Reposted by Derek LoweMichael Gilman @gilman.bsky.social · 14hCool story, which emphasizes the science NEVER lies. (Which, sadly, now feels like a political statement.) 0191
Reposted by Derek LoweWell-tarred Flask 🇮🇹🇺🇦🇨🇦 @chemprofcramer.bsky.social · 15hhere's a nice, old example of a steric isotope effect showing faster hindered rotation in the heavy isotopologue: actachemscand.ki.ku.dk/pdf/acta_vol...actachemscand.ki.ku.dk 032
Reposted by Derek LoweWell-tarred Flask 🇮🇹🇺🇦🇨🇦 @chemprofcramer.bsky.social · 16hsuper-interesting, but deuterium is not "larger" (per authors). because of the difference in zero-point vibrational energies (QM #ftw) a C-D bond is SHORTER than a C-H bond. so, one might expect MORE flexibility (although I hesitate to guess how that affects mobile/stationary phase interactions). 1132
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 16hThe craziest compound-impurity story I’ve ever heard:science.orgNow That's An Impurity Story 98937
Reposted by Derek LoweRichard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · 28/09/2026Noise/useless science rather than AI slop is a current challenge: "If medical schools and universities don't want the literature to be overwhelmed with garbage, they should stop giving every applicant ... an incentive to publish a lot of crap." www.medpagetoday.com/special-repo...medpagetoday.comIs AI Flooding Medical Journals With 'Meaningless' Research?'It's not fraudulent, and it's not really slop,' one expert says 48826
Reposted by Derek LoweCarl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 27/09/2026Four days ago, a scientist was surprised by the news that Anthropic discovered new virus genes for making DNA. He says he’s been studying them for years—and feeding his data to Anthropic’s AI as part of his own research. Coincidence? Here’s my story. nyti.ms/3VSWaycnyti.msDid Anthropic’s A.I. Really Make a Scientific Discovery on Its Own? (Gift Article)An expert at the University of Copenhagen said his team had been sharing its research with the company’s A.I. model, Claude, and that its new finding matched their work. 892109855
Reposted by Derek LoweLiz Neeley @lizneeley.bsky.social · 26/09/20262. We spent the week dreading a new EO that would have created a new commission set above institute directors, but the plan to give Vought (and others) personal veto over every NIH grant has been walked back …at least in latest incarnation. www.statnews.com/2026/09/23/n...statnews.comWhite House plan to increase control of NIH grants appears 'dead'A planned EO that would have greatly enhanced White House influence over grants at the NIH is “looking dead,” a source said. 1194
Reposted by Derek LoweLaura Helmuth @laurahelmuth.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Not everybody knows this, and everybody should. On Sept. 26, 1983, a Soviet nuclear warning system alerted Stanislav Yevgrafovich Petrov that the U.S. had launched a missile attack. He did not retaliate, preventing WWIII. This is a post about AI. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanisl...en.wikipedia.orgStanislav Petrov - Wikipedia 11565204
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Another dahlia bloom, this one from an unknown variety (purchased as a mystery tuber, which is always a category at any dahlia sale) 2532
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 25/09/2026I note that the picture of the "European Academy of Engineering" that comes up in Google Maps is an altered version a 2022 picture of a main building of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. The facade has been digitally reworked to make it look like the engineering academy! 22514
Reposted by Derek LoweRichard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · 25/09/2026AI discovery of new enzymes "not a breakthrough...a wrinkle on what we know" www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/s...nytimes.comAnthropic’s A.I. Is Teaching Itself Biology. Now It’s Made Its First Discovery.Scientists at the company announced their first finding: a group of enzymes whose function is unknown. 1167
Reposted by Derek LoweTobias Wilson-Bates @phdhurtbrain.bsky.social · 24/09/2026There was a bloom of stories maybe ten years ago about older professors creating problems for the job market by not retiring, and just checking in now to point out that they’ve since retired and almost none of their jobs continue to exist. 1041271
Reposted by Derek LoweAaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Incredible. First Secretary Mullin claimed that DHS had identified 15,903 noncitizens on Nevada’s voter roll. Then DHS officials told a skeptical Nevada, no no no, that’s just people we flagged. Here are the names of 185 people we KNOW aren’t citizens. All 185 were citizens. DHS got 100% wrong. 21188033840
Reposted by Derek LoweJohn Scalzi @scalzi.com · 24/09/2026ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF US Congrats on your space potato @alyankovic.bsky.social! 61380108
Reposted by Derek LoweChemjobber @chemjobber.bsky.social · 24/09/2026As a fellow (Anglo first name) (Asian last name), I'm kicking this dude out of the club. Multiplication tables??!? I was disappointed when my (then)-second grader didn't have them fully nailed down 6302
