Will Gearty

[blog] Paleontology R Packages to Benefit from Software Sustainability Institute Grant 🎉 🦴

Palaeoverse is a grassroots organization that develops R packages for paleontology (The Palaeoverse toolkit). 🐊🦕🌿🪸🦑

Will Gearty and The Palaeoverse Team are excited to announce funding from the Software […]

dplyr 1.2.0 dplyr 1.2.0 fills in some important gaps in dplyr's API: we've added a new complement to `filter()` focused on dropping rows, and we've expanded the `case_when()` family with three new recoding and re...

dplyr 1.2.0 is out now and we are SO excited!

- `filter_out()` for dropping rows

- `recode_values()`, `replace_values()`, and `replace_when()` that join `case_when()` as a complete family of recoding/replacing tools

These are huge quality of life wins for #rstats!

tidyverse.org/blog/2026/02...

Nominations for Student Representative to the Paleontological Society (2026-2028) The deadline for consideration is March 1, 2026. The Role: Student Representatives serve as voices for student needs in the Society and play leading roles in student activities including organizing...

⚡Applications for Paleontological Society Student Representative (2026-2028) are open! ⚡ @paleosoc.bsky.social

It's a great way to be a part of the community and advocate for students! Applications due March 1.

forms.gle/6qg2BLWgEXVd...

Great news! A new NSF Geoinformatics grant to support the PBDB was funded in June of 2025! This will overhaul the technical underpinnings of PBDB, a necessary step for carrying the PBDB forward -- www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/...

Winifred goldring award: apply by April 30th! Coral decorative image in background

Opportunity for women students in paleontology! The Winifred Goldring Award will be presented to three women graduate students and the AWG Undergraduate Paleontology Award will be presented to a student pursuing a career in paleontology. Due April 30th. More information here: tinyurl.com/msdc3m68

3-panel comic. (1) [Three small arthropods on ocean floor.] ARTHROPOD 1: Now that we’re multicellular, what are your plans? I’m gonna evolve little legs and swim around with them! ARTHROPOD 2: I’m gonna evolve sharp pincers and use them to crunch stuff! ARTHROPOD 3: I’m gonna evolve glands to make string from my butt and use it to construct elaborate geometric nets hundreds of times my size to catch other animals. (2) [Silence] (3) ARTHROPOD 1: *Dude.* ARTHROPOD 2: Can you *please* just be normal about this? ARTHROPOD 3: *What??!*

Early Arthropods

xkcd.com/3199/

A flyer advertising the next instalment of the Palaeoverse Lecture Series. The flyer features a cartoon of a sloping landscape, featuring a river and trees, overlying a grid system suggesting how it might be modelled. There is also a black and white picture of Dr De Groeve, with spiky hair and wearing a black t-shirt.

🚨Palaeoverse Lecture Series🚨
🗓️29th January 2026, 15:00 UTC🗓️

Join us next week for our first lecture of 2026, given by Dr Johannes De Groeve from University of Amsterdam, on “Tips for TABS (Temporal Altitudinal Biogeographic Shifts)” 🏔️

Register here: bit.ly/palaeoverse-...

Americans Are the Ones Paying for Tariffs, Study Finds New research contradicts President Trump’s claim that foreigners are footing the bill.

“Foreign exporters absorbed only 4% of last year’s U.S. tariff increases by lowering prices, while American consumers and importers absorbed 96%.

“Rather than acting as a tax on foreign producers, the tariffs functioned as a consumption tax on Americans.”

www.wsj.com/economy/trad...

Postdoctoral Researcher, Paleontology San Francisco, CA

Collaborate with me! Myself and @peterroopnarine.bsky.social are looking for a postdoc with expertise in quantitative paleoecology to work on our new NSF grant addressing whether communities after the PTME functioned differently than those beforehand.

job-boards.greenhouse.io/californiaac...

4-panel comic. (1) PERSON 1 with ponytail: The inspection revealed a few problems. Looks like your planet needs an alignment. PERSON 2: Oh? (2) PERSON 1: Yeah, your magnetic axis is 400 miles off-center from your rotational one. PERSON 2: Is that bad? (3) PERSON 1: The unbalanced magnetic field could cause radiation anomalies over the South Atlantic. Have you noticed any spacecraft equipment failures in that area? PERSON 2: There *have* been a few, actually. (4) PERSON 1: We can give you a loaner planet while yours is in the shop. Is a gas giant OK? PERSON 2: I’d *really* prefer a solid surface. PERSON 1: Sorry, it’s all we have. But it’ll just be for a few days.

Planetary Alignment

xkcd.com/3192/

Comic. [Two adults, one with short light hair, walking with a child with spiky hair.] PERSON: Oops, I forgot to say “rabbit rabbit” on January first! CHILD: Why do you do that? PERSON: Just a superstition. CHILD: What’s a superstition? PERSON: It’s a way to train yourself to feel like any bad thing that happens is your fault.

Superstition

xkcd.com/3191/

These roles are now live! 🚨

Come join the @palaeoverse.bsky.social team at @es-ucl.bsky.social.

Research Software Engineer: www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

Community Engagement Coordinator: www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...

Closing date: 18-Jan-2026

Introducing blockr: Data Apps Without Code - cynkra In this blog post we celebrate the first stable release of blockr, a tool to build data apps in minutes, using a point and click user interface. See what is included in this first release and learn ho...

A first version of #rstats blockr is now on CRAN! 🎉

Build interactive data workflows and dashboards without any code!

cynkra.com/blog/2025-12...

