iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 32m

Katie Zacharia out in 5 days. Half Scaramucci. (A Scara or a Mucci?) “Records are made to be broken. But I take no pleasure in other people's pain,” former press secretary Anthony Scaramucci posted... This really NEEDS an emoticon but I can't for the life of me figure out which one to use!

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 1h

Yep. Who? & why? & how did that person get into an IVF freezer room & take a "straw" out of a liquid nitrogen tank? The cases settled w/o trial or discovery so we've got no "facts," just allegations in a complaint, but I suspect they are true. See academic.oup.com/jlb/article/... (by me-open access)

academic.oup.com

Alabama’s LePage decision, the future of ex vivo embryos, and more

Abstract. In February 2024 the Alabama Supreme Court held that the destruction of frozen embryos stored at an in vitro fertilization (IVF) center could be

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Rachel Courtland @rachelcourtland.com · 15/10/2026

For our Impossible issue, @antonioregalado.bsky.social took on the most mental of subjects. Head transplants, uploads, brains in jars, and more. ter.li/ihzd61a3

ter.li

Six wild ideas for perpetuating your mind

The quest for cognitive immortality continues.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 15/10/2026

old story (from March 2026) but still wild!

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 15/10/2026

Well, a lot more than one scientist (though Paola's work is great)! Probably more than 20 great labs around the world working in this space.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

Stanford's Center for Law and the Biosciences is looking for a fellow to spend two years w/us to prepare for becoming a "law & the biosciences" law professor! Here's the application posting: careersearch.stanford.edu/hcmUI/Candid... Here's background on our Center: law.stanford.edu/center-for-l...

careersearch.stanford.edu

Fellow, Center for Law and the Biosciences - Stanford Law School

The Center for Law and the Biosciences invites applications for its 2027-2028 Fellowship. The Goal: This fellowship is intended for individuals who are seeking an academic or policy career working on ...

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Kevin Mitchell @wiringthebrain.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

This is more deeply correct than Le Guin knew, I think!

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

Congrats, Greer! Well deserved!!

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WarTranslated (Dmitri) @wartranslated.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Twelve US senators have sent an open letter to Donald Trump demanding the cancellation of the diesel deal with the Russian Federation. The signatories include six Republicans and six Democrats.

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Paul A. Lombardo @plombardo2024.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

A reasonable starting point for that conversation.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

Very informative, very understandable. VERY well done. Glad I'm at 200 ft about sea level but I worry about some friends with houses on the beach at Aptos....

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Just talked eugenics w/my Stanford sophomore seminar on ethics/law bioscience issues. 14 students in the class had at least 5 different definitions. I gave them this from Orwell: "The word Fascism has now no meaning except in so far as it signifies ‘something not desirable’." Pol Engl Lang 1944

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Philip Ball @philipcball.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Good discussion on here with @eaterofsun.bsky.social @adamrutherford.bsky.social @jonturney.bsky.social about how to talk about eugenics. Is it discredited science, or pseudoscience - or in fact do we still do it in the literal sense with IVF selection for medical reasons?

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

/2 Just read that the freighter is carrying urea (for fertilizer), not diesel. So they weren't actually competent corrupt conspirators. Is that a good thing or a bad one?

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News Eye @newseye.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

This is how you write a headline.

Telegraph headline:

Trump backstabs Zelensky for five minutes of midterm relief
Deal with Putin for Russia’s oil might soften the markets but Ukraine will pay the price

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Ah. If true (and I have no reason to think it's not), then the Trumpistas were NOT as surprisingliy well organized and secretive as it appeared! A good reminder, either way, of the fog of war & its extensions beyond the battlefields.

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(((Tendar))) @tendar.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Poland‘s Prime Minister Tusk had a phone call with Ukrainian president Zelenskyy. He made the following statement afterwards:

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Philip N Cohen @philipncohen.com · 09/10/2026

Asked to rank “the most important population-related issues facing the world in the next 20 years?”, 65% put climate change in their top three, followed by aging (53%) and inequality (51%). Only 9.5% mentioned "low fertility and population decline," with no one listing it as most important.

