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Kailyn Smith

@kailynasmith.bsky.social
89 followers 40 following 9 posts

Philosophy PhD @ Boston University. Proud HBCU alum.

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brighterside.bsky.social @brighterside.bsky.social · 12h
The League of Women Voters reaches out to candidates and creates a nonpartisan voter guide - Vote411.org
vote411.org
VOTE411
Election information you need. Brought to you by The League of Women Voters Education Fund.
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Arrianna Marie Planey, PhD MA @arrianna-planey.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Thank you, Stevie
music.youtube.com
It's Easier
YouTube video by Stevie Wonder - Topic
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U.S. News & World Report @usnews.com · 24/09/2026
Discover the top-performing Historically Black Colleges and Universities shaping the future of education! #HBCU #HigherEd bit.ly/4d6IDcm
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Alejandro Fábregas-Tejeda @alejandrofabregastejeda.com · 28/09/2026
In their 🆕📄, @alisabokulich.bsky.social & @mattbrewer.bsky.social argue that targeted observation practices in the #geosciences owe much to Peirce’s views on the economy of research, which are better understood as an account of the pursuitworthiness of #data 👇 link.springer.com/article/10.1... #HPS
First page of the EJPS article titled "Pursuitworthy data collection in the geosciences: from Peirce’s economy of research to targeted observation" by Alisa Bokulich & Matthew Brewer. 

Abstract 
In the geosciences, field measurements are key sources of data, alongside more traditional laboratory experiments. Regardless of the data’s source, pursuitworthiness is arguably not just a question of the intrinsic merit of the knowledge produced, but also the value of that knowledge in light of limited resources (e.g., time, money, and labor). There is a long tradition of research on this issue in the geosciences, going back to the work of the pragmatist philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce. Motivated by his work as a government-funded geoscientist, Peirce developed a highly original theory of the “economy of research.” In this paper, we argue that Peirce’s views have been largely misunderstood, and offer an alternative interpretation of Peirce’s economy of research as an account of the pursuitworthiness of data. We argue that Peirce’s account is a forerunner of a current sophisticated data collection program in the geosciences, called targeted observation (or adaptive sampling), which is used to evaluate the pursuitworthiness of various possible measurements, experiments, or observations. We conclude by applying Peirce’s philosophical insights to assess the promise and limitations of targeted-observation programs in the geosciences today.
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Ellie Wolfe @elliew0lfe.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Scoop: Roughly 20 faculty members at Bowie State University, at least one of them tenured, have been told they won’t have a job next year as administrators seek to curb the historically Black university’s $18 million deficit. www.thebanner.com/education/hi...
thebanner.com
Bowie State University to lay off 20 faculty members amid $18 million deficit
Roughly 20 faculty members at Bowie State University, at least one of them tenured, have been told they won’t have a job next year as administrators seek to curb the historically Black university’s $1...
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Claire Zagorski, PhD, MSc, EMT-P @clairezagorski.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I hate it so much. This can happen to you too. A year ago, almost everyone doubted this would happen. I had faculty at other schools telling me I was hysterical. (Irony!) Watch for the installation of right wing figureheads without an academic background. Watch for assaults on faculty governance.
BREAKING NEWS
UT cuts all Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies courses from core curriculum
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R. S. DIENG @drlandislife.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
bell hooks trilogy is so precious! Teaching Critical thinking Teaching Community Teaching to Transgress
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Beautiful night for backyard #PhiGeo dinner party to celebrate Matt's successful dissert defense, welcome 2 new Phi-Geo 1st yrs Chloe Cobos & Arica Bauer, catch up w/ senior Phi-Geo members @kailynasmith.bsky.social & @leticiacastillo.bsky.social & welcome visiting hist geoscience grad Nanina Föhr
A long dinner table with blue & white checkered table & candles & a dozen people seated around. A long dinner table with blue & white checkered table & candles blue & a dozen people seated around from other end.
