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David Ashbrook

@davidashbrook.bsky.social
1.7K followers 2.6K following 45 posts

Baszucki Foundation Chancellor’s Fellow edwebprofiles.ed.ac.uk/profile/david-ashbrook Associate Prof in Genetics, Genomics, and Informatics @UTHSC Genomes, environments, their interactions, behaviour, and disease. PhD Manchester 🇬🇧 Postdoc Toronto 🇨🇦

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Reposted by David Ashbrook
Grace Lindsay @neurograce.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
I teach about Ariely's fraud in my methods class and it is probably not the best message to undergrads that he still has his job
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LifeCanvas Technologies @lifecanvastech.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
For #WorldAlzheimersMonth, we’re highlighting a breakthrough 2026 study that shows the power of tissue clearing and SmartSPIM light sheet microscopy to improve preclinical models: www.nature.com/articles/s41... @davidashbrook.bsky.social
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Xinjun Zhang @zhanglabpopgen.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Besides, I'm looking for grad students to join my group! If anyone is interested in admixture related questions in popgen (humans, drosophila and beyond) and spend a few years in beautiful Ann Arbor, I'm happy to chat whenever during SMBE!
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Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
"Mistakenly, we thought that by just introducing artificial intelligence and ingesting the design requirements that we had, that that would produce a high-quality product." Holy cow, Ford bought the AI hype, believing they could go "hey computer, make me a good car" and it would.
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Matthew Freeman @mjafreeman.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
UK-based cell biologist? Interested in membrane trafficking? Want to find a conference? Looking for a job (PI, postdoc...)? Do link to www.ukmembranetraffic.com, where @jezcarlton.bsky.social and Chris Stefan (not here?) do sterling work
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Nuno Miguel Gonçalves @scinuno.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
How do we build trust in animal research in Ireland 🇮🇪? A theme at this week’s openness event was that transparency cannot be reactive, it must become part of institutional DNA. I also shared lessons from the Patient Discovery Project and why informed patient voices matter in scientific discussions.
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Alejandro Montenegro @aemonten.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Always important. www.nature.com/articles/s42...
nature.com
A brief guide to statistical analysis of grouped data in preclinical research - Nature Metabolism
Clustering and nesting (C&N) arise in many preclinical studies, such as when animals are group-housed or share litters, or in cell culture. Ignoring C&N undermines the validity of analyses. He...
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Rhodri Cusack @rhodricusack.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Delighted to share that I’ve been awarded a European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant for #InfantNeuroAI The project will investigate how human infants learn to understand the visual world, by combining awake infant neuroimaging (fMRI and OPM-MEG) with computational models from AI.
InfantNeuroAI
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Joni Coleman @jonicoleman.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
I'm at #BGA2026 #BGA26(?) this week. Out of practice with this skeeting thing, so we'll see how we go...! Introductory remarks from the local hosts here in sunny Amsterdam, to be followed by a plenary from the excellent Wouter Peyrot @behaviorgenetic.bsky.social
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David Ashbrook @davidashbrook.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
"Help! Our 'record-breaking' rocket is lost in the North Sea" bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Leeds University students appeal for help finding lost rocket
Engineering students believe the rocket had a successful flight before disappearing.
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Cian O'Donnell @cianodonnell.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Reading and writing and thinking hard are like going to the gym for your brain. Of course if we offload this work to GenAI we will lose cognitive skills in the same way it hurts me to run or lift weights without training
