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Kristin Connor

@kconnor.bsky.social
969 followers 830 following 668 posts

🤰🏽My lab conducts research on developmental origins of health & disease 👶🏻Believe a healthy start to life is a right we all share 👩🏼‍🔬Value fundamental science! 📍Toronto & Ottawa connorlab.ca

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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Liz Szabo @lizszabo.bsky.social · 10h
Mothers vaccinated against HPV before pregnancy less likely to give birth prematurely or have an underweight baby, especially if they receive their shots before age 17. study finds. www.cidrap.umn.edu/human-papill...
cidrap.umn.edu
Mothers vaccinated against HPV before pregnancy less likely to give birth prematurely, study finds
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
The Society for Reproductive Investigation @sriwomenshealth.bsky.social · 9h
SRI is excited to welcome Professor Janna Morrison as Reproductive Sciences' newest Co-Editor-in-Chief! A long-time SRI member, Prof. Morrison brings deep scientific expertise, editorial experience, and enthusiasm to the Reproductive Sciences journal team.
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Nobel Prize @nobelprize.org · 16h
BREAKING NEWS The 2026 #NobelPrize in Literature is awarded to the Canadian author Anne Carson, “for her bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature.”
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Matt Olm @mattolm.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
My final postdoc project is out today in Nature! We show microbes co-migrated with humans out of Africa; three independent methods agree, and timing matches archaeological / genetic evidence (Fig. 4c). Seeing Fig. 4c for 1st time was one of my most memorable "eureka" moments! doi.org/10.1038/s415...
doi.org
Prehistoric global migration of vanishing gut microbes with humans - Nature
Microbial species disappearing from industrialized populations have evolved with humans over millennia and migrated worldwide with them—this may have consequences for human health.
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Congratulations! 🥂 That’s some hair on your mini me!
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
🧊Great explainer of today’s Nobel prize-winning science in physics! Ice at the South Pole reveals cosmic particle accelerators
nobelprize.org
Nobel Prize in Physics 2026
The Nobel Prize in Physics 2026 was awarded to Francis Halzen “for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin.”
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
The Hill Times @hilltimes.com · 03/10/2026
Opinion: Canada cannot claim AI sovereignty if it gives away its knowledge www.hilltimes.com/2026/09/30/c...
hilltimes.com
Canada cannot claim AI sovereignty if it gives away its knowledge - The Hill Times
We cannot claim to control our digital future if Canadian businesses, schools, and public institutions are using foreign-owned systems to process the knowledge that gives them value.
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Jim Woodgett @jwoodgett.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
We're in turbulent times in health research with unprecedented advances coupled with funding challenges. CIHR is at the cross-roads of this and is looking for a special advisor to the President (2 days a week, secondment). Be part of the solution. cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/54823.html
cihr-irsc.gc.ca
Special Advisor to the President - CIHR
Canada has exceptional health research talent and a strong record of scientific discovery. The challenge—and the opportunity—is to ensure more discoveries lead to better health, stronger health systems, new therapies and technologies, and a globally competitive life sciences sector.
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Good 🧵and I particularly like this framing (reminder, really!) (This conversation aspect is what’s missing in so many papers these days IMO, where the discussion section itself has become too ‘clinical’ and /or short as well. Bring back a real discussion. I want to hear what others are pondering!)
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
The Society for Reproductive Investigation @sriwomenshealth.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
The SRI Research Policy Affairs Committee works to keep members informed about policy developments involving reproductive science and research. Visit the SRI website for the latest updates on research policy affairs and information about advocacy resources. www.sri-online.org/sri-resource...
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Devon Greyson @greyson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This new article, lead-authored by Greyson Lab trainee Alex Krug-Mushey (MSc '25), explores the importance of different forms of trust in pregnancy vaccination decisions of people who gave birth in BC or ON in 2020-2021: doi.org/10.1016/j.jo... 2/2 (Open access as always!)
Screnshot of header of the article linked in the post text, titled, "Triad of Trust: Vaccine Decision-Making by Pregnant People During the COVID-19 Pandemic in British Columbia and Ontario," published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada.
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I’m sure @liisagalea.bsky.social may have some people from her team!
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Excellent thread & analysis of privatisation of medical services in Ontario & what this means for costs, access to care, & your safety. Fund public healthcare.
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Consistent reviewers on resubmissions would also assure applicants that their response to reviews are actually being read. I can’t count the number of times it’s been clear a reviewer has not read the response and previous reviews & only looks at the proposal. What a waste of applicants’ time
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Having consistent reviewers is the #1 thing we should be fighting for, and as said above, it’s easy to provide a review on a revised submission even if you’re not on panel—why are we not doing this? And why are past reviewers on panel again not getting the same grants to review?
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
💯 When I saw this figure I was🤯but also not surprised. I’ve seen this in panel & personally experienced it - where a high scoring grant keeps failing to get funded not because past reviews aren’t addressed (or big issues found) but simply due to new reviewers every time who pick on new little things
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Development @dev-journal.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
The curious case of the placental genome In this Review, Zoé Ducarne, @agathechaigne.bsky.social and @myanhtruong.bsky.social highlight the placenta, the only mammalian organ that harbors a cancer-like genome while remaining functional and healthy. doi.org/10.1242/dev....
Diagrams of a blastocyst and full-term placenta in human. More details in the paper.
