ev nichols
@evln7.bsky.social
just a kid from akron | biology phd | science researcher, writer, educator | postdoc at ucla studying spinal cord development | writes at queersciencelab.beehiiv.com | she/they 🏳️⚧️
the hhs review of trans health care for minors cited a retracted paper and somehow its authors were allowed to claim that they support "evidence-based medicine" ...
"“Medical professionals should look past the partisan framing and engage with the substance of this debate,” write the authors of the HHS review on treating minors with gender dysphoria. www.statnews.com/2025/12/08/h...
We wrote the HHS review on treatment for minors with gender dysphoria. We hope our critics actually read our report
“Medical professionals should look past the partisan framing and engage with the substance of this debate,” write the authors of the HHS review on treating minors with gender dysphoria.
www.statnews.com
December 9, 2025 at 3:04 PM
the hhs review of trans health care for minors cited a retracted paper and somehow its authors were allowed to claim that they support "evidence-based medicine" ...
Reposted by ev nichols
one of many parallels between anti-vaxxers & those who oppose gender-affirming care: they start by pretending they have a very specific concern (MMR vaccine, puberty blockers, etc), but once given any sway or say on the matter, they quickly strive to eliminate all of it
Kennedy's zombie ACIP panel just voted to restrict hepatitis B vaccine for newborns. Experts say it will harm children for no reason. www.ms.now/news/rfk-cdc...
ACIP member Dr. Cody Meissner:
"'Do no harm' is a moral imperative. We are doing harm by changing this wording. And I vote no."
ACIP member Dr. Cody Meissner:
"'Do no harm' is a moral imperative. We are doing harm by changing this wording. And I vote no."
RFK Jr.’s CDC panel: No more hepatitis B vaccine for some newborns
The CDC's vaccine advisory panel, stocked with anti-vaccine activists and loyalists to RFK Jr., voted Friday to stop recommending a birth dose of vaccine.
www.ms.now
December 5, 2025 at 5:40 PM
one of many parallels between anti-vaxxers & those who oppose gender-affirming care: they start by pretending they have a very specific concern (MMR vaccine, puberty blockers, etc), but once given any sway or say on the matter, they quickly strive to eliminate all of it
Reposted by ev nichols
The only reason not to follow the Prison Rape Elimination Act is if you do not want to eliminate rape
BREAKING: Trump administration plans to end prison rape protections for trans & intersex people, memo says. A DOJ memo says certain standards under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) do not align with Trump’s Jan. 20 anti-trans executive order, @byadamrhodes.bsky.social reports.
Trump administration plans to end prison rape protections for trans and intersex people
A Department of Justice memo says certain standards under the Prison Rape Elimination Act do not align with Trump’s executive order
prismreports.org
December 5, 2025 at 1:16 AM
The only reason not to follow the Prison Rape Elimination Act is if you do not want to eliminate rape
Reposted by ev nichols
SCOOP: The United States Tennis Association (USTA) quietly updated its player eligibility policy to ban trans women from competing as women in their leagues, tournaments and competitions in order to comply with Trump's anti-trans sports executive order. The policy went into effect on Monday.
USTA bans trans athletes from competing as women to comply with Trump executive order
The national tennis governing body's policy change was made with no announcement.
www.thehandbasket.co
December 4, 2025 at 12:32 AM
SCOOP: The United States Tennis Association (USTA) quietly updated its player eligibility policy to ban trans women from competing as women in their leagues, tournaments and competitions in order to comply with Trump's anti-trans sports executive order. The policy went into effect on Monday.
Reposted by ev nichols
I can't stress enough that you should take every opportunity that comes your way to support your local public libraries. Many of them are currently struggling and are being DEFUNDED. Local action matters on this front. Don't sit back until those libraries are gone before taking ACTION.
December 2, 2025 at 10:48 PM
I can't stress enough that you should take every opportunity that comes your way to support your local public libraries. Many of them are currently struggling and are being DEFUNDED. Local action matters on this front. Don't sit back until those libraries are gone before taking ACTION.
Reposted by ev nichols
Oh, the instructor who was fired for giving an F to a Trumpist loser for citing the Bible in a scientific paper is *trans*? It's almost like we're being eliminated from society one by one or something.
www.oudaily.com/news/ou-stat...
www.oudaily.com/news/ou-stat...
OU puts graduate instructor on leave after student claims discrimination on Bible-based essay grade
OU placed a graduate student instructor on leave after a student publicly contested a grade and filed an illegal discrimination claim after she received a failing grade on an essay
www.oudaily.com
December 1, 2025 at 4:46 AM
Oh, the instructor who was fired for giving an F to a Trumpist loser for citing the Bible in a scientific paper is *trans*? It's almost like we're being eliminated from society one by one or something.
www.oudaily.com/news/ou-stat...
www.oudaily.com/news/ou-stat...