What do you believe will be the most important population-related issues facing the world in the next 20 years?
Total mentions First Second Third
Climate change 64.7 66 28 29
Aging 52.6 45 31 24
Inequality 51.1 31 36 30
Migration 22.6 14 14 15
Threats to public health 24.2 4 20 22
Reproductive rights and health 19.5 8 17 12
War 21.6 5 12 24
Low fertility and population decline 9.5 0 11 7
Hunger 4.2 1 5 2
Obesity 2.1 0 1 3
High fertility and population growth 0.5 1 0 0
Urbanization 1.6 0 0 3
Note: Figures are percentages except weighted score, which is the sum of 3*first + 2*second + 1* third.
The table and figure are sorted by weighted score.

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Philip N Cohen @philipncohen.com · 09/10/2026

One third of the demographers agree that, "Future population growth in the United States is necessary for progress in social or economic well-being," and 40% disagree. And only 28% think the U.S. could increase birth rates if it tried.

Table 1. Do you agree or disagree with each statement below? (percentages)

Strongly
agree

Somewhat
agree

Neither
agree
nor disagree

Somewhat
disagree

Strongly
disagree

With the right policies, the U.S. would benefit from
substantially increased immigration.

Future population growth in the United States is
necessary for progress in social or economic well-being.

Future population growth in the United States
poses a threat to the environment.

With the right policies, the United States could
substantially increase the birth rate.

The current size of the world population exceeds the
"carrying capacity" of the earth.

45.0

38.6

11.6

3.7

1.1

9.0

23.3

27.5

24.9

15.3

5.3

31.8

24.3

29.6

9.0

2.7

25.4

12.7

40.2

19.1

5.3

19.6

19.1

29.6

26.5

Note: Table shows percentages of valid responses. N= 188 for item 1; N = 189 for items 2 - 5.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Wish the response rate were higher, but...if wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets. And not sure which way a lower response cuts. Would those more concerned about it be more likely to respond or those more concerned about its hyping?

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Philip N Cohen @philipncohen.com · 09/10/2026

My sample is N=190 (a) American or U.S.-based researchers, who (b) published a paper in a demography journal in the past three years, and (c) described them themselves as demographers or say they research birth rates or population trends. The response rate was 28%.

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Philip N Cohen @philipncohen.com · 09/10/2026

Is America in a demographic crisis? Demographers don’t think so. I conducted a survey of U.S. demographers, and this is what I found: 3%: “The low birth rate is a demographic crisis” 25%: "serious concern” 53%: "should be monitored, but no intervention necessary” 20% :“not a problem at all.”

Fig. 1 The United States has a total fertility rate around 1.6. Which of these statements
comes closest to your view? N = 180

3.2

24.5

52.7

19.7

The low birth rate is a
demographic crisis

The low birth rate is a
matter of serious concern

The low birth rate should be
monitored, but no
intervention is necessary

The low birth rate is not a
problem at all

0.0

A rate below 1.6 would be
better

0

10

20

30
Percent

40

50

60

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Rebecca Sear @rebeccasear.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Panicked headlines about a “fertility crisis” are not being driven by experts who understand fertility trends 👇 Next time you see such a headline, worth thinking about whose interests “demographic collapse” narratives serve

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(((Tendar))) @tendar.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

*Mic drop*

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Cahir O'Kane @cahirokane.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Ukraine is helping defend Europe as much as Europe is helping defend Ukraine.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

WHAT? That this is long planned treachery from Trump, a man with no attention span, is surprising but that they've kept it secret successfully for 19 days is incredible. (All the while negotiating in terrible bad faith with Ukraine.) And yet....

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Itai Yanai @itaiyanai.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

1. CRISPR came from basic research on bacteria. 2. Optogenetics started with a discovery in algae. 3. The GFP protein comes from jellyfish. The biggest breakthroughs all trace to scientists following their curiosity, and this is one huge reason why we must keep funding basic research!

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Timothy Caulfield @caulfieldtim.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

"In this trial, we did not observe a lower incidence rate of stage III or IV cancers across 12 prespecified cancers after three screening rounds with multicancer early-detection testing plus usual care than with usual care alone." www.nejm.org/doi/full/10....

nejm.org

Effect of Screening with Multicancer Early-Detection Test on Late-Stage Cancer Diagnosis | NEJM

Whether screening with blood-based early-detection tests for multiple cancers in addition to usual care has clinical utility is unknown. In a randomized, controlled trial conducted in England, we o...