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Dan Brierley @drdanbrierley.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Our Faculty is #hiring multiple academics posts! Includes a fantastic opportunity to join us and start your own group in @ccmnlondon.bsky.social as Lecturer in Cardiovascular or Metabolic Neuroscience (broadly defined). Contact me with any queries, and pls share! 🧠📈 www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...
ucl.ac.uk
UCL – University College London
UCL is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No.2 in the UK for research power (Research Excellence Framework 2021).
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Vincent J Lynch 🐘🦣🦥 🦇🐋🐢🐍 @devoevomed.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
I'm tracking down #SciFi stories where genetic manipulation is used to modify species, for obvious reasons, and found Proteus Island; this remarkable novella from 1936 explores how artificial manipulation of chromosome number and X-rays can create new species by a mad scientist in 1918 🧪 1/n
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Scott Marek @smarek0502.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
What matters most for childhood brain organization? We analyzed 649 variables. The answer: Socioeconomics (SES); with brain patterns pointing at sleep & stress as drivers. Even brain-IQ associations were better explained by SES. In Science today: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
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Jodrell Bank @jodrellbank.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
🔭 Catch Jodrell Bank later this evening on Kevin McCloud’s Listed Britain, where he uncovers the fascinating heritage of the Grade I listed Lovell Telescope! 🗓️ Watch at 9.00pm on More4 #ListedBritain #JodrellBank #LovellTelescope
Professor Tim O'Brien, Director of JBCE, and Kevin McCloud stand in front of the Lovell Telescope.
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BD² @bipolardiscoveries.org · 11/06/2026
🧬 Genetic discovery is transforming our understanding of bipolar disorder. Now, it’s about translating that knowledge into better care. On The Genetics Podcast, Cara Altimus & Benjamin Neale discuss how genetics + longitudinal data can drive more precise diagnosis & treatment. 🎧 bit.ly/3SiTBnj
Cara Altimus and Benjamin Neale transposed onto a red background. The Genetics Podcast logo is in the top left corner. The podcast title: "How BD² is using genetics and deep phenotyping to transform bipolar research with Cara Altimus and Ben Neale is written across the bottom in white text. The bottom right corner reads "Ep 243."
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peterdoohan.bsky.social @peterdoohan.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
How do brains plan actions towards goals? To get at this question we studied mice navigating complex mazes as goals changed on every trial 🧵 Work with @thomasakam.bsky.social @behrenstimb.bsky.social @kristorpjensen.bsky.social now on BioRxiv: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Hello Bio @hellobio.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Another day, another amazing neuroscience conference! 🧠 We're at the @edinunineuro.bsky.social Day 2026 today - if you're here too, why not say hello to Issy who's at our exhibition stand with product info & free gifts! 👩‍🔬 #neuroscience #neuroscientists #universityofedinburgh
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Prof. Zoë Waller @drzoewaller.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
We are recruiting! We are looking for a Lecturer (Teaching) in Pharmaceutical and Biological Chemistry to join our diverse team in the School of Pharmacy at UCL. Please share and happy to discuss the role with potential applicants. @ucllifesciences.bsky.social www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/...
ucl.ac.uk
UCL – University College London
UCL is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No.2 in the UK for research power (Research Excellence Framework 2021).
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Anna Dearman @annadearman.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
www.nature.com/articles/s41... Such an excellent explanation
nature.com
Polygenic risk scores are not genetic predispositions - Nature Human Behaviour
Nature Human Behaviour - Polygenic risk scores are not genetic predispositions
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Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 10/06/2026