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Thoughts on Anthropic’s worries about people accessing Claude for possible bioweapons design:science.orgAI Help for Biological or Chemical Weapons 2205
Reposted by Derek LoweChemistry World @chemistryworld.com · 24/09/2026As we all wonder what the next Nobel chemistry win will be, the Chemistry World team want to know... Who was most overlooked for a Nobel prize in chemistry? Tell us in the comments below & don’t forget we’ll be hosting a panel to unpack this year’s prize: www.chemistryworld.com/webinars/nob...chemistryworld.comNobel prize in chemistry 2026: ReactionJoin us for an exclusive look at the science behind the Nobel prize in chemistry 2026 652
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 23/09/2026Thread - it's awful that it's come to this point, but this is the way it has to be done these days. 3254
Reposted by Derek LoweAndrew S. Rosen @andrewrosen.bsky.social · 22/09/2026The number of LLM-written computational MOF papers on @chemrxiv.org is making me quite frustrated. There is a new one every few days, and it's a mess... 3174
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Six weeks to go. Let’s make these numbers even more catastrophic for Trump and the Republicans than they are already. No letup! 1333
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Keeps finding new ways of making me ashamed of my country and of the people who thought he was fit for office. 2748
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Well, it took me about 45 years in the lab to get around to it, but I finally ran one of those selenium dioxide oxidations that I learned about in sophomore organic chemistry. Now to see if it worked! 5683
Reposted by Derek LoweScott Bagley @bagphos.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Finally! @acs.org put the TOC graphics back up on the ASAP pages! #ChemSky 4294
Reposted by Derek LoweMark Histed @markhisted.org · 22/09/2026The idea of AI curing all diseases is, IMO, silly. Biomedical research is mostly limited by data, not ideas. Imagine saying AI will build a world-champion basketball team by replacing basketball coaches with hyperintelligent AI. You see the problem. Someone still needs to dribble and make shots. 925539
Reposted by Derek LoweAndre the Chemist @andrechemist.bsky.social · 21/09/2026It's a shame no chemist ever came up with the idea to say "I'm working on something that might kill all of humanity, so please give me several billion dollars so I can stop myself" That feels like something that should've been right up our alley 68816
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 21/09/2026The Trump administration tries - yet again - to get federal research research funding under its ideological control. Let’s defeat it like we did the last one!science.orgYet Another Attempt to Strangle Scientific Funding 25219
Reposted by Derek LoweChemjobber @chemjobber.bsky.social · 20/09/2026RUSSELL VOUGHT'S ILLEGAL ACTIONS MUST BE STOPPED 04211
Reposted by Derek LoweDan Diamond @ddiamond.bsky.social · 19/09/2026New: Officials battled over NIH in the Oval Office today, per people familiar. RUSS VOUGHT criticized NIH "woke" spending and floated executive order to review its grants. JAY BHATTACHARYA defended NIH's alignment with Trump. TRUMP appeared to side with Vought. with @rbeggin.bsky.socialwashingtonpost.comVought pushes for scrutiny of NIH grants in Oval Office clashA heated debate took place in the Oval Office on Friday, with some Trump officials accusing the National Institutes of Health of funding grants that conflict with the president’s agenda. 1512993
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 18/09/2026A new intracellular system that binds to and recognizes glutathione adducts is uncovered during a screen for glutathione degraders. What’s its function and what other proteins participate?science.orgNot The Glue They Thought It Was 0214
Reposted by Derek LoweMIT Technology Review @technologyreview.com · 18/09/2026One of the ways AI experts fear AI might end us all is by somehow aiding the design, creation, and release of some kind of bioweapon. Let’s take a closer look at why.trib.alThe specter of AI-enabled bioweapons is a wake-up call for biotechIt’s easier than ever to design killer pathogens. 0116
Reposted by Derek Lowejamelle @jamellebouie.net · 18/09/2026RFK Jr. wants people to get sick. He wants them to get sick and he thinks it is a good thing if they die, since those who live will have "natural immunity" and emerge stronger and fitter. 39867241668
Reposted by Derek LoweKathleen Bachynski @bachynski.bsky.social · 17/09/2026“On Thursday, Mr. Gorton said that “the success of the polio vaccine was a massive medical fraud” and that widespread vaccination was a “public health disaster.” He received a standing ovation… Mr. Kennedy spoke next, linking arms with the group even as measles cases continue to rise”nytimes.comRFK Jr. Assures Vaccine Skeptics They Have a ‘Friend at the White House’The health secretary spoke at a conference featuring misinformation about vaccines, including a claim that the success of the polio vaccines was a “fraud.” 382343982
