Benjamin Finander

Activating Ras-MAPK pathway variants drive hippocampal clonal competition in human epilepsy https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.26.701822v1

I added my name to this and so should all of you who are US citizens: Standupforscience.net/impeach-rfkjr

Hadn’t thought about announcers being biased against this because it decreases viewership at the end of the game, good point

The Transmitter’s New Lab Directory Learn about neuroscience labs launched in the past two years, plus a few opening their doors in 2026.

@thetransmitter.bsky.social’s “New Lab Directory” features a list of new neuroscience labs that opened in 2024-2025, and some set to launch in 2026. Check out the list to learn about the work of more than 50 new neuroscience labs. www.thetransmitter.org/community/th...

#StateOfNeuroscience

YouTube video by Broad Institute MPG: Somatic Mutations and Human Health (2025)

The recording of "Somatic Mutations and Human Health" by @bfinander.bsky.social is now available: www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0ce.... This talk is part of @broadinstitute's MPG Primer series. For more info, check out broad.io/MPGPrimer

I miss Andrew Siciliano

Somatic mutation and selection at population scale - Nature A new version of nanorate DNA sequencing, with an error rate lower than five errors per billion base pairs and compatible with whole-exome and targeted capture, enables epidemiological-scale studies of somatic mutation and selection and the generation of high-resolution selection maps across coding and non-coding sites for many genes.

Our latest work is out in Nature today. In this paper, we introduce an improved version of NanoSeq, a duplex sequencing protocol with <5 errors per billion bp in single DNA molecules, and use it to study the somatic mutation landscape of oral epithelium in >1000 people www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Speaking as a frequent fun socks wearer, you’ve convinced me. I hadn’t thought about where the eye is drawn to that way before. No more fun socks when I’m wearing a “serious” outfit

In a thread about Pete Hegseth's fun socks, I write: "If you're wearing tailored clothing (suits, sport coats, tailored trousers), the safe, conservative option is to wear over-the-calf socks in a color that matches your pants. So grey socks with grey pants, tan socks with tan pants. Additionally, solid navy will always work with anything except black suits or tuxedos, which call for black socks." Then someone on Twitter replies: "I really hope you respond to this: I cannot see any problem with men displaying individual taste and style through their socks in the same manner as they would through their tie and/or a pocket square. Please explain why this is wrong."

Just saw this comment with regard to Pete Hegseth's love for fun socks.

I will tell you why fun socks are bad in a tailored outfit. 🧵

Huntington's disease successfully treated for first time One of the most devastating diseases finally has a treatment that can slow its progression and transform lives, tearful doctors tell BBC.

a new mRNA therapy apparently can cut the rate of Huntington's disease progression by ~75%. yet more miracle shit www.bbc.com/news/article...

Not sure how many scientists here have tried Claude Code or similar command line coding assistants. I had a complicated family property tax problem that was best solved by a brute force Monte Carlo simulation approach, so I spent a few days coding up and analyzing a model with Claude Code.

When I was a kid, a local charity wanted to raise money for school music programs by putting on a concert with kid musicians and one big headliner. Idk how exactly they picked but they needed to be quick, so my sister, some strangers and I were lucky enough to be openers for Sara Bareilles

1/27 We have a new paper out! Turns out that snowflake yeast have been hiding a secret from us - they've evolved a (very!) crude circulatory system. Not with blood vessels or a heart, but through spontaneous fluid flows powered by their metabolism. 🧪🔬

www.science.org/doi/full/10....

I'm thrilled to share that I will be starting my independent lab this winter as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the new BRIDGE Center at CHOP and @pennmedicine.bsky.social Grateful for the support from mentors, collaborators, and friends—excited for what's ahead! 🧠✨

Boston Has Worms (The Good Kind) Inside the world of C. elegans worms and the scientists who know them best.

Delighted to share this timely article in Boston magazine on our local C. elegans community and the effects of NIH freezes.

"There might be no group more enthusiastic, self-aware, or life-affirming than the worm people."

www.bostonmagazine.com/news/c-elega...

Today in @nature.com , we report a spatial single-cell atlas of human cortical development, revealing surprisingly early specification of human cortical layers and areas.
We built an interactive browser to explore the spatial data: walshlab.org/research/cor...
Paper link below 👇

Top 100 songs in musical theater?