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Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

I love taking the train between San Diego and Los Angeles since it's such a gorgeous view but there's just no way it'll still exist on the same track a generation from now. www.instagram.com/reels/DeSCAh...

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John Greally @greally.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Profoundly disturbing. When DNA methylation tests meet the garbage wellness industry. Zoltar’s advice outside the old Gem Spa in the East Village was about as valuable, and cost a lot less www.nytimes.com/2026/10/08/s...

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Mac It Look Like An Accident @macrogers.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Okay so we have a number now: the Onion is officially 6 months ahead of reality.

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Stephen Curry @scurry.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

“In awarding this year’s Nobel peace prize, the Norwegian Nobel committee wants to remind the world that the rule of law – national and international – underpins the system we have set up to ensure peace and resolve conflicts non-violently.” That’s a slap in the face for one delusional contender.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Yes...your article says this, this BlueSky post says this...so why the lead on that other post?

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Not thrilled w/this 1st sentence, esp as the (good) article says "American hospitals, physicians, drug cos, & others charge some of the highest prices in the world." Drug prices ARE way too high—but so are many others. Don't lead w/blaming 1 part of the problem esp when the rest will be even harder

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

With non-profit status but also, at least arguably, with medical ethics. Not worse than many supplement vendors, but is that who these systems want to be holding hands with?

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Dr Sam Hirst @romgothsam.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I found it! Really captures the essence of the text

A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift featuring a couple in a very brown and sparce forest. He is kneeling to propose. His clothes are inexplicably shiny and her hair is inexplicably big. She is wearing a massive red dress.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Paywalled for me. Got details, Mark? And did you see they are instituting $70k fee, to be paid by the school, for students using the OPT program for a year's practical training work in the US. Like many of our LLM students. www.statnews.com/2026/10/07/t...

statnews.com

Trump administration proposes $70,000 fee for popular international student work program

The Trump administration has proposed a $70,000 fee for a popular work authorization program meant to give students professional experience

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Mark Lemley @marklemley.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

The United States continues to shoot itself in the foot by telling the best and brightest students from around the world they aren't welcome here. The damage may be permanent if the best students and inventors decide they'd rather be somewhere else. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

bloomberg.com

US Probes Harvard, Yale and Stanford Over Scholar Exchange Visas

The Trump administration is launching investigations into the use of foreign exchange visa programs at nine top colleges including Harvard University, Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institu...

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

"The last state-sanctioned public execution in the United States occurred more than 90 years ago in Owensboro, Kentucky. Some 20,000 people gathered to witness the August 1936 hanging of Rainey Bethea, a young Black man who had been convicted of raping an elderly white woman."

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Wait for the drawing, quartering, and sticking the head on a pike. Probably won't live stream it at a time that would conflict with a major golf tournament, tho....

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Mark Lemley @marklemley.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

To be fair, ANY form of intelligence is an enemy to Trump

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

/2 or delaying treatment for a condition they know how to manage because they are afraid of crossing a legal line, then the exception is not working. It has utterly failed." And just hoping that all docs will be willing to heroically risk arrest & loss of career is not practical. Asks too much.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

www.washingtonpost.com/ripple/2026/... "Lawmakers often point to exceptions in abortion bans as proof that emergency care is protected. But an exception on paper is not the same thing as access to care in practice. If physicians are ordering extra tests, waiting for greater diagnostic certainty,

washingtonpost.com

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Naoshige Uchida @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Congratulations to @deisseroth.bsky.social ! Optogenetics has transformed neuroscience. I'm also grateful for the open-source spirit Karl and colleagues championed by sharing optogenetic tools freely from the start. It made a huge difference for the field.

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Maria Antoniak @mariaa.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

It's infuriating how the U.S. is treating our international researchers. We are so incredibly lucky that talented people want to come to our country to study, research, work, and build. Trump, Musk, and their cronies are destroying the best parts of science in the U.S.

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Hank Greely @hankgreely.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

"Russia launched a massive & deadly combined drone & missile strike package across northern, eastern, & western Ukraine on the night of Oc6 6 to 7—killing & wounding at least 128 civilians, including at least 5 children." More war crimes. understandingwar.org/research/rus...

understandingwar.org

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