From 500 views in the first two months to over 100,000 views in the last few days. The ADA opinion piece that was too scary to be distributed at the ADA meeting has gone full Streisand. Y'all are doing the Lord's work.
Download graph, topping at 103,071 total views as of a few minutes ago.
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David Ashbrook @davidashbrook.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
I'm presenting at #neuroscienceday2026 later this morning. Please come back after the break to listen!
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Edinburgh Neuroscience @edinunineuro.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
It’s Neuroscience Day 2026!! Over 20 talks, almost 70 posters, a great spread of exhibitions, keynote speaker Klaus Nave and a send off for the legendary Richard Morris of water maze fame 🧠🎉🧠
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Dr Arish / आरिश 🏳️‍🌈 @arishmrl.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
@edinunineuro.bsky.social EDI Advisory Panel is at #NeuroscienceDay2026 today! We're offering 15-minute 1:1 consultations to provide advice and ideas on how to integrate #diversity and #inclusion in your research, teaching, supervision, or grant applications. Come chat with us!
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Michael Baym @baym.lol · 11/06/2026
I love being too dangerous for an AI to even talk to
A conversation with Claude Fable 5 in which I ask it only “Who am I?” and it replies “You’re Michael Baym, a microbiologist” and immediately downgrades to Opus 4.8
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Dani Sorbie @dani-sorbie.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
I’m thrilled to share more about my PhD Research at The Manchester Metropolitan University: KennelNet: A Machine Learning Approach to Postural Estimation and Behavioural Monitoring in Kennelled Dogs, in partnership with @dogstrust.bsky.social 🐕 #AnimalWelfare #AI #MachineLearning #PhD #Dogs
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Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 04/06/2026
11. Addendum: here are the words characteristic of LLMs. Notice anything? It reads like an email from our upper administration.
Table S1. List of 228 Focal Words disproportionately associated with LLM outputs.3
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achieves contextualize exacerbates integrates oversight showcasing
achieving contextually exacerbating integrating oversimplify signifying
acknowledges cornerstone exceeding intensifies paving situates
adaptable crucial excelled intensifying pinpointing situating
addressing culminating excelling interpretability pivotal sourced
adept delineates excels interpretable poised strategically
adeptly delve exemplifies intricacies posits streamline
adjustments delved exhibits intricacy practicality streamlined
adjusts delves facilitating intricate preserving streamlining
advancements delving featuring intricately primarily strengthens
advancing dependencies formidable introduces prioritise struggle
advocating diminishes fortifying juncture prioritize stylistic
aiding discernible fostering leverage prioritizes surpasses
align downturns fosters leverages prioritizing surpassing
aligning dynamically foundational leveraging promise symbolizing
aligns elucidates frameworks meticulous prowess synthesizes
alongside elucidating garnered meticulously reaffirming thereby
amidst emphasising garnering mitigate realm thoroughness
amplifies emphasizes grappling mitigates redefines thoughtfully
avenues emphasizing groundbreaking mitigating refine thrives
boasting employs harnessing multifaceted refines timelines
boasts enabling heighten navigates refining transcends
bolster encapsulates heightened navigating reflecting transitioning
bolstering encompass heightening necessitate reinforces underexplored
bolsters encompassed heightens necessitates reliance undermines
broader encompasses highlighting necessitating renowned underperform
capitalizes encompassing highlights notable reshapes underperformed
captivating endeavors hinges notably reshaping underpins
captures enhance imperatives nuanced revolutionize underscore
capturing enhancements inadequately nuances revolutionizing underscored
categorizes enhance…
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Katharine Rimes @krimes.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Exciting opportunity: Professor/Associate Professor post, part of Mental Health Research Group. Come to work with us in the beautiful South West of the UK! Please circulate to anyone who might be interested. hrservices.plymouth.ac.uk/tlive_webrec...
