dec 28

Easy one! Vice(2018)...Doesn't even need explaining for those who have seen it!

Elizabeth Picciuto @epicciuto.bsky.social · Dec 27

What’s a good movie that makes a strong political or moral point?

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Dec 28

In my case, I would say it is "The Metamorphosis" by Franz Kafka.

David H. Montgomery @dhmontgomery.com · Dec 27

What are people's most ARCHETYPICAL novels? Not your FAVORITES per se, but the ones that best exemplify your tastes in novels, distilled into a single work?

Mine is probably Susanna Clarke's "Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell."

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Dec 18

Has anyone done research using data from human pops? I am trying to decide on a choice of representative figure for my paper. Should I pick one of the type of data (a picture of a civil act used to recreate social genealogies) or a picture of possible subjects of the human population in question?

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Dec 12

It is without a doubt that academic research environments are shaping into a structured labor environment (grad researchers, postdoctoral researchers, staff scientists, principal investigators...). Therefore, it is no surprise that unionization is becoming prevalent.

Reposted by Walid Mawass

Joanna Masel @joannamasel.bsky.social · Dec 12

We identified protein domains in LUCA (Last Universal Common Ancestor). Their distinctive amino acid usage reveals the order amino acids were added to the genetic code, based mostly on size. Older proteins hint at earlier alternative codes. 1/15 @seekingluca.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Order of amino acid recruitment into the genetic code resolved by last universal common ancestor’s protein domains | PNAS

The current “consensus” order in which amino acids were added to the genetic code is based on potentially biased criteria, such as the absence of s...

www.pnas.org

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 21

First layer of snow in Chicago! Hoping for snow to last a little longer this year than the last.

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 20

Hello🕺🏾!

Reposted by Walid Mawass

Mike Barker @barkerms.bsky.social · Nov 14

I am recruiting graduate students this year to join my lab in Tucson! If you are interested in studying the evolution of plant diversity, polypoidy, and chromosomal evolution, please reach out about opportunities in my lab! Details about applying to EEB and our new CAMBIUM NRT in the thread below! 🧪

University of Arizona EEB @uofa-eeb.bsky.social · Nov 14

If you are looking for a graduate program in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, please considering joining us in Tucson, AZ! Our deadline is December 2 this year for admission to our Fall 2025 cohort. You can find out more about EEB and applying to our program here: eeb.arizona.edu/graduate/pro...

Saguaros and other Sonoran Desert plans stand in front of a purple and gray sky with a column of monsoon rain and rainbow in the distance.

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Reposted by Walid Mawass

University of Arizona EEB @uofa-eeb.bsky.social · Nov 14

If you are looking for a graduate program in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, please considering joining us in Tucson, AZ! Our deadline is December 2 this year for admission to our Fall 2025 cohort. You can find out more about EEB and applying to our program here: eeb.arizona.edu/graduate/pro...

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 14

Beautiful scenes from the NZ parliament! It's more than just anti-colonialism...it is about showing the colonial vestiges that native practices are alive and well, and will continue to be employed as a sign of continuous resistance. Even inside of a parliamentary body!

Josh | writer, painter, tinkerer @tworuru.com · Nov 14

this rules

🇳🇿 #nzpol

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Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 14

WELP! I am starting to get to the point where instead of partitioning time across different analyses for my research projects, I am partitioning time towards all the writings I need to get done!!! is that a good sign? a bad sign?

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 13

I don't know what you are talking about...that's a very decent and honorable occupation that inevitably we will all occupy.

Walid Mawass @wmawass.bsky.social · Nov 13

I've been enjoying @zotero.bsky.social as my main publication reader! Especially the addition of the dark theme and the new box that pops up when you hover over a citation!
One feature I wish was there though is to allow fetching that reference directly instead of having to open another browser tab!

Reposted by Walid Mawass

🧬Jacob L Steenwyk @jlsteenwyk.bsky.social · Nov 10

Genomics, evolution, and more starter pack!

Help build community with this starter pack.

This list is currently incomplete. Want to be included? Reply and I will remedy that!
go.bsky.app/JjvzkWU

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