Steve Saklad

One major rule anchored U.S. climate policy. The EPA just threw it out The Trump administration rescinded the 2009 “endangerment finding,” ending regulation of greenhouse gases from cars and trucks

Well, who really benefited from a cleaner environment anyway? www.scientificamerican.com/article/epa-...

Figure 1: Effect of statin versus placebo on events listed in statin SmPCs, subdivided by component parts Results for two outcomes with fewer than ten events are not shown in the figure, but are included in the appendix. FDR=false discovery rate. LFT=liver function test. RBC=red blood cell. RR=rate ratio. SmPC=Summary of Product Characteristics. *FDR significant at the 5% level; RR for results FDR-significant at the 5% level are indicated by black circles and RR for results not FDR-significant at the 5% level indicated by grey circles. †Excluded from FDR testing; RR for results excluded from FDR testing indicated by white circles.

Meta-analysis of 19 DB R trials (N=123,940) comparing statin to placebo revealed that besides the well known effects on muscle outcomes and diabetes, only 4/66 (6%) of listed AEs that had been attributed to statins were found to be significant. #Medsky www.thelancet.com/action/showP...

Prasad overruled FDA staff to reject Moderna's flu vaccine application The rejection is the latest instance of Vinay Prasad overruling career FDA scientists to place vaccines under harsher scrutiny.

Scoop: Top FDA official Vinay Prasad overruled the agency’s reviewers when he refused to accept Moderna’s application for a new influenza vaccine, STAT has learned.
www.statnews.com/2026/02/11/m...

Live updates: Trump's EPA revokes scientific finding that underpinned US fight against climate change The Trump administration revoked a scientific finding at the center of U.S. action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change, a significant rollback of regulations.

BREAKING: The EPA revokes scientific finding that greenhouse gases endanger the public health, removing a key basis for the climate change fight.

All the Ways Moderna’s Flu Vaccine Rejection Letter Shocked Us The FDA issued a rare Refusal-to-File letter to Moderna over its mRNA-based influenza vaccine application, in an unusual move that sent the biotech’s shares tumbling.

1. Refusal to File (RTF) determinations are rare and previously reserved for incomplete applications
2. CBER Head Vinay Prasad Personally Signed the Letter
3. Moderna Published the Letter Itself
4. Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel Responds Publicly
#Medsky www.biospace.com/fda/all-the-...

Dewormer ivermectin as cancer cure? RFK Jr.'s NIH funds "absurd" study. There's no reason to think ivermectin cures cancer, but RFK Jr's NIH is on it anyway.

Waste, fraud, and abuse indeed. #Medsky arstechnica.com/health/2026/...

Coffee and Tea Intake, Dementia Risk, and Cognitive Function This prospective cohort study investigates whether coffee and tea intake are associated with dementia risk and cognitive function in female participants from the Nurses’ Health Study and male particip...

In this prospective cohort study of 131,821 individuals from 2 cohorts with up to 43 years of follow-up showed that higher caffeinated coffee intake was significantly associated with lower risk of dementia. #Medsky jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Trump administration removes Rainbow Flag from Stonewall National Monument The Trump administration removed a large Rainbow Flag from a flagpole at the Stonewall National Monument, the National Park Service confirmed to Gay City News

They have now removed the Pride flag from the Stonewall Inn.

Erasure. Just like the Nazis.

gaycitynews.com/trump-rainbo...

🥇🥇🥇

After Republican complaints, judicial body pulls climate advice Meant to help judges handle scientific issues, document is now climate-free.

"In other words, [Republican state attorney generals are] arguing that, if someone is ignorant enough to start a suit based on ignorance of well-established science, then the Federal Judicial Center should join them in their ignorance."
arstechnica.com/science/2026...

Washington Post staffers fired while on international assignments have to start GoFundMe to get themselves home. Jeff Bezos didn’t have the money or heart to give the the fare.

CDC Refuses to Take Blame for Measles Spiraling out of Control — Gizmodo In a WSJ editorial this week, CDC principal deputy director Ralph Abraham tried to push back against criticism.

CDC Refuses to Take Blame for Measles Spiraling out of Control #Medsky apple.news/AAVp3Td8MT3-...