hrservices.plymouth.ac.uk
Powered by MHR
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James Gahan @jgahan.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
We are looking for a new colleague to join us in Galway. The position is in Biochemistry and if research focus lines up we hope the successful person will join us in the Centre for Chromosome biology (chromosome.ie). Reach out if you are interested in applying! tinyurl.com/2jy4rj3r
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Stephen Royle @steveroyle.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Check out this report on what happens when a journal pays reviewers for their work. Fast turnaround times and streamlined experience for authors. @biologyopen.bsky.social published by @biologists.bsky.social has now gone beyond the trial and show the results from a year of implementing Fast & Fair.
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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
I will be live-posting the dissertation defense of @standupforscience.net founder @cdelawalla.bsky.social this afternoon. While she has been building an organization and leading national efforts, she has been completing her PhD work. Of Mice & (hu)Mans: C. Delawalla Dissertation Defense 1/n
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Kristian G. Andersen @kgandersen.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Just a shout-out to the folks over at @pathoplexus.org and, importantly, all the scientists sharing genomic data with such amazing speed. It's great to see the field having moved to a new platform, with non-transparent platforms being a thing of the past. Fantastic.
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Dr Kathleen Millen @neurodevkathy.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
🚨🧪🧵URGENT INPUT NEEDED: NIH asks input for next strategic plan-including emphasis on non-animal models (NAMs) to replace animals. Per NIH insider, anti-animal responses now outnumber scientists 200-700x. Please please provide input. Deadline: May 26, 11:59 PM ET. grants.nih.gov/news-events/...
grants.nih.gov
NIH Seeks Input on Framework for Next NIH-Wide Strategic Plan | Grants & Funding
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Matthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Not to get involved with the 'you must check all the references' business, but I have spent today trying to get to the bottom of a mystery from the 1750s. In 1752, as is well known, Maupertuis described a family with polydactyly and calculated the likelihood of the pattern occurring by chance. 1/n
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Prof Anthony Isles @profantisles.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Excited to see this new #OpenAccess perspective on the future of preclinical research published in #DMM. How animal models, #organoids, #AI and other methodologies can improve translation and #biomedical discovery @mrcmousenetwork.bsky.social doi.org/10.1242/dmm....
doi.org
Why in vivo models of disease remain indispensable
Summary: The call to arms for alternatives to model organisms of disease will fail without ongoing integration with – and validation against – complex animal models and support from the animal modelli...
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Kate Ellacott @neuroendo.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
We developed a simple mouse glucose tolerance test protocol for diabetes research with voluntary oral glucose dosing instead of gavage. More physiological/aligned to the human test & better for animal welfare 👇🏻 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... Please DM for detailed info or to arrange a chat
biorxiv.org
Validation of a refined protocol for mouse oral glucose tolerance testing without gavage
A glucose tolerance test (GTT) is routinely used to assess glucose homeostasis in clinical settings and in preclinical research studies using rodent models. The procedure assesses the ability of the b...
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Abdel Abdellaoui @dr-appie.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Here are my four GWAS lectures of ~20 minutes each for the International Statistical Genetics Workshop 2026. They're part of the broader workshop curriculum but also work as standalone lectures covering the basics of GWAS from the ground up. Videos are below 👇🏽
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gabby @fullmoon.id · 16/05/2026
new blog post incoming
Type out the code