Harvard University rejects Trump administration demands to change policies The university notified the administration that it will not comply with the list of demands, putting $9B at risk.

Harvard University is rejecting Trump administration demands to adopt policy and curriculum changes to keep billions in federal grants, saying it would not accept requirements that violate its constitutional rights. www.politico.com/news/2025/04...

So long, NIH. The place I grew up in and discovered my passion for science communication.

I found a true calling to help take innovative genomics research and make it accessible, interesting and fun for wider audiences.

I'm so devastated that my whole team got laid off today.

Human-chimpanzee tetraploid system defines mechanisms of species-specific neural gene regulation A major challenge in human evolutionary biology is to pinpoint genetic differences that underlie human-specific traits, such as increased neuron number and differences in cognitive behaviors. We used human-chimpanzee tetraploid cells to distinguish gene expression changes due to cis -acting sequence variants that change local gene regulation, from trans expression changes due to species differences in the cellular environment. In neural progenitor cells, examination of both cis and trans changes – combined with CRISPR inhibition and transcription factor motif analyses – identified cis -acting, species-specific gene regulatory changes, including to TNIK , FOSL2 , and MAZ , with widespread trans effects on neurogenesis-related gene programs. In excitatory neurons, we identified POU3F2 as a key cis -regulated gene with trans effects on synaptic gene expression and neuronal firing. This study identifies cis -acting genomic changes that cause cascading trans gene regulatory effects to contribute to human neural specializations, and provides a general framework for discovering genetic differences underlying human traits. ### Competing Interest Statement C.A.W. is on the SAB of Bioskyrb Genomics (cash, equity) and Mosaica Therapeutics (cash, equity), and is an advisor to Maze Therapeutics (equity), but these have no relevance to this work. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

We just posted two preprints on uncovering the genetic bases of species-specific differences in neural progenitors, excitatory neurons, and upon neuronal stimulation using the human-chimpanzee tetraploid system. Please check them out!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

A microscopy image of snowflake yeast on the cover of Nature, with the extended cells of two clusters barely touching in a manner reminiscent of Michelangelo's depiction of Adam touching God in the Sistine chapel.

Awwww yeah, check this out: snowflake yeast making their cover debut!

www.nature.com/nature/volum...

We have two papers in this issue:
1) A paper examining whole genome duplication in the MuLTEE

2) A review of long-term experiments in evolutionary biology led by @jameststroud.bsky.social 🧪

Recurrent patterns of widespread neuronal genomic damage shared by major neurodegenerative disorders Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are common neurodegenerative disorders for which the mechanisms driving neuronal death remain unclear. ...

We uncovered a shared pattern of neuronal somatic mutations across ALS, FTD, and AD.
🔗 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Huge thanks to co-first authors Joe Luquette & @guanlandong.bsky.social , and everyone in the Park, Lagier-Tourenne, Lee, and Walsh labs!

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy on Mahmoud Khalil.

The ad-hoc termination of training grants, PhD fellowships, and center grants at Columbia is catastrophic and sends a message.

The WH will:
* Seek revenge at all costs
* Destroy science & higher ed, if it can
* Risk lives, careers and the economy.

Rest assured: they will not stop w/Columbia

Large wave breaking during king tides along the coast of Monterey Bay

Calling all California-based ocean champions! 🌊🏆

We need Californians to call Gov. Newsom and tell him you “want SB 54 regulations to move forward without delay, so California can continue to be a global leader in addressing the plastic pollution problem.”

Teaching citizens about science
🤝
Teaching students about being a citizen

Happy International Day of Women in Science. The National Science Foundation’s list of flagged words includes both “Women” and “Female.”

The NIH’s new imposed standard indirect cost rate threatens life-saving brain & behavior research that benefits millions of Americans. SfN, with other scientific organizations,urge reversal of this policy & implore Congress to protect critical research infrastructure.

Full statement: bit.ly/4jVJnCL

This campaign needs you now Petition to Reverse the NIH Indirect Cost Cap (NOT-OD-25-068)

Petition to Reverse the NIH Indirect Cost Cap.

Sign and Circulate.
Mobilize. Organize.

chng.it/LS57Nk7r6k

I see some of this already, especially on Twitter. Right now we need to reach deep inside and remember WHY so many of wanted to do science: We want help people, we want to cure diseases, we want to make people’s lives, ALL people’s lives, easier and healthier.