Reposted by ev nichols
Feels really significant that the Trump admin is making a concerted effort to force colleges to undo policies that made campus safe and accessible for trans people, because for so many trans people college is the first place they ever get to be themselves.
November 29, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Feels really significant that the Trump admin is making a concerted effort to force colleges to undo policies that made campus safe and accessible for trans people, because for so many trans people college is the first place they ever get to be themselves.
Reposted by ev nichols
Northwestern also agrees to stop providing life saving healthcare to trans kids, another violation of state law. It's unclear what impact this would have on their affiliated hospital network.
bsky.app/profile/ryan...
bsky.app/profile/ryan...
the agreement finally forces the university to "not perform hormonal interventions and transgender surgeries" on minors.
November 29, 2025 at 1:24 AM
Northwestern also agrees to stop providing life saving healthcare to trans kids, another violation of state law. It's unclear what impact this would have on their affiliated hospital network.
bsky.app/profile/ryan...
bsky.app/profile/ryan...
Reposted by ev nichols
in this agreement, NU formally says it will define "sports, locker rooms, and showering facilities" by sex assigned at birth.
November 29, 2025 at 12:47 AM
in this agreement, NU formally says it will define "sports, locker rooms, and showering facilities" by sex assigned at birth.
Reposted by ev nichols
Read my full story here!
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
The Make America Healthy Again summit, attended by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr and vice-president JD Vance, gave a sense of what’s driving US health policy.
www.nature.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Read my full story here!
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Psychedelics and immortality: Nature went to a health summit starring RFK and JD Vance
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
maha, aka the society for evidence based mouth tape
And yes, the swag bags. Attendees received MAHA-branded tote bags with:
- Packets of creatine
- Beef tallow potato chips ($79 for a 6-pack!!)
- Mouth tape
- RFK Jr's biography
- Beef protein bars
- Packets of creatine
- Beef tallow potato chips ($79 for a 6-pack!!)
- Mouth tape
- RFK Jr's biography
- Beef protein bars
November 21, 2025 at 7:54 PM
maha, aka the society for evidence based mouth tape
Reposted by ev nichols
I really hate it when scientists keep saying that “we need to rebuild trust in science,” because it implies that scientists are to blame for the mistrust rather than the millions of dollars of dark money that have funded political attacks on science in order to advance a far right agenda.
November 19, 2025 at 9:48 PM
I really hate it when scientists keep saying that “we need to rebuild trust in science,” because it implies that scientists are to blame for the mistrust rather than the millions of dollars of dark money that have funded political attacks on science in order to advance a far right agenda.
i got really mad at the laundering of "biological pronouns" (by an american appeals court) and decided to write about it, the pseudoscience of biological sex, and the preservation of self-definition. hope you'll give it a read :)
What's biological about pronouns? Absolutely Nothing.
on pseudoscience and self-definition
queersciencelab.beehiiv.com
November 17, 2025 at 6:52 PM
i got really mad at the laundering of "biological pronouns" (by an american appeals court) and decided to write about it, the pseudoscience of biological sex, and the preservation of self-definition. hope you'll give it a read :)
Reposted by ev nichols
LRT: since he's in the news for Epstein-related reasons, thought I'd share this excellent 2006 essay from trans scientist Ben Barres about the "Larry Summers Hypothesis" (Summers' claim that women are bad at STEM because of innate ability)
PDF link: sci-hub.st/https://doi....
PDF link: sci-hub.st/https://doi....
sci-hub.st
November 16, 2025 at 4:02 AM
LRT: since he's in the news for Epstein-related reasons, thought I'd share this excellent 2006 essay from trans scientist Ben Barres about the "Larry Summers Hypothesis" (Summers' claim that women are bad at STEM because of innate ability)
PDF link: sci-hub.st/https://doi....
PDF link: sci-hub.st/https://doi....
Reposted by ev nichols
As a semi-dyslexic child, I never imagined that I'd need to learn how to spell "eugenics."
But here we are.
But here we are.
U.S. visas can be denied for obesity, cancer and diabetes, Rubio says.
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
U.S. visas can be denied for obesity, cancer and diabetes, Rubio says
The Trump administration has directed visa officers to consider obesity and other chronic health conditions when deciding whether to grant visas to immigrants.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:59 PM
As a semi-dyslexic child, I never imagined that I'd need to learn how to spell "eugenics."
But here we are.
But here we are.
