Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Sam Connell

Jason McLellan @mclellanlab.bsky.social · 3h

I'm honored to receive a MacArthur Fellowship. As always, I extend my sincerest thanks to all my wonderful mentors, colleagues, collaborators, admins, and trainees who make this work possible. #MacFellow

Texas Science @texasscience.bsky.social · 4h

UT Austin has a new “genius grant” recipient!

Texas Science professor Jason McLellan has been awarded a MacArthur Fellowship — aka the “genius grant” — by The MacArthur Foundation.

#TexasScience @mclellanlab.bsky.social #MacArthurGenius @utaustin.bsky.social
cns.utexas.edu/news/accolad...

Virus Slayer Awarded ‘Genius Grant’ by MacArthur Foundation

The award recognizes Jason McLellan’s work to investigate how viruses infect our cells and to develop new treatments for infectious disease.

cns.utexas.edu

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Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 28m

Congratulations Jason!

Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 2h

Well deserved Ishmail!

Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 3h

a man in a plaid shirt stands in a park with the words this is a question below him

ALT: a man in a plaid shirt stands in a park with the words this is a question below him

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Dr Dan Shugar 🇨🇦 @watershedlab.bsky.social · 3h

When waiting for a paper to go out for review, how many times per hour (waking hours only) do you refresh the page to check the status? 🧪

1. Once
2. How long is a piece of string?

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Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 3h

"These books are medicinal!" 📚

NightMar on Hicks Street, Part 4: The Rabbit’s Revenge @histoftech.bsky.social · 15h

doomscroll break

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BWJones @bwjones.bsky.social · 4h

Any Claris Filemaker users here on Bsky?

If so, any of you used the cloud version of Filemaker?

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Nigella Lawson @nigella.bsky.social · 11h

Midweek Treat: my Ginger and Walnut Carrot Cake is #RecipeOfTheDay! I’m rather fond of it plain and un-iced, but I admit the gingery cream cheese frosting does finish it off perfectly www.nigella.com/recipes/ging...

Ginger and Walnut Carrot Cake

This is very different from the richly sweet, loftily layered and aerated American original. While it is in some senses far more reminiscent of an old-fashioned, slightly rustic English teatime treat,...

www.nigella.com

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 4h

Anyway, read the full story here: religionnews.com/2025/10/07/i...

Religious protesters say ICE threatens religious freedom in Chicago

(RNS) — Despite potential danger, religious leaders and faith activists have been a visible presence at Chicago-area ICE protests, some waving signs with slogans such as ‘Love thy neighbor’ and ‘Who w...

religionnews.com

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Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 5h

Reporter's notebook: I actually began working on this story shortly after footage of the incident showed up last month.

But by the time I finally got ahold of folks, the story grew: 2 *other* faith leaders I spoke with *also* reported being shot w/pepper balls while protesting this ICE facility.

Jack Jenkins @jackjenkins.me · 23h

Gonna be thinking about this lede for a minute.

(RNS) — Last month, the Rev. David Black stood in front of a Chicago-area U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility and spread his arms wide. Adorned in all black and wearing a clerical collar, the pastor looked up at a group of masked, heavily armed ICE agents on the roof and began to pray.

“I invited them to repentance,” Black, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), said in an interview. “I basically offered an altar call. I invited them to come and receive that salvation, and be part of the kingdom that is coming.”

But when Black began to lower his arms a few seconds later, the agents responded to his spiritual plea by firing pepper balls, or chemical agents that cause eye irritation and respiratory distress, video footage shows. One struck Black in the head, exploding into a puff of white pepper smoke and forcing him to his knees. Fellow demonstrators rushed to his aid, and as the pastor rubbed his face in pain, the agents continued to fire.

“We could hear them laughing,” Black said.

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Nat Clarke @natclarke.bsky.social · 5h

🚨 My lab is hiring at all levels!

Interested in animal origins & evolutionary cell biology?

I'm recruiting a postdoc, PhD students & a research assistant to study the molecular evolution of cell adhesion using marine invertebrates + comparative genomics.

🔗: clarkelab.com/join/

Please repost!