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Kailyn Smith @kailynasmith.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Flower of the day courtesy of @alisabokulich.bsky.social!
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Eric Williams @geoliminal.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
grim to see @utaustin.bsky.social folding completing to the fascists www.texastribune.org/2026/09/17/u...
texastribune.org
Majors related to race, gender cut at University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin rejected a department’s plan to keep the majors, a decision that came without public knowledge, an interim department chair told faculty.
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Inside Higher Ed @insidehighered.com · 17/09/2026
Many HBCUs Thrive as Other Institutions Struggle to Enroll Enough Students The enrollment growth has been accompanied by growing pains, leaders say, as they figure out how to house, feed and teach more students. bit.ly/3VjtZIt
Morgan State University students sit at an outdoor table.
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Blacklikewho @blacklikewho.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
When I say the university is the crisis and its leaders share the same ideas as those externally attacking it: see UT Austin,Yale, Harvard, Carnegie Mellon, on and on. Each one a different issue and each one the university is in lock step with external forces. Its leadership is central to the crisis
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Pieter T. L. Beck @ptrbck.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
A longread on why Cofnas is doing pseudoscience, by yours truly. Many thanks to @forbetterscience.bsky.social for hosting the text!
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
#HPS
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Ordinary Notes @hystericalblkns.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Refuse the brutal world the fascists make.
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Matilde Carrera @matildecarrera.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Five incredible years in Boston — a city that truly became home and taught me so much, personally and professionally. Hard to say goodbye, but I’m thrilled for what’s next: starting my postdoc at the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science! @mcps-philsci.bsky.social
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trauma dumpling @zazzles.myatproto.social · 30/08/2026
no because my blood pressure can’t take it
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
#HistMed Lundy Braun (Brown U) has excellent book on the spirometer & #MedicalRacism #ScientificRacism #HPS #MedEthics archive2.news.brown.edu/2007-2015/ar...
archive2.news.brown.edu
Spirometry: A built-in ‘correction’ for race?
The spirometers doctors use to measure lung capacity automatically make “corrections” for the patient’s race. Lundy Braun, professor of medical science at Brown University, has led a systematic review...
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Adam Rutherford @adamrutherford.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
I've been revisiting my 2021 book How to Argue With a Racist, in light of the Cofnas situation - i didn't name him or the scientifically illiterati with who he breaks bread. But I thought these sections from the end might be of interest.
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The Guardian @theguardian.com · 20/08/2026
Academic who accused Jason Arday of plagiarism suspended by his university
theguardian.com
Academic who accused Jason Arday of plagiarism suspended by his university
Researcher Nathan Cofnas previously claimed Black people would hold few high-profile positions in a meritocracy Nathan Cofnas, the academic who made plagiarism allegations against Prof Jason Arday before his death, has been suspended by a university. Arday, 41, resigned from his role at the University of Cambridge this month after Cofnas accused him of plagiarism. The allegations, which were not proven in any formal investigation, triggered questions about Arday’s achievements. Continue reading...
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Tricia Matthew @triciamatthew.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
www.folger.edu/whats-on/to-... October 2026—May 2027
folger.edu
To Hear Her Speak: Black Women and Shakespeare | Folger Shakespeare Library
This landmark exhibition at the Folger explores the histories of Black women in Shakespearean performance and highlights the ways in which Black women have engaged Shakespeare's language, stories, and...
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Hakeem Jefferson @hakeemjefferson.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
When I first went on the job market, I got offers from the best places & chose Stanford. The joy of that moment was tempered by the vitriol of those convinced I was unworthy of such opportunities. I learned long ago I’ll never convince them I am worthy. What great freedom came from that awareness.
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David Sepkoski @hallucigenia.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
There needs to be a sustained campaign to ostracize Nathan Cofnas after this. I have written to PhilPeople to demand his page and publications are removed. Please do likewise. philpeople.org/profiles/nat...
philpeople.org
Nathan Cofnas (Cambridge University) - PhilPeople
I work in the philosophy of biology and ethics. For a complete list of publications (including papers in science journals) see https://nathancofnas.com/papers/.