Grad students! Three more weeks to submit your Paleobiology Summer School application. Don’t forget!
We need your application & the letter of support by your supervisor. Questions or do you need assistance? Get in contact and we are happy to help.
More info: www.paleosynthesis.nat.fau.de/apw-apply/

After last year's successful refresh of the BES Reproducible Code guide (www.britishecologicalsociety.org//wp-content/...), this year we're going to refresh the Data Management guide (www.britishecologicalsociety.org//wp-content/...). Exciting! See below for how to get involved...

We've shipped a major update to the JOSS submission scope requirements, affecting what is eligible for submission and what information we require from authors.

You can read more about the changes and our motivations here: blog.joss.theoj.org/2026/01/prep... #joss #opensource #openscience

🚨 Pre-announcement! 🚨

We’re hiring for 2 x two-year, full-time roles to join me and the wider @palaeoverse.bsky.social team @es-ucl.bsky.social.

- Research Software Engineer (REF: B04-06999): lnkd.in/eNRBiPnP

- Community Engagement Coordinator (REF: B04-06998): lnkd.in/ejUACCzn

YouTube video by Palaeoverse Palaeoverse Lecture Series: Dr. Juan Cantalapiedra - Mammals as a key to evolutionary theory

Last Thursday @palaeoverse.bsky.social I shared some of our recent projects, exploring the application of phylogenetic methods and the exciting new wave of Bayesian diversification models.

#paleobiology #paleontology #macroevolution

youtu.be/vd-E4E6iFNg?...

Palaeoverse Palaeoverse (https://palaeoverse.org) is an organisation that aims to bring the palaeobiology community together to share resources, work toward data standards, and improve reproducibility in palaeobi...

Are you familiar with the @palaeoverse.bsky.social Lecture Series?

Check out our YouTube Channel for lectures from community experts on method development and application in Palaeontology:

www.youtube.com/@ThePalaeove...

We will be announcing the next set of lectures in the New Year, stay tuned!

Boston stands with our immigrant neighbors.

A cartoon depicting different whales with the caption “the pilot whale was so successful they went ahead and commissioned all the other whales”.

TIL

Book cover for Reproducible Code guide. The cover has a red background with a large yellow-bodied black-headed stag beetle.

Excited to launch the new improved Reproducible Code guide from @britishecologicalsociety.org @methodsinecoevol.bsky.social FREE online here! www.britishecologicalsociety.org//wp-content/... Amazing work by some very talented ECRs. We hope it’s useful!

📌 Save the Date: UN Open Source Week 2026 takes place 22–26 June 2026.

Express Your Interest in Attending: forms.office.com/e/7Zf9dGvjZr

Stay tuned for more.

#UNOpenSourceWeek #OpenSource #DigitalCooperation

Assistant Professor without Tenure (WOT), Marine Invertebrate Organismal Biology University of Washington: Academic Personnel & Faculty: College of the Environment: Aquatic and Fishery Sciences Location Friday Harbor Labs, WA Open Date Dec 12, 2025 Description The School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences (SAFS) and Friday Harbor Labs (FHL) at the University of Washington (UW) invite applications for the Riddiford – Truman Endowed faculty Chair, a position in the Without Tenure (WOT) track at the Assistant rank with specialization in marine invertebrate organismal biology. The successful candidate is expected to develop a collaborative, extramurally-funded and nationally recognized research program based at FHL that leverages FHL’s unique marine research infrastructure and natural setting. We especially welcome candidates whose scholarship in natural systems advances fundamental knowledge and contributes to environmental stewardship. All University of Washington faculty engage in teaching, research, and service.

Looking for a faculty job at one of the world's great research stations?

We're looking for a marine invertebrate biologist at UW's Friday Harbor Labs.

apply.interfolio.com/178804

Open Source Program Office Secures $719K Grant Funding from the Sloan Foundation ensures OSPO can establish a lasting campus presence, integrating open-source development into academics and research.

The Foundation has awarded a grant to the Open Source Program Office at @syracuseu.bsky.social to help it become a permanent part of the university, bridging academic research and open-source software development.

news.syr.edu/2025/12/03/o...

🟥 We are pleased to announce that the call for Expressions of Interest for Round 2 of the Research Software Maintenance Fund will open on Wed 28 Jan 2026. This round will accept applications for grants up to £150k and a duration of up to 12 months. Find out more at www.software.ac.uk/news/rsmf-ro...

😂

A flyer for the next talk in the Palaeoverse lecture series. The flyer features a cartoon of a graph, illustrating orange fluctuating lines, varying across time bins. There is also a photo of Dr Cantalapiedra, who sits cross-legged on the floor, in a blue-grey T-shirt, brown trousers and black trainers. He sits next to a large animal bone.

🚨Palaeoverse Lecture Series🚨
🗓️18th December 2025, 15:00 UTC🗓️

Join us next week for our last talk of 2025, given by @singerstone.bsky.social from Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, on “Mammals as a key to evolutionary theory” 🦬

Register here: bit.ly/palaeoverse-...

The R Foundation is happy to be a partner on the project

"Enabling the next generation of R contributors"

awarded £500k under the Research Software Maintenance Fund (Software Sustainability Institute, UK).

Announcement: www.software.ac.uk/ssi-awards-f...

Congratulations to the project team!

Very proud of the work that the @palaeoverse.bsky.social team has done up until now and very excited for what's to come over the next few years! Watch this space!

#rstats #palaeontology #paleontology