@kristenobacter.bsky.social
Scientist, mom, & dog mom. She/they. Trans rights are human rights. Long covid survivor. Pissed about the climate crisis. Tell your dog I said hi
The voters donβt care about climate change but they do care about real bad shit
01.12.2025 14:47 β π 50 π 4 π¬ 7 π 0
The hidden danger of Biorender
(& the death of scientific illustration)
A short thread π§΅
Challenged my students to create "Thank a Microbe" flyers. Here's the example I made, we'll see what they come up with.
14.11.2024 01:57 β π 31 π 8 π¬ 2 π 0
THIS IS BIG
For non-academics who might not understand why:
1. Sen. Warren is still a Harvard professor so this is a call coming from inside the house
2. As a tenured law prof, Warren knows it is a VERY big deal from a labor standpoint to call on Harvard to ignore tenure. The bar for this is HIGH.
One thing that's abundantly clear: passing the SAFE Research Act would permanently end the United States' ability to be competitive in any area of advanced technology. Just straight up suicidal policy-making.
14.11.2025 20:44 β π 488 π 182 π¬ 12 π 6If this stupid bill actually passes, we are even more doomed than I thought. Note that it also includes Russia. U.S. Congress considers sweeping ban on Chinese collaborations | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
14.11.2025 14:20 β π 16 π 17 π¬ 2 π 3
DAVIS, KIM V. ERMOLD, DAVID, ET AL. The motion of Foundation for Moral Law for leave to file a brief as amicus curiae out of time is denied. The petition for a writ of certiorari is denied.
New: The Supreme Court DENIES Kim Davis' request to overturn Obergefell, the marriage equality decision. No noted dissents. www.supremecourt.gov/orders/court...
10.11.2025 14:31 β π 8275 π 1814 π¬ 238 π 536
The US is the world's largest oil and gas producer. Yet, "China is now making more money from exporting green technology than America makes from exporting fossil fuels."
07.11.2025 11:05 β π 5521 π 2331 π¬ 52 π 256
"without subjecting anyone to differential treatment."
This is flatly false! Trans people with a passport that does not match with their plain appearance when presented to a border agent is subject to additional hassle compared to a cis person presenting a passport.
Got asked by a reporter to comment on the shutdown impact on NCBI and research.
It's not just NCBI - it's Army Corps of Engineers permitting too, it's NSF panel reviews, and the fact we just submitted a proposal to NOAA having no idea if/when it'll ever be seen.
The anxiety. It real.
For any unfamiliar with the quality of journalism at Teen Vogue, it's well known for hard-hitting stories on "politically sensitive" topics including climate.
Then there's CBS: the only major network to increase climate coverage in the last few years. They just axed nearly their whole climate team.
Lex McMenamin (theyl.. β’ @lexim... β’ 55m I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day. certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue. 908 β 3.7K β’ 7.8K εδΌ Lex McMenamin (they/t... o @leximc... β’ 4h we have been covering this for months and months now, here (again) is my interview with@zohrankmamdani.bsky.social about this subject from Thursday @teenvogue.com
Quite a juxtaposition
03.11.2025 20:49 β π 933 π 166 π¬ 5 π 6
I'm attending Frontline for Freedom's event, βUnpack the Compact Movement Call: Resisting Trump's Latest Attack on Higher Edβ - sign up here π www.mobilize.us/publiccitize...
26.10.2025 15:07 β π 4 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Hm, not so surprising
17.10.2025 12:32 β π 3 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0I am being asked to tell my department which pieces of lab equipment should be supported with backup power because they expect rolling blackouts and brownouts in 2026 due to increased energy demands from AI. In case you're wondering how my day is going.
14.10.2025 14:10 β π 1454 π 605 π¬ 29 π 59
The 400 richest Americans are now worth a record $6.6 trillion.
The entire bottom 50% of America is worth just $4.2 trillion.
Read that back.
When 400 people control more wealth than half a countryβs population, we have a very serious problem.
Majority of CDC staff fired after Trump admin's 'chaos' have returned to work: report
13.10.2025 02:16 β π 486 π 159 π¬ 14 π 6
The mass layoffs of federal workers on Friday night swept up the top two leaders of the federal measles response team, those working on Ebola and dozens of other infectious disease experts
(Gift article)
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/h...
aaand we are officially in the hide-your-neighbors stage
10.10.2025 22:31 β π 19155 π 7638 π¬ 300 π 238
ICE left David, a 17-year-old boy, stranded on the side of Interstate 20 after pulling over his immigrant father, Hector, in Mississippi.
David began running in the scorching sun after the car and watched as it disappeared from sightβsoon headed to a Louisiana ICE prison.
Here's their story.
Holy wow thatβs a lot of emissions reduction. So we could budge global emissions if we really wanted to
10.10.2025 21:24 β π 4 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0
This is what courage in the face of authoritarianism looks like. No university should take Trump's bribe & surrender their integrity β bending the knee to a bully only feeds the beast & puts ALL our rights at risk.
Others should follows MITβs example ASAP.
Among the long list of political adversaries President Trump has targeted in his second term are several Black women in powerful positions. Attorney General Letitia James of New York, who brought a civil case against Trump and won, is the latest.
10.10.2025 17:30 β π 183 π 61 π¬ 9 π 2
'When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist,' the Norwegian Nobel Committee said as it announced Maria Corina Machado as the winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize
10.10.2025 09:30 β π 5200 π 1828 π¬ 140 π 396
Martha Kelly (@MarthaKelly3) onn twitter: "Under capitalism, it's normal to let children go hungry, let banks force people out of their homes, let sick people die for lack of access to healthcare. But the idea that billionaires could just be less rich - not poor, not struggling, just less rich, is considered insane."
04.10.2025 21:40 β π 1776 π 723 π¬ 4 π 11
Letβs talk about AI art.
theoatmeal.com/comics/ai_art
The recent ICE raid which emptied an entire apartment building was apparently at the request of Wells Fargo, which is trying to foreclose on the building.
07.10.2025 15:33 β π 900 π 578 π¬ 30 π 86
screenshot of a popup on Google Sheets with two buttons "Learn more" and "Got it" header reads "Gemini can now do more for you in Sheets" with "for" scribbled out in red, and the word AS above it, so it says "Gemini can now do more AS you in Sheets" below that: Gemini can now make requested changes and insert content directly into your files. HIGHLIGHTED TEXT: All inserted content will be attributed to you in version history. For inline features like =Al), Gemini will insert content directly. For the side panel, Gemini will provide a preview first unless it understands your goal is a direct edit, such as making a pivot table or adding conditional formatting. Gemini in Workspace can make mistakes, including about people, so double-check responses.
google wants to introduce errors into my spreadsheets and attribute them to me
07.10.2025 17:59 β π 935 π 243 π¬ 23 π 18
The ISC - your new home at UMass Boston?
The view of Boston Harbor from front of campus
Heeeeey #Microbial #Ecology folk! My department has a job opening for a tenure track Microbial Ecologist! Feel free to DM me with questions. Come join our awesome supportive whip-smart & kind crew in the Biology Department of @umassboston.bsky.social! employmentopportunities.umb.edu/boston/en-us...
07.10.2025 14:01 β π 23 π 42 π¬ 2 π 0