Shoumita Dasgupta, PhD

It was my go to pre-swim race song in the 90s!

Opinion | What Happened in Chicago When Science Became the Enemy

What Happened in Chicago When Science Became the Enemy: “What seems clear is that Americans have entered a grim new era, one where science itself is a political weapon, rather than a tool for the collective good.” www.nytimes.com/2026/02/23/o...

And also they can write it in their promotion dossier to demonstrate impact!

Where Biology Ends and Bias Begins by Shoumita Dasgupta Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.

Where Biology Ends and Bias Begins: Lessons on Belonging from Our DNA

www.ucpress.edu/books/where-...
(And everywhere books are sold and loaned.) 8/8

Shoumita Dasgupta, PhD | author, speaker, and professor | genetics, equity, and inclusion Shoumita Dasgupta, PhD | author, speaker, and educator, introduces readers and learners to Professor Dasgupta's published works on genetics, equity, and justice as well as opportunities to invite her...

Please visit shoumitadasgupta.com to find out more about these events as details are released, and to download teaching and bookclub resources.

Thank you for supporting this work and for engaging with the work of justice. Onward. 7/8

Some upcoming events may be happening in your neighborhood! This spring will include talks at @theacmg.bsky.social Annual Conference (a TED Talk), the Ohio Association of Genetic Counselors, @umassamherst.bsky.social STEM Student Success Summit, Arlington Public Library, and more. 6/8

Looking forward, I am excited to do more of the same and to connect with as many future readers as possible. Though my book launched during a challenging moment in American history, I hope that people are using it as a launching pad for meaningful conversations that bring us together. 5/8

The past year has involved earnest conversations with people looking to learn, opportunities to connect with students at colleges around the country, discussions in public spaces like museums and bookstores, and outreach opportunities through the media. 4/8

Simply put, science 🧪 tells the story of our common humanity, and I think that's a message we need to amplify as we navigate social settings where difference is emphasized over common ground. 3/8

It has been such a privilege to be able to share what science does and does not tell us about human variation across axes like race/ethnicity/ancestry, sex/gender, disability, and pregnancy. 2/8

Brown woman in red coat gestures to a book on the shelf of a bookstore

Today is my book's first birthday! One year ago, Where Biology Ends and Bias Begins: Lessons on Belonging from Our DNA launched, and it never gets old seeing it on the shelf at the store or the library (see MIT Press Bookstore below - signed copy available). 1/8

...know that measles can lead to complications including blindness, deafness, and mobility differences among survivors? And it's not the only infectious agent to have these kinds of consequences. All of this in the absence of proper support for folks with disabilities - echoes of eugenics again.

By turning our backs on effective preventative vaccines, we are not only subjecting the most vulnerable among us to life-threatening illnesses, but we are also allowing for massive disabling forces to sweep through the population. Polio is well known to cause physical disabilities, but did you also

Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs

Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs because the federal government is openly disparaging one of the best inventions of modern humanity. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/16/h...

Similarly, I remember hearing about someone who forgot their ID at the airport, and the person in front of them in line was reading their book, so they just asked them to flip to the author photo for them. Sorry to miss your talk, but glad so many at AAAS will get to learn from you!

"Some said they were at a loss as to whether to tell young people to pursue their dreams of scientific careers...'This is a generational loss of innovation, technology, and economic power.'" 💔

Boston built a global biotech empire. Now the talent is quietly drifting away. - The Boston Globe In a first-of-its-kind survey, the Globe asked hundreds of scientists about the impact of federal funding cuts.

"Their departures illustrate a sobering new reality: The Trump administration’s research funding cuts, abrupt policy shifts, and crackdown on immigration are driving a brain drain that threatens Massachusetts’ standing as a global hub of biomedical research." www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/09/m...

You're going to be awesome at AAAS, and I'm really sad to be missing it. I've been telling folks who are going to AAAS to go t your talk. 😊

Bad Bunny’s Sign Language Interpreter Is Ready to Make Super Bowl History It’s the first time the halftime show will feature Puerto Rican Sign Language — a win for Deaf Latino representation.

Another outstanding layer of inclusive excellence for tonight’s Benito Bowl! Love that she took her shot via insta, and it led to interpreting his concerts and now the Super Bowl! www.kqed.org/arts/1398631...

A word cloud from the titles of ~1100 NSF grants that were terminated. The most frequent words are STEM, ADVANCE, Student, career, and engines.

This a word cloud from the titles of ~1100 terminated NSF grants.

It is hard not to see these grant terminations as an attack on the training of the future United States scientific workforce.

Tenuous biomedical funding has put first-year Ph.D. students in a bind First-year biomedical graduate students across the country said labs have been hesitant to take them in due to a tenuous funding environment

"...the administration’s shakeup of the longstanding research pact between universities and the federal government has left students worried not just about the next few years of their training, but about their long-term futures." www.statnews.com/2026/01/30/f...

Trump Is Said to Have Dropped Demand for Cash From Harvard

The Fruits of Fighting Bullies: Trump Drops Demand for Cash From Harvard After Stiff Resistance
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...

Absolutely thrilled that two outstanding 🧬 grad students, Lisa & Chloe, decided to fulfill their programmatic teaching requirement through outreach work with Science Club for Girls. They are out there leading by example for minoritized girls & gender expansive youth!
www.bumc.bu.edu/gpgg/student...

Thank you for all of this great food for thought!

Hi team, I have a help request - I'm sure I've seen folks on here who have either put together or seen a talk on using social media for academic / scientific work. Would you be willing to share those resources or references with me so that I can do something similar for my mentees?

Inheritance | NEJM When a physician is notified that the blood she donated to a biobank revealed a nonfounder BRCA2 variant, the future she has long imagined for herself telescopes inward — yet she knows she is lucky.

Inheritance | "I think about genetic science’s enormous potential for alleviating suffering. Achieving this potential requires clinical, institutional, and policy efforts to facilitate screening in time for effective intervention." www.nejm.org/doi/full/10....

Mass deportations don’t keep out ‘bad genes’ − they use scientific racism to justify biased immigration policies The US has a long history of misusing genetics and biology in immigration policy, the effects of which are still keenly felt today.

🧪 Alas, still evergreen. Sharing with the hope this may help facilitate a point of entry for these conversations in science classrooms, dinner tables, etc. theconversation.com/mass-deporta...

U.S. government has lost more than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s since Trump took office A Science analysis reveals how many were fired, retired, or quit across 14 agencies

🧪 U.S. government has lost more than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s since Trump took office | Science | AAAS | TEN. THOUSAND. Let that sink in. www.science.org/content/arti...

Genetic Data From Over 20,000 U.S. Children Misused for ‘Race Science’

In which misinformation begins with data insecurity. 🧬 Data From Over 20,000 U.S. Children Misused for ‘Race Science’: “…the data was made vulnerable because ‘our scientific institutions sort of assume good faith in people.’”https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/24/us/children-genetics-race-science.html

Thank you so much, Anita! Grateful for your readership and commitment to learning and growing. 😊