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Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 5h

That is so awesome! Good job y'all.

a painting of colorful butterflies on a green background with the word butterfly on the bottom

ALT: a painting of colorful butterflies on a green background with the word butterfly on the bottom

media.tenor.com

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Thanh Neville, MD, MSHS @thanhneville.medsky.social · 4d

If you tell me your plan is become a butterfly in the after-life, why yes, we will decorate your room this way during your final moments. Who says ICU rooms have to be cold and sterile at the end of life?

She loved it so much. @3wishesprogram.bsky.social

butterfly decorations hanging in ICU room

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Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 5h

a man giving a thumbs up in front of a sign that says back hou

ALT: a man giving a thumbs up in front of a sign that says back hou

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ScottCulkin 🇺🇸/🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿/🚒🚑(ret.)/🚴/🥁/⚽ @scottculkin.bsky.social · 5h

This is the (private) company that lost the bid on paramedic service for our city and is now helping the (private) company that was awarded that contract cuz they can't meet the terms of the contract they signed. 🤪

ScottCulkin 🇺🇸/🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿/🚒🚑(ret.)/🚴/🥁/⚽ @scottculkin.bsky.social · 5h

Captain Culkin's Pro Responder Tip: when posting (staging) for a call, point the rig in the direction in which you will be responding. Note: this 👇 is not that direction. 😐🚑

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Simon Walker @smonw.bsky.social · 6h

I am now seeing structured illumination in the clouds. Perhaps it’s time for a holiday.

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The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 6h

CARTOON OF THE DAY 😕🇺🇸

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Sheila Teves @sheilateves.bsky.social · 1d

How does a “universal” transcription factor evolve to do species-specific jobs?
Our new preprint reveals how divergence in TBP’s domains shapes transcriptional specialization across eukaryotes.

Read it here 👉

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

#MolecularEvolution #Transcription

Molecular determinants underlying functional divergence of TBP homologs

The TATA-box binding protein (TBP) is a highly conserved basal transcription factor and a core component of the pre-initiation complex (PIC) for all three eukaryotic RNA polymerases (RNA Pols). Despit...

www.biorxiv.org

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 9h

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ScottCulkin 🇺🇸/🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿/🚒🚑(ret.)/🚴/🥁/⚽ @scottculkin.bsky.social · 19h

My veteran 3rd-grade teacher wife and my rookie 4th-grade teacher son are workshopping strategies for reading/language instruction at our dining table tonight. My wife is a reading/math coach in their district. Teaching is hard; teachers are awesome! 😍

a chalkboard with the words " every child deserves a well paid teacher " on it

Alt: a chalkboard with the words " every child deserves a well paid teacher " on it

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Steven Cook @dumpyunc.bsky.social · 22h

Our group at the Allen Institute is recruiting a technician and postdoc to work on light microscopy-based connectomics. Please DM me or share with anyone you think may be interested in this NIH BRAIN CONNECTS funded project.

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Garrett M. Graff @vermontgmg.bsky.social · 1d

If appropriations bills are not seen as enforceable contracts, why should any Member of Congress vote to fund any part of the federal government under Donald Trump? You're voting to provide money for lawlessness. www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/there-is-n...

There is no budget "deal" to be made

President Trump has so broken the constitutional framework as to make joint normal, responsible government impossible.

www.doomsdayscenario.co

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David Katz @katzlab.bsky.social · 23h

Really looking forward to visiting Rutgers and @barrlab.bsky.social tomorrow!

Maureen Barr @barrlab.bsky.social · 1d

Rutgers peeps: David Katz is presenting this exciting work tomorrow Oct 8 at 2pm in Waksman 1001. #celegans

David Katz @katzlab.bsky.social · 1d

Very excited to share our very exciting story on how misinherited chromatin affects individual cells to cause a behavior defect in C. elegans (a thread👇) www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

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Sam Connell @samuelconnell.3i.social · 23h

Hence why I've spatchcocked them turkeys for years. Then you can take that massive back, wing tips, neck, giblets etc, and get your stock rocking early. Then you can fortify it with the drippings/fond madness later. And if you make that turkey stock from a base of chicken stock...oh man, that's 👌

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Angeline J. Dukes, PhD @heydrdukes.bsky.social · 23h

In a surprising turn of events, I now have a graduate student 🤗

I want to do this right. So I’m soliciting advice from the wise & experienced 😅 - what are your best tips for being a good advisor/PI/graduate student mentor? ✨

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