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spotLights Ep 14: preLights in conversation with Matteo Allegretti

Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Jul 22

I met @matteoall.bsky.social, as well as discussing the impact of preprints, he explained his research on the nuclear pore complex and why sperm cells do not need as much transport in/out of the nucleus. #Cryotomography #NuclearPoreComplex (4/5) www.youtube.com/watch?v=42th...

spotLights Ep 12: preLights in conversation with Daniel Booth

Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Jul 22

I talked to Daniel Booth about work on cell division coming from his lab, with three preprints out in time for #biologists100. Check out the interview and read the preprints on chromosome coating, with some beautiful imaging! #Mitosis #CellDivision #Microscopy (3/5) www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk5E...

spotLights Ep 11: preLights in conversation with Daniel Gorelick and Alejandra Clark

Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Jul 22

I spoke with Alejandra Clark and @danielgorelick.bsky.social about the fast and fair peer review initiative from @biologyopen.bsky.social. They’re cutting down review times and compensating peer reviewers for their work! #PeerReview #FastAndFair (2/5) www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM6m...

Biologists @ 100 conference report - FocalPlane

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Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Jul 22

Better late than never, I am sharing the last #spotlight interviews I did with @prelights.bsky.social at #biologists100 in Liverpool. It was fantastic to get different perspectives on preprints and the publishing world, as well as to hear a bit about the cutting-edge research being presented. (1/5)

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Reposted by Jonathan Townson

FlyBase @flybase.bsky.social · Jun 3

We currently have a call for support that has gone out to European labs, to support FlyBase-UK. We are asking our colleagues from labs in the US and other countries to wait for a similar call to them that will go out in the near future, to support the US sites. We thank you for your patience.

Mark A. Hanson @hansonmark.bsky.social · Jun 3

URGENT: FlyBase has lost practically all its funding overnight; even user fees are tied up in denied grant funding. 🤬🤯

Any lab using @flybase.bsky.social please donate using the link in post below.

This incredible community, on whose backs our #Drosophila labs depend, can't be left out to dry.

Marc Dionne @marcsdionne.bsky.social · Jun 3

My lab studies bacterial infections. We spend a lot of time looking at (or for) species-specific genetic and genomic databases for hosts and microbes. FlyBase is the best of all—there is literally no comparison. Its existence is under threat. Please donate.
www.philanthropy.cam.ac.uk/give-to-camb...

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Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Jun 4

It was great talking to @giuliapaci.bsky.social about her work and #preprints at #biologists100 earlier this year.

And exciting that she is again talking (more science and less preprints) today for the Development presents… seminar

thenode.biologists.com/development-...

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Reposted by Jonathan Townson

Bassem Hassan @bassemh.bsky.social · May 16

While I applaud Europe taking a step to fund bringing scientific excellence to Europe, the ERC’s current success rates at 10% for Europe based scientists is statistically at lottery levels. The total ERC budget should double across the board aiming at doubling funding rates.

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Reposted by Jonathan Townson

Chenxin Li, PhD @chenxinli2.bsky.social · May 28

Human, C. elegans, and fruit flies shared a common ancestor pre-Cambrian, which was at the very least 500-600 million years ago (mya), whereas angiosperms shared a common ancestor in late Jurassic (~160 mya), meaning Arabidopsis is more closely related to most crops than worms or flies are to human.

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Reposted by Jonathan Townson

FocalPlane @focalplane.bsky.social · May 22

ICYMI, our FocalPlane reporter Margarida Araújo shares her Biologists @ 100 conference report. As well giving an overall of the event, Margarida picks out some of her highlights including talks on #climatechange and #imaging.
focalplane.biologists.com/2025/05/08/b...
#NoNeedForFOMO

Biologists @ 100 conference report - News

focalplane.biologists.com

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Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · May 22

I also caught up with Helena Crellin from @buckleylab.bsky.social‬ @pdncambridge.bsky.social‬, who used a custom microscope to control actomyosin contractility in zebrafish and study how cellular forces can propagate along tissues. (3/3) youtu.be/6uce4whDt2M?...

spotLights Ep 10: preLights in conversation with Helena Crellin

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spotLights Ep 9: preLights in conversation with Jennifer Richens

Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · May 22

I talked with Jenny Richens from @gurdoninstitute.bsky.social‬ about her work, now out in @plosbiology.org, where the team developed tracking software and looked at vesicle trafficking and secretion in Drosophila ovaries. (2/3) youtu.be/eLwGRnBrIaU?...

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spotLights Ep 8: preLights in conversation with Richard Sever

Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · May 22

At the @biologists.bsky.social‬ #biologists100 conference, I worked with @prelights.bsky.social‬ to interview some of the researchers presenting their #preprint. The first two have been published. (1/3)

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Jonathan Townson @jontytownson.bsky.social · Apr 24

It was great to meet @richardsever.bsky.social‬ at #biologists100 in Liverpool. As part of a conference #spotLights series with @prelights.bsky.social‬, he very kindly agreed to answer a few questions on #preprints, and their past and future impact. Check it out: www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5O2...

spotLights Ep 8: preLights in conversation with Richard Sever

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Reposted by Jonathan Townson

Richard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · Apr 16

What does openRxiv mean for bioRxiv/medRxiv? How did biologists embrace preprints? And what's the future of the scientific article?

Fun talking with @jontytownson.bsky.social at #biologists100

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5O2...