Bene Bachelot

MacArthur Foundation Announces 2025 ‘Genius Grant’ Winners

This week, I was awarded a MacArthur ‘Genius’ Grant. So proud to be included among individuals recognized for “extraordinary originality & dedication in their creative pursuits”. This research has been possible because I collaborate with the most incredible teams.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/a...

BugNet currently includes 36 experimental sites in 18 countries 🌍.

Huge thanks to all collaborators for their enthusiasm and teamwork!!

We’re also looking for new collaborators to join this global effort to understand how invertebrate herbivores and fungal pathogens shape ecosystems.
🌐 bug-net.org

The Bug‐Network (BugNet): A Global Experimental Network Testing the Effects of Invertebrate Herbivores and Fungal Pathogens on Plant Communities and Ecosystem Function in Open Ecosystems The Bug-Network (BugNet) is a novel global collaborative research network that implements standardized consumer-reduction experiments in herbaceous- or shrub-dominated ecosystems to assess the impact....

Proud of being part of the Bug-Network!

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Experimental warming alters free‐living nitrogen fixation in a humid tropical forest Microbial nitrogen (N) fixation accounts for c. 97% of natural N inputs to terrestrial ecosystems. These microbes can be free-living in the soil and leaf litter (asymbiotic) or in symbiosis with pla...

Our study on warming and free-living nitrogen fixation is out! Great work led by one of the lab alumni, Parker Bartz, the @forestwarming.bsky.social team and @psaima.bsky.social

nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Yes, chaos is exactly the right way to describe the current situation!

Oh no :(… we also have a pending one but we haven’t heard a thing yet.

What do you mean same with NSF-NRT? Did you have a pending NRT that was returned without review?

SPECIAL FEATURE: THE INFLUENCE OF BENEFICIAL FUNGI ON PLANT‐ENEMY INTERACTIONS AND PLANT COMMUNITY STRUCTURE: Journal of Ecology: Vol 113, No 6 <em>Journal of Ecology</em> publishes original research on all aspects of the plant ecology (including algae), in both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.

After several years of work, we've compiled a collection of great articles highlighting the importance of beneficial fungi on plant-enemy interactions in a cross journal special feature!

@britishecologicalsociety.org

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/13652745...

Four of my amazing undergraduate students graduated this semester! Congratulations to the four of you from three different colleges: College of Arts and Sciences, Ferguson College, and College of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology.

You are such as artist!

Geography, plant biology professors secure NASA funding for grasslands research using remote sensing - Oklahoma State University A team of researchers led by Oklahoma State University Department of Geography’s Dr. Hamed Gholizadeh recently received more than $730 thousand in NASA funding to further its research into grassland s...

The lab is becoming more and more interested in fire with our newly NASA funded Hi-GRASS grant with @gholizadehrs.bsky.social as the lead, and the unexpected 2025 March Oklahoma fire.

news.okstate.edu/articles/art...

news.okstate.edu/articles/art...

I did receive a general email saying that the program was aiming for mid May for decisions on NRT...

DOJ, HHS, ED, and GSA Announce Initial Cancellation of Grants and Contracts to Columbia University Worth $400 Million Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Education (ED), and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced that through their coordinated efforts they would i...

DOJ, HHS, ED, and GSA Announce Initial Cancellation of Grants and Contracts to Columbia University Worth $400 Million (government press release) www.gsa.gov/about-us/new...

Six DEB program officers were fired in yesterday's round of layoffs. A kudos board has been created for each of them to give thanks and support. Please DM me if you would like links to these boards.

Newest update from NSF…

Three siblings photographed on a white background. Stock photo.

Middle children are officially delightful. A study of 700,000 adults finds that the more siblings people have, the higher they score on measures of honesty-humility and agreeableness—and middle children score higher than other birth positions. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

We are hiring a PhD students for our recently NASA-funded HI-GRASS project, which combines microbiome and plant communities with animal telemetry and remote sensing to uncover the factors influencing grassland biodiversity

www.bachelotlab.com/join.html

Thanks @arcastilla.bsky.social for the pic

We are seeking a Ph.D. student for our recently NASA-funded HI-GRASS project, which uses imaging spectroscopy to uncover the factors influencing grassland aboveground and belowground biodiversity. Deadline January 20th, 2025. Full job description:
hamedgholizadeh.wixsite.com/mysite/grass...

Experimental Warming Alters Nitrogen Cycle in a Humid Tropical Forest ● Humid tropical forests typically contain high soil nitrogen (N), supporting rapid rates of primary productivity and recovery from disturbances. Nitrogen fixation is regulated by microbial communitie...

Another preprint from the lab. Check out our neat results on how warming might alter N fixation in Puerto Rico!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Integrity of tropical rainforests worldwide for forest-dependent terrestrial vertebrates.

Only 25% of the world’s remaining tropical rainforests are intact and free of major human disturbances, which puts specific species that depend on undisturbed forests—especially those with small ranges—at risk of extinction. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Tropical Forest Soil Microbiome Modulates Leaf Heat Tolerance More Strongly Under Warming than Ambient Conditions Tropical forests are increasingly threatened by climate change. Yet, it is still unclear how tropical plants respond to increasing temperatures. Leaf heat tolerance (LHT) in tropical plants is often a...

The lab is finally using bioRxiv to post preprints. Check out the cool work done by one of our alumni Gabriela Hernandes Villani!
doi.org/10.1101/2024...

I love this joyful interview with authors Chris Golé and Nancy Pick: www.nepm.org/podcast/the-...