Reposted by ev nichols
My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far
November 12, 2025 at 5:05 PM
My takeaway from every new Epstein revelation is that some powerful people victimized many powerless young women, many more knew, some actively enabled it--and we're still being told that MeToo and accountability for sexual violence have gone too far
Reposted by ev nichols
Hey you guys, @lataco.bsky.social has been doing ESSENTIAL work covering ICE raids and the ways in which they are tearing at the fabric of our communities. Now they are having a membership drive. If you want to support their work, pitch in here:
lataco.com/join
lataco.com/join
Join L.A. TACO ~ L.A. TACO
Become a Member Support fearless local journalism. Pick a level, check out via Stripe (Apple Pay/Google Pay supported), and you’re in. Already have an account or want monthly plans? Go to all options ...
lataco.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Hey you guys, @lataco.bsky.social has been doing ESSENTIAL work covering ICE raids and the ways in which they are tearing at the fabric of our communities. Now they are having a membership drive. If you want to support their work, pitch in here:
lataco.com/join
lataco.com/join
Reposted by ev nichols
Watson's racism & sexism were infamous. but this obituary sheds light onto something else: he was essentially an earlier rendition of what's happening now with tech CEOs & pundits who are convinced they're always the smartest person in the room & how this inevitably leads to anti-"PC/woke" brain rot
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 4:12 PM
Watson's racism & sexism were infamous. but this obituary sheds light onto something else: he was essentially an earlier rendition of what's happening now with tech CEOs & pundits who are convinced they're always the smartest person in the room & how this inevitably leads to anti-"PC/woke" brain rot
Reposted by ev nichols
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 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
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.
🧪🧬🧫
Reposted by ev nichols
Watson was a racist who, "near the end of his life, faced condemnation and professional censure for offensive remarks, including saying Black people are less intelligent than white people"
James Watson, co-discoverer of the double-helix shape of DNA, has died at age 97
Scientist James Watson, who shared a Nobel prize for helping discover the double-helix shape of the DNA molecule, has died. He was 97.
apnews.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Watson was a racist who, "near the end of his life, faced condemnation and professional censure for offensive remarks, including saying Black people are less intelligent than white people"
Reposted by ev nichols
There's an interesting study to be conducted on the ways faculty, staff, and students process their renewed access to federal grants coming at the capitulation of the university's future to an authoritarian.
November 7, 2025 at 5:19 PM
There's an interesting study to be conducted on the ways faculty, staff, and students process their renewed access to federal grants coming at the capitulation of the university's future to an authoritarian.
Reposted by ev nichols
Among items included in this agreement are an extortion payment of $30M & the requirement of admissions data restricted to race, GPAs, test scores, & school/college of students for what will likely be misconstrued analyses of admissions processes & student academic capabilities & achievement.
Cornell has reached an agreement with the federal government to restore our funding:
statements.cornell.edu/2025/2025110...
statements.cornell.edu/2025/2025110...
An agreement to restore Cornell’s federal research funding | University Statements | Cornell University
statements.cornell.edu
November 7, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Among items included in this agreement are an extortion payment of $30M & the requirement of admissions data restricted to race, GPAs, test scores, & school/college of students for what will likely be misconstrued analyses of admissions processes & student academic capabilities & achievement.
so cornell has now signed onto the trump policy guidelines requiring trans exclusion on campus and compliance with anti-equity measures...
November 7, 2025 at 5:22 PM
so cornell has now signed onto the trump policy guidelines requiring trans exclusion on campus and compliance with anti-equity measures...
wtf are "biological pronouns"
BREAKING: The Sixth Circuit, in a 10-7 en banc decision, holds that an Ohio school district's anti-bullying policy that requires students to use children's preferred pronouns is likely unconstitutional on these facts.
Judge Murphy, a Trump appointee, writes the court's decision.
Judge Murphy, a Trump appointee, writes the court's decision.
November 7, 2025 at 3:27 AM
wtf are "biological pronouns"
"biological sex at birth" is complete and utter nonsense!
BREAKING: The Supreme Court will allow the Trump administration to enforce its anti-trans and anti-nonbinary passport policy during litigation.
The unsigned, four-paragraph order effectively reverses two lower-court decisions. The Democratic appointees dissent.
More to come: www.lawdork.com
The unsigned, four-paragraph order effectively reverses two lower-court decisions. The Democratic appointees dissent.
More to come: www.lawdork.com
![SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
No. 25A319
DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES, ET AL. v. ASHTON ORR, ET AL.
ON APPLICATION FOR STAY
[November 6, 2025]
This case concerns an Executive Branch policy requiring
all new passports to display an individual’s biological sex at
birth. The United States District Court for the District of
Massachusetts preliminarily enjoined the Government
from enforcing the policy, and the First Circuit declined to
stay the injunction pending appeal. The Government then
filed this stay application. Applying our familiar stay fac-
tors at this preliminary stage, we grant the application.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:36eqtmzysqf7wsslczw4uxcd/bafkreievxyvqikl7wmrg5jkqhsrta5l5xfq272x7caunvxka7vtuzp7hoa@jpeg)
November 6, 2025 at 9:20 PM
"biological sex at birth" is complete and utter nonsense!