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 17/09/2026How far can AI get you in designing and optimizing new antibodies? Not as far as you might have thought:science.orgThe State of AI Antibody Design 47022
Reposted by Derek Lowepublic health guy @publichealthguy1.bsky.social · 17/09/2026good piece from @jakescottmd.bsky.social about itcidrap.umn.eduCIDRAP Op-Ed: ‘Died with, not from’ was a real COVID problem. It’s the wrong framework for measles. 1294
Reposted by Derek LoweSirFox @sirfox.bsky.social · 17/09/2026Every upper level CDC employee helping RFK Jr do his thing should be charged with manslaughter or accomplice to same by the next administration. 1246
Reposted by Derek LoweElizabeth Jacobs, PhD @elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 17/09/2026I don’t know how many people will understand the courage it took to do this, and I think that should be acknowledged. Well done, Dr. Green, and good luck. You’re fighting for everyone in science. 112731
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 17/09/2026Thread. The close personal details of how this government is pulling the plug on a generation of scientific progress. 28832
Reposted by Derek LoweReuters @reuters.com · 17/09/2026EXCLUSIVE: Pennsylvania asks for CDC help on measles outbreak, demands agency recognize measles deaths reut.rs/4hamsmxreut.rsEXCLUSIVE: Pennsylvania asks for CDC help on measles outbreak, demands agency recognize measles deathsThe Pennsylvania health department said it was requesting emergency support from the US CDC as it grapples with one of the country's largest and most deadly measles outbreaks, according to a document reviewed by Reuters on Thursday. 35322
Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 17/09/2026Oh bring it on. Get Trump out there now ranting about arches and ballrooms and how he doesn’t care how expensive gas is and how ground beef is actually under $2/lb and how big his name should be on all the buildings. More. More. 45 days to go. 0182
Reposted by Derek LoweProf Gavin Yamey MD MPH @gavinyamey.bsky.social · 16/09/2026Two of the world’s most extreme & dangerous anti-vaxx activists & grifters—Andrew Wakefield and RFK Jr—headlining a conference held by the extraordinarily damaging anti-vaxx group Children’s Health Defense in the midst of the worst measles outbreak in 35 yrs tells you all you need to know about MAHA 1121975
Reposted by Derek LoweEllen Kuwana, MS (#SciComm at #SciWri26) @ellenkuwana.bsky.social · 16/09/2026Love the "pffffftttttt" reply to this poll at #ACESVcon26 about #AI. #AmEditing 0376
Reposted by Derek LoweCarl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 16/09/2026The lawsuit challenges the NIH's current policy of using keywords to flag grant applications associated with climate change, DEI, gender, misinformation research, and vaccine hesitancy, keywords that have been used to terminate my own funding as well. Below: just a few of the banned words. 436052
Reposted by Derek LoweRichard Sever @richardsever.bsky.social · 16/09/2026"eLife has been without an impact factor for just over a year...and [has] an overall 21% decrease in revenue" newsletter.journalology.com/p/journalolo... Perhaps the only more stark illustration of academia's addiction to Impact Factor is this: 25512
Reposted by Derek LoweChemjobber @chemjobber.bsky.social · 16/09/2026From 2022 to spring 2025, American PhD-granting universities posted an average of 289 openings in departments of chemistry and biochemistry. Starting in the fall of 2025, that number fell to 185 openings. 36030
Reposted by Derek LoweCarl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 16/09/2026Today, with backing from the ACLU, Kelton and twelve other named researchers filed a class action suit against the NIH under director Jay Bhattacharya for censoring their research and violating their First Amendment rights.aclu.orgResearchers Challenge NIH Screening of Grants for Disfavored Viewpoints | American Civil Liberties UnionClass action lawsuit seeks to stop censorship and termination of federally funded scientific research 4692143
Reposted by Derek LoweLaura Jedeed @laurajedeed.bsky.social · 16/09/2026Neural networks are trained on human knowledge: the books we wrote, the art we created, trillions of words on the Internet. They can rearrange that knowledge into interesting shapes, but cannot develop new knowledge or make leaps of logic There is no path to superintelligence here 321931
Reposted by Derek Lowepublic health guy @publichealthguy1.bsky.social · 16/09/2026this makes prescription drugs MORE expensive by exempting them from government price negotiations. unprecedented corruption at a massive scale 219471
Reposted by Derek LoweJeffrey Mervis @policyhound.bsky.social · 15/09/2026A deep dive into the memo that marks the end of how NSF has done business for 76 years www.science.org/content/arti...science.orgNSF memo implementing Trump’s ‘golden age’ of science unsettles researchersNew document emphasizes support for White House priorities over curiosity-driven ideas 10158119
Reposted by Derek LowePatrick Lutz @patricklutz.bsky.social · 15/09/2026No graphical abstracts or author names – so as far as I'm concerned, it's still broken. 251