mcsiple.bsky.social

another thing about AI-enabled research is that academics in secure jobs will say this is economic exigency: "funding for humanities research is drying up so I might as well use this instead"

the earlier research on which we established our careers was supported by paid grad students

The Hood Canal herring should be starting to spawn right about now! I hope all these scoters mean there are herring eggs around to be feasted on 😍 they love to eat the eggs.

University of Melbourne vice-chancellor dies, aged 52 University of Melbourne vice-chancellor Emma Johnston has died from complications associated with cancer, aged 52.

Such sad news. She was a brilliant scientist, a great science communicator and a real enthusiast for what universities can achieve #EmmaJohnston

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...

I honestly think that many people don't know what their public libraries offer besides books. I think that everyone should go on a public library treasure hunt in 2026. Go explore what your library systems offer at no cost to you. Report back to me :)

This is one of my fave categories 😍😍😍 (* = extra cinematic IMO)
The Looming Tower*
The Black Jacobins*
The Age of Wonder
KATRINA by Andy Horowitz

And then if you’re talking recent history/sorta-current events:
Columbine by Dave Cullen
Bad Blood
War of the Whales*
Five Days at Memorial*

This article would have been better if it had been able to quote NOAA staff. 😭

mine is called sandbox.R 😌🏖️

Large Language Muddle | The Editors The AI upheaval is unique in its ability to metabolize any number of dread-inducing transformations. The university is becoming more corporate, more politically oppressive, and all but hostile to the ...

WHEEWWWWWWWWWW:
"When we use generative AI, we consent to the appropriation of our intellectual property by data scrapers . . . We agree that we would rather deplete our natural resources than make our own art or think our own thoughts."

www.nplusonemag.com/issue-51/the...

An excellent thought-provoking read about what we as humans should be contemplating before we resist or resign ourselves to the GenAI revolution. Just one of several great quotes:

“Promote and produce original work of value, work that’s cliché-resistant and unreplicable, work that tries”

this is just wonderful 🙌

E.P.A. Says It Will Eliminate Its Scientific Research Arm

I know so many dedicated and brilliant scientists who work (and I guess now worked) at EPA. The loss of expertise and ability to make science-informed decisions will have lasting damage for our health. Academics and advocates will have to try to fill the gap.

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/c...

‘Goodnight, Camp Mystic. We Love You.’: A 100-Year-Old Community Honors Its Missing & Dead Girls Fifteen children are dead and 27 girls are still missing amid devastating floods in Texas. “I’m holding onto the love and light that Mystic gave us, even in the darkest night,” one former camper said....

When you live somewhere and disaster strikes, it makes no sense to pretend it isn’t personal. For me, there’s no other way to process terrible things than to make journalism. To my friends from home who went to Camp Mystic and Heart O' the Hills — this is for you.

thebarbedwire.com/2025/07/05/c...

STEM loves the myth of meritocracy—but the truth? It's built on unpaid labor, generational wealth, and financial sacrifice. For many, the cost of “doing science” is simply too high. This isn't a pipeline issue. It's a financial barrier. #HigherEd #EquityInSTEM

I've wanted to write this article for years. About my and other's struggles to even survive sometime in #academia. Thank you to the amazing editors at @plosbiology.org that gave me the forum to write this piece. #science

More Federal Workers Are Flooding the Job Market, With Worsening Prospects

A pleasure to work with Eileen Sullivan on this story about the widening impact of federal job cuts, which have cascaded into the private sector as contracts are yanked. Entire fields are contracting dramatically, leaving many with nowhere to go. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/06/u...

We often assume fish biomass is lognormally distributed - but is that a safe assumption? We tested it! I am proud to have contributed to this [IMO great] paper ☺️📈🧮🐟

url:https://academic.oup.com/icesjms/article/82/5/fsaf071/8151269

Something Good in the World: Let’s Celebrate Independent Bookstore Day This Weekend I was going to write something else for today’s column, something complain-y but righteous that would allow me to get some stuff off my chest and maybe even get some rage clicks. Shit is bad. But I…

I needed to write about something that’s giving me hope, so I wrote about Independent Bookstore Day which is this Saturday. lithub.com/something-go...

It’s Seattle indie bookstore week this week! A lot of the bookstores have special events. This is how I found two of my local faves, Ridgecrest Books (wonderfully curated) and Eagle Harbor Book Co (great selection of surprise books wrapped in paper). www.seattlebookstoreday.com

This is incredibly cool: if you search for a condition that’s affected your family, the site returns stats on how much NIH has done for that disease, *and* a contact form for reaching out to tell your Members of Congress why you want to see them defend NIH.

Pass it on!

“Don’t trust everything you read on the internet.”

AI search results: what if I did tho

Your occasional reminder that eels are the most smuggled animal on earth; there's a $4-$5 billion per year black market trade in eels.

INTERPOL has called the trafficking of European elvers to Asia "Europe's ivory trade."

Sometimes joy is just another chance.

Every time you earnestly cite Worm et al 2006 in your piece about the state of the world's fisheries, one thread of a fisheries scientist's psyche is slowly tugged free.

This is such a great contribution to understanding Pygmy blue whales and their unique songs.. and showcasing the incredible diversity of life in the oceans that we still know so little about. #science #whales #BlueWhale

Please get in touch if you are up for chatting with recent U.S. fed employees about career paths!

Firings prompt concerns that science supporting Alaska seafood industry could be undermined • Alaska Beacon NOAA Fisheries has declined to release numbers on the scope of the cutback, which has left officials scrambling to track the force reductions.

Great article on the ongoing impacts of the Trump administration on fisheries in the NE Pacific, and the people whose livelihoods both support and depend on them. alaskabeacon.com/2025/03/10/f...

Bluesky CEO: imagine a 'world without Caesars' Jay Graber dunks on Mark Zuckerberg without mentioning his name.

the feminine urge to

NOAA firings in Seattle include orca-saving employee of the year Until Thursday afternoon, Hanna Miller focused on protecting whales from oil spills, ship strikes, and fishing gear. While on vacation in Hawaii, the federal biologist opened her work email on her per...

"In 2023, Miller was awarded NOAA Fisheries employee of the year...and in March 2024, she was promoted.
On Thursday afternoon, while on vacation in Hawaii, the federal biologist opened her work email on her personal phone to find she no longer had a job."

www.kuow.org/stories/noaa...

When I was developing an app to help stakeholders assess the long-term impacts of bycatch on marine mammal populations, I used 18F’s great published materials to improve the app’s UI and make our science as accessible as possible.