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Sarah J. Jackson @sjjphd.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
My goodness please *listen* to this extremely wholesome story
npr.org
We asked a first grader to interview his hero: A bird scientist
NPR asked an aspiring scientist in Philadelphia to interview an adult who is living his dream about his career in conservation science.
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Committee on Education & Workforce Democrats @democrats-edworkforce.house.gov · 27/07/2026
🚨Sixty civil rights groups are sounding the alarm: The Trump Department of Education is purposely weakening civil rights protections for students by removing disparate impact standards from Title VI regulations. Read their warning here: youthlaw.org/press/2026/0...
youthlaw.org
Civil Rights Groups Condemn Department of Education Final Rule Weakening Civil Rights Protections for Students | National Center for Youth Law
Civil Rights Groups Condemn Department of Education Final Rule Weakening Civil Rights Protections for Students Final Rule Would Enable Policies that
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
After a year+ under review (no fault of @philscijournal.bsky.social) I am happy to finally share as forthc my paper "Peirce, Abduction, & Inverse Problems in the Geosciences" doi.org/10.1017/psa.... (2/3 had to be cut to fit word limit, but is part of my ever in-progress book) #HPS #phigeo #philsky
DOI: 10.1017/psa.2026.10263
This is a manuscript accepted for publication in Philosophy of Science.
This version may be subject to change during the production process.
Peirce, Abduction, and Inverse Problems in the Geosciences
Alisa Bokulich
Department of Philosophy, Boston University, Email: abokulic@bu.edu
Abstract
Charles Peirce's most well-known contribution to logic and scientific methodology is his account of abduction. However, what exactly Peirce meant by abduction is subject to perennial dispute. My aim in this paper is two-fold: First, I interpret Peirce's abduction through the lens of his research in geophysics and argue this supports interpreting it as a kind of inverse modeling. Second, I show that the methods Peirce outlined for managing the underdetermination of abductive inferences are the same as those deployed by geoscientists to manage the nonuniqueness of geophysical inversions. I conclude by emphasizing the value of reintegrating Peirce-the-Philosopher with Peirce-the-Geoscientist.
Acknowledgement
This paper is dedicated to the memory of George E. Smith (1938-2024)—a wonderful scholar, mentor, and friend whom we lost too soon. It was George's lecture on using seismology to probe the interior of the Earth that helped open up the new subfield of philosophy of seismology and that first inspired me to write this paper.
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Baltimore Magazine @baltimoremagazine.com · 08/07/2026
How the nearly 90-year-old club helped desegregate the city’s public courses and advance the civil rights movement.
baltimoremagazine.com
The Women of the Pitch & Putt Golf Club Drive Home a Powerful Legacy
How the nearly 90-year-old club helped desegregate the city’s public courses and advance the civil rights movement.
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Kailyn Smith @kailynasmith.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Great read featuring my grandmother, second from the left!
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
A perfect poem for this day "Let America Be America Again" BY LANGSTON HUGHES www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/147907...
Let America Be America Again
BY LANGSTON HUGHES
Q
SHARE
Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.
(America never was America to me.)
Let America be the dream the dreamers
dreamed—
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.
(It never was America to me.)O, let my land be a land where Liberty Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath, But opportunity is real, and life is free, Equality is in the air we breathe.
(There's never been equality for me, Nor freedom in this "homeland of the free.")
Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark?
And who are you that draws your veil across the
stars?
I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart, I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars.
I am the red man driven from the land, I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek
And finding only the same old stupid plan Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.
