Paul Gardner

A portion of the Strøget pedestrian street in Copenhagen that widens into a grand people-place.

One of the most successful pedestrian streets in the world, the Strøget in Copenhagen, was filled with cars until a 2 year pedestrianization pilot project in 1962. The opposition argued “no cars means no business,” but the street has been a massive retail success, the city’s busiest shopping street.

Wait a second!...

Two chocolate labradors on Waikouaiti Beach.

This feed needs more puppies and beaches!

Working at HIRI At the HIRI, we do not just value excellent research. Short distances, an open door policy, and a good working atmosphere—this is what distinguishes us from others. Have a look at our current job…

🧬 Shape the future of #RNA-based infection research!
We are inviting applications for @helmholtz.de Junior Research Group Leader Positions (f/m/d). 👉 Apply by February 15 at www.helmholtz-hiri.de/en/jobs-tale...
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Thanks. That's what prompted me to verify the quote. ;-)

Someone finally did it!

Inclusion of Retracted Studies in Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Interventions This systematic review and meta-analysis identifies reports of systematic reviews that included retracted studies in their meta-analyses, and assesses the impact of these retracted studies on the resu...

A pleasingly meta-meta-analysis with a very displeasing outcome: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

"I hate a Barnacle as no man ever did before"
www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docI...

My new favourite Darwin quote: "I am languid & bedeviled & hate writing & hate everybody" www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docI...
Happy birthday Old Boy, sorry it's a day late.

Omnibenchmark: transparent, reproducible, extensible and standardized orchestration of solo and collaborative benchmarks Benchmarking involves designing, running and disseminating rigorous performance assessments of methods, most often for data analysis and software tools, but the process can also be applied to experime...

So, this should be quite interesting!

We just posted a BIG update to our Omnibenchmark "framework", basically a software layer to help you manage, build, standardize, and orchestrate reproducible and extensible (computational method) benchmarks .. (quite a mouthful) ..

arxiv.org/abs/2409.17038

It was a wild day!

Sunset, ocean water, hills in the background, soaring albatross.

Buller's albatross over Rakiura

Timeline cleanse for you (I promise no teeth were lost in the making of this)!

Summer sunset

9pm Otago Harbour sunset from Muaūpoko Otago Peninsula, Ōtepoti Dunedin NZ

A framework for assessing the trustworthiness of scientific research findings1 | PNAS Vigorous debate has erupted over the trustworthiness of scientific research findings in a number of domains. The question “what makes research find...

Our new paper, with colleagues from the Strategic Council of the National Academies, offers an integrative framework of the several components that contribute to making research findings trustworthy including ethics, methodology, transparency, inclusion, assessment, etc

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Look at the calendar. 2026, the new ferries would be in service this year.

This Govt sucks farts.

They bloody do, once again, an issue with a single ferry fucked a lot of plans this summer. We have too little capacity, and crap infrastructure.

Hahaha. I don't think I've empathised more with a skeet.

Vibrant color portrait of Jane S. Richardson, the visionary biophysicist and artist who revolutionized structural biology with her invention of ribbon diagrams. She gazes warmly at the camera with a bright, knowing smile that radiates quiet brilliance and decades of curiosity. Her silver-blonde hair woven with gentle waves. Large, elegant dangling earrings catch the light, and she wears a richly patterned brown blouse embroidered with intricate turquoise paisley motifs and delicate beadwork that echoes the molecular elegance she has spent her life depicting. Behind her floats a luminous, dreamlike backdrop of glowing molecular structures--interlocking hexagonal and ribbon-like forms in electric blues, teals, and greens--blending science and art in a single, living canvas.

Hand-drawn and hand-colored (by Jane Richardson) scientific artwork known as a Richardson ribbon diagram (or “ribbon model”), one of the iconic visual inventions of Jane Richardson that transformed the way we see and understand protein structures. A graceful, three-dimensional tangle of protein backbone ribbons twists and spirals through space, rendered in soft pencil lines and luminous watercolor hues. Smooth golden-brown coils represent α-helices that curl like elegant ribbons, while broad teal-green arrows trace the flat, pleated strands of β-sheets slicing through the molecule with directional purpose. Thin, looping golden threads connect the secondary structures, creating a delicate, almost dance-like choreography of biology’s hidden architecture. The entire form is framed by a simple olive-green mat and dark border, giving the drawing the quiet dignity of both fine art and precise scientific illustration—a timeless bridge between molecular reality and human imagination.

Jane Richardson was born #OTD in 1941

+ Developed the Richardson (ribbon) diagram to represent proteins' 3D structure (becoming a standard representation for protein structures)
+ MacArthur Fellow, 1985
+ Elected, Nat'l Academy of Sciences, 1991
+ President, Biophysical Society, 2012

#WomenInSTEM

Color photograph of Joan Steitz (Joan Argetsinger Steitz), the distinguished American molecular biologist and biochemist renowned for her groundbreaking discoveries in RNA biology, including the identification of small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs) essential to RNA splicing. She is pictured in a close-up portrait within a laboratory or research setting, smiling warmly and directly at the camera with an engaging, approachable expression that conveys enthusiasm and expertise. Steitz has gray hair pulled back, striking blue eyes, and is wearing large, elaborate dangling earrings adorned with purple gemstones and metallic accents. She is dressed in a rich purple blouse. The softly blurred background includes scientific elements such as lab benches, equipment, monitors, charts, and partial signage, evoking the environment of her long career at Yale University where she served as Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry. #JoanSteitz #MolecularBiology #WomenInScience #Biochemistry #RNA

Biochemist/molecular biologist Joan Steitz was born #OTD in 1941.

She (& team) figured out how our cells read/use genetic instructions to make proteins. A key person who helped crack the code on RNA—the molecule that acts like a messenger between DNA & and the proteins our bodies need. #WomenInSTEM

No credible definition of junk DNA claims that *ALL* non-coding DNA is junk. Mainly for those who write headlines...

Otago harbour this morning.

Live! Royal Albatross Cam - #RoyalCam - New Zealand Dept. of Conservation | Cornell Lab YouTube video by Cornell Lab Bird Cams

I recommend it, and you can visit the albatross centre while you're there too www.youtube.com/live/Mm_zVDD...

I recently took some Danish friends out to Nature's Wonders Cafe on the Otago Peninsula. They run great wildlife tours across their farm (Blue Penguins, Fur Seals, Sea Lions & if you're lucky Yellow Eye Penguin)

All amazing spots. I recommend sticking to the coastal track at Kapiti, climbing to the top is tempting, but far fewer birds in my experience.

Some are pretty sweet!

Our birds are top notch too!

I hope we don't lose another great academic to the local sea lions. 😉
I'm looking forward to your visit to Otago!

Tom Cech to Davos: RNA research is 'still a big deal' The Nobel laureate and CU Boulder professor, recently ranked #1 globally for RNA research, will speak at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos,

www.colorado.edu/today/2026/0...

OUP want $8500 to publish a 400 word letter to the editor 🤣