Back in the day I read one of Zed Shaw's "Learn X the hard way" courses (I think it was his C++ course) and he began the course with a disclaimer that said something like "do not copy and paste the examples; type them out" because he believed strongly that doing so improved your comprehension of the material.

These days he recommends something even stronger:

> The best way to do this is when you complete an exercise delete what you did and do it again, but try to use your memory. If you get stuck then look at the exercise for clues, but try your best to recreate what you just did from memory. At first you'll be constantly referring to the exercise and the code, but eventually you'll get to where you can do it on your own. This will also improve your ability to remember more code, your ability to summarize how something works, and generally improve your skills faster than if you did it once and moved on.

This is known as the generation effect in cognitive psychology: the active generation of new content improves comprehension compared to passive consumption of the same material. Or as Richard Feynman put it: "What I cannot create, I do not understand".

I'm not a researcher, but I would still like to add my own spin as a lay programmer on why I believe this phenomenon matters for improving programming ability, even in the age of agentic coding. In fact, I think it's even more important now than ever for people to reacquaint themselves with this "ancient wisdom" because otherwise we'll end up with an entire generation of programmers wondering how anyone ever programmed without the help of a coding agent.

In this post I will lay out the case for why you should do the drudgery of occasionally typing out the code, character-by-character, as best as possible from memory. That doesn't mean that you should never use developer tools of any sort to accelerate the coding process, but you also need to occasionally do the boring parts by hand and by memory
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Vivek Nityananda @viveknityananda.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Know an amazing person in neuroethology who champions inclusivity and is a great mentor? Nominate them for this prize and let them know their efforts are important!
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Naomi Mittet @naolimit.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
"This is the first study, to our knowledge, that reveals a broad agreement between sleep duration and multi-organ, multi-omics ageing clocks and links these signatures to systemic disease outcomes and mortality risk." www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Sleep chart of biological ageing clocks in middle and late life - Nature
A cross-organ, multi-omics U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and biological ageing clocks highlights the potential of sleep optimization to promote healthy ageing, lower disease risk and ex...
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Helen Pearson @helenpearson.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
"The results... do not mean that 6-8 hours is the optimum amount of sleep for every person, nor do they prove that achieving that ‘Goldilocks’ range of sleep each day directly improves health or slows ageing." @heidiledford.bsky.social on sleep study & impt caveats www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Sleep linked to slower ageing: huge study pinpoints the right amount
Health outcomes were better in people who slept between about six and eight hours a day.
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Ewan St. John Smith @psalmotoxin.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
A bit of a different publication just out in Animal Models and Experimental Medicine - a look at animal research in the UK & new approach methodologies onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Graphical abstract: Scientific research with animals in the UK is regulated by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 with the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research providing support for best practice and facilitating development of new approach methodologies. Researchers may only conduct scientific animal research at an institute granted an Establishment Licence (PEL) under a programme of work authorised by a Project Licence (PPL) having obtained their own Personal Licence (PIL); all licences are awarded by the Home Office. Provision of excellent animal welfare results in high quality and reproducible research, progress with new approach methodologies aiming to reduce and replace use of animals.
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ImmuNoah's Ark (Noe Rodriguez) @immunoah.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
"many NAMs can only examine specific questions. Computational molecular modeling being able to assess how a compound may interact with receptors, but what the physiological effects are of such interactions, in different tissues that interact with each other, currently requires in vivo examination"
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MRC National Mouse Genetics Network @mrcmousenetwork.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Excited to share our newly published editorial article in @dmmjournal.bsky.social As discussions on animal research and alternative methods evolve we wanted to contribute a balanced, evidence-led perspective on the future of preclinical research. journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
cob.silverchair-cdn.com
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David Ashbrook @davidashbrook.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Great interview with my chair Danny Smith, "Is there a link between diet and mental health?" on the The Lancet Pulse @thelancet.com Main topics are #Ketogenic diet and #bipolar disorder www.thelancet.com/audio-do/the...
thelancet.com
Is there a link between diet and mental health?
In this episode of The Lancet Pulse, Niall Boyce and Matt Gilbert speak with Professor Daniel Smith about the emerging connection between diet and mental health, with a focus on the ketogenic diet and...
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David Ashbrook @davidashbrook.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Interesting! doi.org/10.1242/dmm.... "Debates about animal research & alternatives are often framed as a contest between old and new approaches. This framing is both misleading and counterproductive. In practice, modern biomedical research is increasingly characterised by methodological pluralism"
doi.org
Why in vivo models of disease remain indispensable
Summary: The call to arms for alternatives to model organisms of disease will fail without ongoing integration with – and validation against – complex animal models and support from the animal modelli...
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Amelia Eisch 🧪🧠👩‍🔬 🐁 @eisch.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
1/ New preprint! 🧪With @talmo.bsky.social and team, we used deep learning on archival NASA video of mice on the ISS. Turns out mice in microgravity become tiny acrobats: huddling to sleep, doing backflips, even briefly generating their own ~1g. #SpaceBiology #OpenScience #NASA #SLEAP
biorxiv.org
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michaelflorea.bsky.social @michaelflorea.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
One of the biggest datasets in longevity just published. Very nice work out of Rob Williams' lab. Arends et al. tracked lifespan in 6,438 genetically heterogeneous mice across three sites close to a decade.
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Daniel Lakens @lakens.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
I also created a version of the 'guess the correlation' game. Students always enjoyed it, but the original website (with fun retro design) started to require a google account login. So I created my own version. Play it here: lakens.github.io/statistical_...
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