US-Russia nuclear treaty expires as warnings grow of new arms race — USA TODAY A nuclear treaty first signed in 2010 is expiring this week. If it's not replaced, experts say a global arms race could be in the cards.

U.S.-Russia nuclear treaty expires 02/05/2026 raising fears of new nuclear arms race apple.news/ANhF9SMoCRuO...

Nearly Half of Once Frequently Updated CDC Databases Are Now Outdated 46 percent of CDC databases that were updated at least monthly were no longer current in 2025, hindering timely, evidence-based policymaking and undermining public trust.

46 percent of CDC databases that were updated at least monthly were no longer current in 2025, hindering timely, evidence-based policymaking and undermining public trust.
#Medsky www.the-scientist.com/nearly-half-...

Opinion | Trump Isn’t Failing Because He’s Getting Bad Advice Trump’s advisers are terrible. That’s not the problem.

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com

“‘Bad advice’ implies that Trump isn’t calling the shots, but Trump is constantly telling us otherwise,” Frank Bruni writes. “He can’t be vulnerable to bad advice if he needs no advice in the first place.”

Newborn dies after mother drinks raw milk during pregnancy Raw milk is promoted by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Kennedy.

#Medsky arstechnica.com/health/2026/...

Resuming offshore wind is a step in the right direction for both energy independence and reducing the dependence on fossil fuels for energy.

Here’s a top CDC official claiming that the U.S. losing its measles elimination status would be “the cost of doing business.”

We are governed by the dumbest people.

Yes, this is a good idea. I'm sure there are no downsides to the secretly rewritten rules for nuclear reactors.

A century of hair samples proves leaded gas ban worked “We should not forget the lessons of history. And the lesson is those regulations have been very important.”...

One of the best things done by the Nixon Administration was creating the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA's banning of lead from gasoline has just been shown to have effectively reduced lead contamination in hair samples a least 10-fold since 1969. arstechnica.com/science/2026...

Texas Democrats make late push for social studies inclusion Concerned about Texas’ social studies overhaul, Democrats on the State Board of Education used a recent meeting to push for the inclusion of more Black and Indigenous perspectives and for young childr...

Concerned about Texas’ social studies overhaul, Democrats on the State Board of Education used a recent meeting to push for the inclusion of more Black and Indigenous perspectives and for young children to learn about the horrific nature of slavery.

Never forget what led to the flowering of knowledge, science, technology, and prosperity. Don't let short-sightedness kill the tree of knowledge after it has grown such wondrous fruit. nsf-gov-resources.nsf.gov/2023-04/Endl...

Guinea worm on track to be 2nd eradicated human disease; only 10 cases in 2025 When the eradication program began in 1986, there were a 3.5 million cases.

Congratulations to the Carter Center for leading the way to eradication of the Guinea worm. #Medsky arstechnica.com/health/2026/...

Bovino Is Said to Have Mocked Prosecutor’s Jewish Faith on Call With Lawyers

www.nytimes.com/2026/01/31/u...

Having that high-deductible health plan might kill you, literally With ACA tax credits gone, more people are turning to high-deductible plans.

#Medsky arstechnica.com/health/2026/...

Caffeinated Coffee Consumption or Abstinence to Reduce Atrial Fibrillation This clinical trial compares the effect of caffeinated coffee consumption vs abstinence from coffee and caffeine on recurrent atrial fibrillation.

Caffeine appears to reduce atrial fibrillation or flutter in coffee drinkers. N = 200 (69 ± 11 years; 71% male) randomized 1:1 to
coffee vs no coffee. Outcome: AFib/flutter with coffee (47%) vs none (64%). HR = 0.61 [95% CI, 0.42–0.89]; P = .01). AEs same. #Medsky jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Doomsday Clock Timeline - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists A visual history of the Clock’s shifts and cultural impact since 1947.

Here is the history of changes to the Doomsday Clock since its inception in 1947. thebulletin.org/doomsday-clo...

The Doomsday Clock has just been advanced to 85 seconds to Midnight. Things are not going well in our world. We are running out of time to fix it.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day - Wikipedia

International Holocaust Remembrance Day (January 27th) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interna...

❗️The US has signaled to Kyiv that it will provide Ukraine with security guarantees only if it agrees to a deal involving withdrawal from territory (Donbas), – FT sources.