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We also were very lucky to enjoy some time in the sand, sun, and sea! Can't wait for the next one!

Lucas and I both presented posters (which of course I can't show pictures) and then enjoyed many amazing talks by many of my coworkers and friends including Terra Sztain, Abigail Dommer, Lorenzo Casalino, H. Lee Woodcock, Jan Stevens, and so many more!!

picture of lee woodcock, me, and lucas in front of hotel pool

picture of linus, jan, aakash, terra, lucas, me, alma, mia, abby, and haley in front of hotel pool

picture of me, mia, alma, rommie, terra, abby, and aakash

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I was fortunate to be invited to serve on the mentorship panel where I shared what (vanishing little) advice I have about navigating academia, while Asuka Orr and Stan Papadopoulos shared their experiences in industry!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

The @kearnslab.bsky.social just completed our first group conference! My PhD student (Lucas) and I attended the CompChemGRC in Barcelona, organized by @rommieamaro.bsky.social and @marcodevivo.bsky.social, and the corresponding GRS organized by Haley M. Michel and Dennis Svatunek!

picture of spanish hillside with winding road and beautiful sunrise in the background

picture of yellow lifeguard tower over looking spanish beach early in the morning

picture of view from hotel restaurant terrace looking out over town of castelldelfels and mediterranean sea

picture of lunchtime table with many people surrounding table full of gorgeous spanish food

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if you see me posting something serious on linkedin no you didnt

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

At Uni Freiburg's Chemistry+Pharmacy Faculty's Tag der Forschung this Friday the @kearnslab.bsky.social put on a phenomenal showing using @nanome.ai VR headsets to show folks of all ages (5 and up!) the beauty and wonder of protein dynamics! Special shout out to my students for making this happen!

Picture of a woman with a VR Headset on and VR Handles in front of a TV monitor showing a protein structure in the background

Cardboard cutout of me in from of my group's poster pointing the way to our interactive exhibit with the VR headsets

picture of me in cardboard cutout pointing down to where another cardboard cutout of me indicates that we are doing VR in that room

picture of me setting up VR headsets with my student also pictured

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

My mother very recently passed, which is somewhat why ive been MIA on here, i just logged back in here and saw that she messaged me an article link a month ago.

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

it is genuinely so hard to feel comfortable in these!!! i get so nervous!!

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

while each individual picture is often so strange, together they tell a story of someone very uncomfortable in front of a camera lolol

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

me at the very serious work photoshoot

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

within the past 48 hours, the fledgling Kearns Group has (1) run its first MD simulations locally and (2) suffered its first (university wide) power outage emergency! I know my folks are frustrated by this but I really feel like we are doing it! we are working!!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Here, we investigated how the receptor binding domains for the Ancestral, Delta, and Omicron BA.1 SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins open and how a particular mutation, the D614G mutation, alters communication networks particularly via the loss of a salt bridge interaction between D614 and K854!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

After nearly 6 years of work, I’m excited (and honestly relieved) to share our paper in PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... D614G reshapes allosteric networks and opening mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 spikes Very happy to finally see it out in the world!!

pnas.org

PNAS

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

So.... this new Supreme Court ruling feels..... like not good right?

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Tragedy has befallen me I left my bluetooth speaker at work Thoughts and prayers are reqested in these trying times

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

As i sit here eating fresh Brot, nothing else, simply Brot, I can't help but think about how different my life is right now compared to exactly 12 months ago In some ways I feel fully integrated into German life In other ways I feel uniquely American here I hope I keep this mix

Steffen Wolf @herrflow.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Reposted by Dr. Fiona

I am happy to announce that I have been appointed as the new Professor of Computational Biology at the Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences! I am looking forward to this opportunity and teach MD simulations & the basics of AI! Watch out for PhD position offers in my group being posted soon!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

THANK FUCKING GOD (please do _not_ excuse my language, times like these require honest and strong language)

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

For the first time in my life I am taking a course with ANOTHER FIONA!! Me and Fiona are both taking Deutsch B2.1 at Uni Freiburg and we are having a great time!!

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

my favorite part about this is clearly the robot is also going to have knee problems lololol

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

I am once again thanking my colleagues and support staff truly i dont know what i would do without these people

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

thank you so much @elisafadda.bsky.social we gotta meet up sometime soon!!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

not yet thank goodness!! i do have to give ~5 lectures in german this summer but not a whole course, i gave 2 lectures last semester in german and it went okay! just took a lot longer to prepare than usual but my independent course this summer is a masters course so i can give it in english!

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

please wish me luck as first, independent, full-time lecture (molecular modeling and md simulatoins) starts this thursday at 9am!!

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

I do have to say, as far as Junior PI positions go (or Assistant prof positions) i am INSANELY LUCKY with colleagues, my colleagues have been so helpful and supportive and welcoming, ich weiß es zu schätzen

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

One key feature of being a starting PI: INTENSE IMPOSTER SYNDROME so thats fun

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

me: "how can i work in these conditions?!" the conditions: "12 to 12" by sombr playing on loop

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

I love a good "Wait when did i sign up for this?" moment in the morning

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

ahhh this brings me back lololol

Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

My hot take on the new season of Jury Duty Company Retreat is how in the hell did this guy not already have a permanent job somewhere?! Anthony is quite probably the single purest and most genuine person on the planet and some place had not already hired him?! I want to hire him!?

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

A colleague recently told me that, while watching my Lehrprobe over 1.5 years ago now, they had the distinct urge to "want to be a student again" because of my teaching style New PI life is tough at times, but man can good colleagues make a huge difference

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Things that have the same energy: tossing frozen food packaging before fully reading the instructions and clicking rapidly through a journal's proof tutorial before realizing you actually dont know to use it and it actually is NOT intuitive

Andre the Chemist @andrechemist.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

Reposted by Dr. Fiona

I never thought I'd be emailing the chair of my department with "If a nuclear war starts tonight, do I just hold class tomorrow morning or what?"

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Am i a teenager? no Do I think like a teenager? apparently

screenshot from a paper where the central text reads "...Building on the work of others,[6,7]..."

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Reposted by Dr. Fiona

Dr. Dave @drdave1999.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

As I point out regularly, because FL is one of the most primitive, regressed states in America, you cannot be elected or appointed to any office there unless you’re a thoroughly despicable and corrupt criminal.

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Me about to post this to my cloud appreciation account

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Dr. Fiona @fionachembot.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

"We write to taste life twice..." Anaïs Nin Well i dont know how many times i need to taste these grants before i start getting paid....