1am the young man, full of strength and hope,
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Jen Mercieca @jenmercieca.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Have you ever heard James Earl Jones read Frederick Douglass', "What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?" www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tTk...
youtube.com
James Earl Jones Reads Frederick Douglass
YouTube video by prosario2000
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Kailyn Smith @kailynasmith.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
“Flore mentioned that while gender equality is something European academia has progressed on, race is not something brought up in these discussions. ‘I am a woman, but I am also Black. I think there is still work to be done taking into account everyone’s identity.’” 🎯🎯🎯
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Astrobites @astrobites.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
From @astronokaz.bsky.social: As part of Astrobites coverage of Black Space Week, we interviewed members of the Black in Astro community. Today’s interviewee is Flore Milien! ⚛️ 🔭 ☄️ 🧪 astrobites.org/2026/06/18/flore-milien-interview/
astrobites.org
Black Space Week 2026: Interview with Flore Milien
As part of Astrobites coverage of Black Space Week, we interviewed members of the Black in Astro community. Today's interviewee is Flore Milien!
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Pieter T. L. Beck @ptrbck.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
The Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences issued a statement on the hiring of Nathan Cofnas /43 www.ugent.be/lw/philosoph...
ugent.be
Positions of the Department on the Appointment of Dr. Nathan Cofnas as Scientific Staff Member
This text sets out the positions of the Department of Philosophy & Moral Sciences (LW01) at Ghent University on the decision to hire Nathan Cofnas as postdoctoral researcher
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Happy news from the Phi-Geo group: My fantastic PhD student Matilde Carrera ( @matildecarrera.bsky.social ) was awarded this postdoc position at the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science! She'll join a fantastic group of philosophers, #HPS scholars, & scientists there. Congrats Matilde!! 🎉🎉🎉
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Call for nominations (including self-nominations!) for Philosophy of Science & Race Prize for best recent (w/in 5 yrs) published work on #philosophy of race &/or history/critiques of scientific racism (incl. medical/techno racism, etc.) *Deadline June 15* #HPS More info 👇 philsci.org/psa_prize_in...
philsci.org
PSA Prize in Philosophy of Science & Race - Philosophy of Science Association
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Science Magazine @science.org · 26/05/2026
Jasmine Clark led a March for Science in 2017. She just won a Georgia primary for a safe Democratic House seat. @jasmineclarkforga.bsky.social spoke with Science about her background, the roots of her political activism, and what she hopes to accomplish in Washington, D.C. scim.ag/4uzbXyE
science.org
Meet the microbiologist and science advocate who’s headed to Congress
Jasmine Clark led a March for Science in 2017. She just won a Georgia primary for a safe Democratic House seat
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Grace Panetta @gracepanetta.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
State Rep. @jasmineclarkforga.bsky.social wins the Democratic primary in the vacant #GA13, @decisiondeskhq.bsky.social projects. Clark is now poised to become the first Black woman PhD scientist to serve in Congress. My interview with her here: 19thnews.org/2026/05/geor...
19thnews.org
Jasmine Clark is poised to be the first Black woman Ph.D. scientist in Congress
Rep. Jasmine Clark is poised to become the first Black woman Ph.D. scientist to serve in Congress from Georgia’s 13th Congressional District.
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Jeffrey Mervis @policyhound.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Microbiologist Jasmine Clark campaigned on her science background--and won. www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Microbiologist wins Georgia primary for U.S. House seat
Jasmine Clark is set to become the first Black congresswoman with a science Ph.D.
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Balls & Strikes @ballsandstrikes.org · 18/05/2026
The Trump administration's position is that Yale must be discriminating against white students because Yale admits at least some Black students
ballsandstrikes.org
Trump DOJ: Yale’s Medical School Has Way Too Many Black Students
The administration’s view is that the mere presence of students of color at Yale Medical School proves discrimination against white people.
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Shobita Parthasarathy @shobitap.org · 05/05/2026
It's good that Congress has rejected the scale of the proposed NSF cuts, but it's not clear whether it plans to maintain funding for the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences directorate (which Trump admin is trying to dissolve completely). If you care about this, contact your congresspeople!
nature.com
US lawmakers vote to reject Trump’s massive budget cuts — but call for substantial decreases
A draft bill would preserve NASA’s overall funding but downsize the National Science Foundation’s budget by 20%.
