Dr Robin Rumney

Liz Kendall is the new Science Minister.

Lovely to hear Melvyn Bragg talking about the big idea behind "In Our Time": to get academics on the air, talking about the subjects they were most passionate & knowledgeable about, without worrying about whether they had "media training".

It's remarkable that this was (& remains) such an odd idea!

University efficiency drives may have opposite effect, study finds - Research Professional News Teaching and research staff say reforms mean more red tape for them, Australian survey reports

What a shock! What a surprise! To absolutely nobody. Universities' austerity logic will always have the opposite effect of what they intend.
www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-aust...

1. David Ackerly (UC Berkeley) While his most-cited work is on leaf size and SLA, he also wrote explicitly about plasticity in leaf traits, including shape, in the context of ecological strategies. Example: Ackerly (1997), “Allocation, leaf display, and growth in fluctuating light environments: A comparative study of deciduous and evergreen species” (Oecologia). This emphasizes how plasticity in leaf traits mediates adaptation to light.

Just in case there was any doubt, ChatGPT 5.0 still makes up completely random citations that don't exist and should not be used for literature search.

It's difficult to see how this will not exclude talented researchers.

North of England snubbed by UK govt bag-a-boffin scheme : Home of Manchester Baby can't bid for talent, baby

www.theregister.com/2025/08/08/n...

Scientists and academics are not generally well paid and this approach concentrates research around the areas of the country with the highest living costs. It will have negative consequences for those without additional financial support.

This is not normal. If Britain's universities had any cash we could steal a march on everyone. Unfortunately we're broke or worse.

A geroscience response to cancellation of the UK’s Medicines Repurposing Programme: challenges and opportunities After just 4 years of operation, the discontinuation of the UK’s Medicines Repurposing Programme in April, 2025,1 marks a concerning shift in drug development—particularly for geroscience. The program...

A real shame to hear about the cancellation of the UKs medicines repurposing programme. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Trump Seeks to Cut Basic Scientific Research by Roughly One-Third, Report Shows (Gift Article) An analysis by the American Association for the Advancement of Science shows the impact of the administration’s budget plan on the kind of studies that produce the most breakthroughs.

🧪 A new report reveals Trump's budget proposal aims to slash federal funding for basic scientific research by roughly one-third. This significant cut, totaling $15 billion, could jeopardize America's global leadership in science and innovation, impacting fields from AI to healthcare.
#AcademicSky

University of Sheffield finances stabilise after fall in students The University of Sheffield still plans cuts to jobs and courses despite a better financial outlook.

A good indicator of the university sector struggling to keep afloat: Sheffield says it's 'stabilised' things after 300 voluntary redundancies, a new redundancy scheme, a halt to work on its new labs and closing 28 courses.
www.bbc.com/news/article...

Thoughts with the people of Liverpool tonight. Awful scenes.

Trump Has Cut Science Funding to Its Lowest Level in Decades (Gift Article) The lag in funding extends far beyond D.E.I. initiatives, affecting almost every area of science: chemistry, computing, engineering, materials and more.

I mean, these kinds of cuts to basic uni science, you don't come back from these. (2/2)
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Meanwhile, I think that US universities face a far worse threat than those in the UK. This is full-bore war on the sector by their own government. Harvard can just about stand up to this, but almost no-one else could. (1/2)

Truly horrifying. A dark age mentality.

Spire Healthcare has announced plans to cut around 400 hospital-based jobs affecting both clinical and non-clinical roles. Equivalent to around 2.5% of its workforce.

Monash University has made many positions available specifically for young and early career researchers who would like to take some time away from the USA. These are case by case, not advertised. So if you are interested or know anyone interested have them get in contact with someone at Monash.

"Researchers recruited to work in the UK have to fund a £1,035 annual immigration health surcharge, which must be paid in full in advance, as well as up to £1,519 in visa fees. For a family of four, the upfront costs can total almost £30,000."

Staff ‘deeply concerned’ as Keele confirms plans to cut 150 roles Academic and professional services posts to go, with university blaming ‘unprecedented financial challenges’

Keele University says at least 100 academic jobs and 50 professional services roles could go in latest round of cost-cutting www.timeshighereducation.com/news/staff-d... via @julietterowsell.bsky.social

Is the UK paying the price for world’s most expensive visas? | The Observer Competing political and economic goals on immigration are resulting in the loss of valuable skills and talent in the UK

The Crick is paying £800,000 in visa fees alone. Britain is choosing to turn inwards, away from the world, and to destroy its own future. That is not Britain. observer.co.uk/news/politic...

☀️ Here are some worrying statistics that have come out of our recent public survey.

Melanoma skin cancer rates continue to climb in the UK, the implications of these findings are significant.

You can read more here 👉 buff.ly/6eT6MkF

#MelanomaAwarenessmonth

📣Today marks the start of Melanoma Awareness Month 2025! There are a variety of ways that you can get involved throughout May 👉 buff.ly/3N8ELve

Let’s reach as many people as possible and make a real difference.💙

#melanomaskincancer #melanomaawarenessmonth

a cartoon character is standing in front of a door and says everything 's coming up milhouse . ALT: a cartoon character is standing in front of a door and says everything 's coming up milhouse .

Current vibes

SCIMaP - Impacts of Federal Cuts to Science and Medical Research Developed by an interdisciplinary research team, this website shows how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwide

Map of economic impact of WH proposed cuts to research. Now searchable by House District. (eg, the impact on Rep Kat Cammack's district (R; Florida) is $85M)
--> scienceimpacts.org

The core trilma here remains the same - the govt needs to accept one of three things: high student migration, higher domestic student fees (or higher taxes to fund universities) or university bankruptcies. Those are the only options, given where we are. Pick one.

All universities should be assessing closure risks, says OfS Institutions ‘not always aware of the scale of the challenges involved’, regulator warns, as financial crisis exacerbates likelihood of bankruptcies

All universities should be actively planning for what they would do if they were forced to close, says English regulator www.timeshighereducation.com/news/all-uni... via @twilliamsthe.bsky.social

Ministers confirm UK Research and Innovation budget will fall - Research Professional News Funding agency’s allocation drops by £300m for 2025-26, despite rising R&D spending at science department

Britain's latest kick in the face of its universities is a reduction in science spend. Ridiculous. Good luck with your growth mission! There won't be any.
www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

I posted this on 'the other site' but someone asked if I would post it here too, so here goes.

I knew there were a lot of fake accounts on this platform, but they are usually obvious. I had no idea how intricate and complex the ruse could be.
Get a load of this story.
1/

People sometimes make fun of science that sounds stupid and random.

Meanwhile, a study of lizard saliva turned into a peptide medication, which was turned into a diabetes medication, which was turned into a GLP1 weight loss drug, that just became the first therapy every approved for … sleep apnea

Thames Water fined £18m by Ofwat for breaking dividend rules The water regulator has ordered the company to claw back £131m in dividends and warned against taking money out of the business

Thames Water took out £195.8 million in dividends last year which broke the @Ofwat rules and could not be justified bit.ly/41FELdr regulator will (try to!) recover £131m of them. It is one of four suppliers saying yesterday’s 35% price rise deal not enough

‘There will be nothing left’: researchers fear collapse of science in Argentina One year into Javier Milei’s presidency, scientists are exiting the country in the face of big budget cuts.

So sad to read this 😢

As someone working in 🇦🇷 for 10+ years I know that Argentine colleagues always had to face difficult and often unpredictable conditions. But the Milei government is dismantling Argentina's scientific system with unprecedented aggression - www.nature.com/articles/d41...