Ben Allen

Cooperation is a universal feature of complex systems, from the origins of life and microbiomes to societies. What universal patterns can be found in these systems? Here's our new @pnas.org paper. @jordipinero.bsky.social @artemyte.bsky.social @sfiscience.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10....

Red States Are Jumping At The Chance To Make Things Even Worse For Immigrants Blue states are scrambling to defend against ICE. But in red states where lawmakers are happy to comply, quietly dangerous operations are also underway.

MA needs to ban new 287(g) collaboration agreements and terminate the only one still standing.

#mapoli

www.huffpost.com/entry/red-st...

Imagine being too callous for Jeff Bezos

I know, the comment wasn't directed at you. I'm just pointing out the irony of people not wanting celebrities to stick their noses into politics when that's literally how we got here

"We don't need to hear celebrities' views about the president"

By "president" you mean the former reality show host whose entry into politics was spreading racist lies about the president?

"We don't need to hear celebrities' views about the president"

By "president" you mean the former reality show host whose entry into politics was spreading racist lies about the president?

"A new report ...found that an administrative subpoena was also used to seek information from Google about an American retiree within hours of him after sending a critical email to Homeland Security’s lead attorney Joseph Dernbach. The retiree’s home was later visited by federal agents..."

Spoke with a PI whose postdoc is trapped abroad because of social media vetting. It appears the postdoc missed disclosing one account and it's unclear if they can come back… ever.

This is the country we live in now.

Boston did not clear snow from the bike lanes after the storm two weeks ago, so our community came together to do so. "We just want to get home safe and alive!" @bikeboston.bsky.social @streets.boston.gov @mayorwu.boston.gov @universalhub.com @wcvb5.bsky.social @mass.streetsblog.org

SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND SNOWTOTES MAP SATURMORN - SATUREVE MAP SHOWS WESTERN HALF OF SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND SHADED GREEN REPRESENTING 1-4" EASTERN HALF SHADED BLUE 2-6" ISSUED 20260206 1852

/ & HERE'S THE UPDATED SNOWTOTES MAP FROM THE VIDEO
/ TBH EYE THINK BOSTON WILL BE MOAR IN THE 3-4 INCH RANGE
/ BUT WE SHALL SEE
/ SNOWBLOBS START EARL SATURMORN
/ & SHULD BE ALL FLOATED AWAY BEYE 6 PM SATUREVE

Thread of people being targeted by law enforcement over normal social media posts

Thank you! I had no idea they were trying to pull this

Letter to DCF

Today, I submitted this letter in opposition to the rollback of the Massachusetts rule requiring affirmation by foster parents of a child’s sexual orientation & gender identity. LGBTQ+ kids deserve safe, stable homes that respect who they are and anything less puts our most vulnerable kids at risk.

Look, we can do this the easy way (0 ∈ ℕ) or the hard way (universal free ice cream).

Or both.

Jews Against ICE Protest with Bend the Arc | T'ruah

Judaism demands we resist injustice.

ICE is tearing families apart and terrorizing our communities. On Feb 11, we'll take action in front of ICE headquarters to demand an end to this violent system and show the US Jewish community stands with our neighbors.

Join us: truah.org/jewsagainstice

ICE abduction in Rosalindale Square neighborhood of Boston today

America’s toxic future looks like East Palestine, Ohio, today Three years since one of the worst industrial disasters in US history, politicians, the media, and the public have forgotten about East Palestine. But we haven’t.

Just got back from East Palestine. So much going on in the world, but yesterday was the 3yr anniversary of the train derailment & chemical disaster that upended residents' lives forever—I had to be there. They are getting sicker. People are dying. Please remember them
therealnews.com/americas-tox...

Counterpoint: yes there are

I used to think billionaires shouldn't exist because it's immoral to let one person to hoard that many resources.

Now I *also* think they shouldn't exist because they destroy absolutely everything they touch.

Healey is the only Democratic governor with a 287(g) agreement.

Tell her: De-ICE Mass.

#mapoli

actionnetwork.org/letters/tell...

It would also be great if we could bundle local newspaper subscriptions. I'd love to subscribe to Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Philly Inquirer, and many others if I could do it without paying dozens of individual subscriptions.

whoever figures out a way to bundle independent journalism subscriptions will be a hero

Please join us next Thursday at BU for the Conference on the Jewish Left, with keynote by @peterbeinart.bsky.social and a full program of speakers and workshops!

Registration still open: www.bu.edu/cura/recent-...

In less than a week the Kennedy Center has effectively closed and our local DC paper has been gutted, both by billionaires.

I don’t think immigrants are our problem in this country.

Please join us for a @smtpb.bsky.social panel discussion about publishing theory in biology w/ @joshuasweitz.bsky.social (Co-Chief Editor of J Theor Biol), Mark Lewis (Advising Editor for J Math Biol & Bull Math Biol), and me (Theor Pop Biol)

13 Feb 2026 9:00AM–10:00AM PST

smtpb.org/event-6520871

Finally we have identified a standard unit of knowledge

AL, Logical! A Young Adult Graphic Novel It's like a math circle, but in a haunted multi-dimensional mansion where a brave artist finds a restless ghost of a mathematician.

Yay! The kickstarter for our mathy graphic novel AL, Logical is live! www.kickstarter.com/projects/nat... We appreciate any views, retweets, and support for this YA story of curiosity, perseverance, and problem solving.

Trans athletes may not have fitness advantage in women’s sport, landmark study finds Findings suggest physical performance in trans women converges toward that of cis women over time

If you had reasonable concerns about trans women in sports, surely your first step would be to find out what the science says.

www.independent.co.uk/news/science...

If by "text" you mean "text message", I could probably fill something of that length

/ SLIPPING DEEPER & DEEPER
/ AS UR TEMPS WILL SLIP COLDER 1NCE AGAIN
/ & MAYBS A LIL BIT OF THE OL SNOWBLOBS THIS WEEKEND
/ BUT
/ THIS ALL MITE CHANGE
/ AS U SLIP DEEPER & DEEPER IN2 UR DEATH SPIRAL
/ DEEPER & DEEPER IN2 DEATH SPIRAL FASCISM
/ U NEED 2 REPENT 2 UR WEATHER LORDS