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BlackinXNetwork @blackinx.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
www.blackinphysics.org/about/ #BlackInPhysics #ContactSite #Physics #Mentors #STEM
blackinphysics.org
WE ARE BLACK IN PHYSICS - Black In Physics
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
Edward Hitchcock's (1793-1864) ichnofossil collection from western Massachusetts.
Large slab with fossil trackway. Closeup of a three toed fossil imprint Matilde in Beneski museum with lots if ichnofossil trackway One of Edward Hitchcock's ichnofossil trackway slabs with beautiful relief & detail.
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
A Phi-Geo research group fieldtrip today to see the Holyoke dinosaur footprints in situ & a behind-the-scenes tour of the Beneski museum.
Miguel & Matilde pointing to some dino tracksDino track with yellow pen for scaleDino footprint ichnofossilMatt & a cast of a large jaw bone of a T-Rex
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Citizen.Coping @propcazhpm.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
African American women mathematicians Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson did the complex calculations that made spaceflight possible. Johnson helped map the trajectory for Apollo 11. Vaughan lead unit of Black women mathematicians. Jackson became NASA’s 1st Black woman engineer.
clickorlando.com
From hidden figures to Artemis: How NASA women reshaped America’s race to the moon
The Artemis program to land the first woman on the moon, following the path of many trailblazing women in space.
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Nereide @drnereide.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Sophie Germain, born on 1st April 1776 in Paris, made important contributions to the field of #Mathematics, in particular to number theory and the applied mathematics of acoustics and elasticity. My post➡️ www.lanostra-matematica.org/2025/04/soph... 🧪 ⚛️ #histsci #WomenInStem #histmaths #mathsky 1/4
lanostra-matematica.org
Sophie Germain – A Life Between Numbers and Freedom
1880 illustration of a young Sophie Germain (circa 1790)                                                                    We know that wom...
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Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
"these attacks were designed to set up the Trump administration to act with impunity. [They] laid the groundwork ...[to] make decisions based on ideology rather than evidence; remove staff, scientific findings, & regulations that could have been roadblocks to its agenda" blog.ucs.org/jules-barbat...
blog.ucs.org
One Year in, the Anti-Science Agenda of the Trump Administration Is Evident
We are now more than a year into President Trump’s second stint in the White House, establishing a grim and undeniable record of attacks on science. Every month that has passed since his inauguration ...
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UNC Dept of Earth, Marine & Environmental Sciences @unc-emes.bsky.social · 21/03/2025
Aliyah is the first African American student to earn a PhD in Marine Sciences at UNC. Thanks to her incredible mentorship and work as CEO and founder of the non-profit Mahogany Mermaids, Aliyah is helping the next generation find their place in STEM. Learn more on her website! aliyahgriffith.com
aliyahgg.wixsite.com
HOME | Aliyah Griffith
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AJ Wright @ajwrightmls.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Today's Find: My blog post about the first certified, practicing female physician in Alabama tinyurl.com/ph4ykgv Halle T. Dillon at Tuskegee Institute in the 1890s #histmed #medicalhistory #tuskegeealabama #alabama #alabamayesterdays
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Phila M. Msimang @msimang.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
We end the chapter by saying that this return of race science, given the history of race science, provides reason for disquiet. You can find the page proofs for this chapter here: www.researchgate.net/publication/...
researchgate.net
(PDF) Philosophy and race science
PDF | This chapter focuses on the history of the philosophy behind race science. Although the scientific and philosophical debate about race goes back... | Find, read and cite all the research you nee...
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My Password is Louvre @bmceuen.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
But it was a science. That’s the thing, that this sort of stuff can be legitimized and indeed it has been legitimized before. I cannot stress enough that just about every intellectual in the early 20th century at least dabbled in a little eugenics, as a treat.
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