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Women's Health Research Cluster @whrcluster.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
A study led by researchers from the Women’s Health Research Cluster, CAMH and the University of Toronto found that just 6.4% of #CIHR operating and project grant funding supported women’s health research questions. ow.ly/uA0e50ZRvsR
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Julie S. Lalonde @julieslalonde.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The literacy crisis is not just referring to people's ability to literally read and write. It's also people's inability to read for context. I've been a public educator for over 20 years and I have never, ever seen it this bad.
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Cheryl in Nova Scotia 🇨🇦🍁🍁 @minibubbly.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Moose was trapped in the Rideau Canal #Ottawa #Canada rescuers lowered the water level and helped the Moose get free 🫎
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BCCHR ResDev (DM) @resdevbcch.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
‼️ attention Canadian health researchers ‼️ #CIHR has posted the Project Grants Discussion Paper and a related *survey* cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/54821.html Please please participate 🙏
photo of the “help shape the future of the project grant program” announcement by CIHR. TEXT is accessible in the hyperlink in this post.
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Josh Chafetz @joshchafetz.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
There's a lot to say about this, and other folks are saying most of it. I just want to focus on one thing: the claim about the relationship between universities and "the real world."
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Jim Woodgett @jwoodgett.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
There’s a concerted campaign to undermine EDI in Canada. The evidence behind EDI policies reducing excellence are based on abysmal, flawed evidence. Look at who feels threatened by equity, diversity and inclusion. They’re the least diverse, least equitable and most exclusive people. Just no.
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Kevin A. Scott, PhD @sculpturatus.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
found at ucsf
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Maggie Macintosh @maggiemacintosh.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Manitoba has a new recipe for health class and “food literacy” is a key ingredient. A new pilot asks teachers to expand nutrition units w/ in-depth discussions about how everything from diet culture to food insecurity affects eating habits #mbed #wfp www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews...
winnipegfreepress.com
Food literacy curriculum on the menu Manitoba
Manitoba has a new recipe for health class and “food literacy” is a key ingredient.
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Mary Gillis @marygillis.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
A lot of people seem to take it as a fact that the private sector has secret efficiency magic the public sector doesn't have. It doesn't. It pays workers less and charges more for the same service. That's like 99% of private sector "efficiency." And everyone's worse off, except shareholders.
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Jeffrey Barrett @jeffbarrett.eu · 15/09/2026
Tempted to use AI to write your cover letter or email to a potential employer? RESIST! It is simultaneously obvious, insulting, and renders you totally undifferentiated from the other 80 people being considered t the same time. There has never been a better time to write concisely in your own voice!
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Ludo Waltman @ludowaltman.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Last year CWTS, ASAPbio, DORA and the International Science Council organized a workshop in Pisa to discuss coordination of research assessment reform and scholarly publishing reform. The workshop participants have now published a paper outlining their vision on how to realize this coordination.
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Colin Carlson @colincarlson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
"Women and Global South respondents emphasized normative goals: equity, justice, and structural reform.... In contrast, men and Global North respondents often framed success through processes: institutional innovation, efficiency, and procedural legitimacy." academic.oup.com/heapol/advan...
academic.oup.com
What is success in global health diplomacy? A qualitative analysis of gendered and global perspectives on success and failure
Abstract. Global health diplomacy is central to shaping the international response to health challenges, yet what counts as “success” or “failure” remains
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Michael Hendricks 🇨🇦 @michaelhendricks.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Thread. Apologies in advance, I've been grinding away for weeks on a grant with maybe a 10% success rate. Canadian researchers work in buildings held together with duct tape, run labs on shoestrings, and spend more and more time competing for lower and lower success rate operating programs.
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences @pnas.org · 11/09/2026
The 2026 Lasker~Bloomberg Public Service Award honors Michael J. Fox for advancing Parkinson’s research through his foundation. Randy Schekman reflects on his impact in a PNAS Perspective: ow.ly/TLef50ZMCu5 #LaskerLaureate Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation
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Tod Maffin 🇨🇦 @todmaffin.com · 10/09/2026
Our UNPLUG AMERICA directory of Canadian alternatives to American technology isn't just a basic list on the Internet. My team deeply researches each individual company that requests to be listed: 🔎 Where they store their data 🔎 Who owns the company 🔎 What money they've taken ✅ unplug.todmaffin.com
Email requesting clarification that PitchBook lists a minority investment by Astralabs (Texas) and asking whether the app’s tournament booking uses Google Firebase hosting or Google-hosted servers for user data.
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Kate Cavanaugh @katecavanaugh.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
🧵 What if one reason fertility declines with age isn’t just genetic-but mechanical? Thrilled to share our new paper in @NatureCellBio : Elevated contractility drives implantation failure in mouse embryos from aged females… here’s what we found 👇 www.nature.com/articles/s41... 1/11
nature.com
Elevated contractility drives implantation failure in mouse embryos from aged females - Nature Cell Biology
Cavanaugh et al. show that embryos from aged mice have increased contractility and tissue viscosity on embryonic day 4.5, which leads to poor spreading and attachment. Similar age-associated mechanica...
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Natasha Tusikov @ntusikov.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
New from me (paywall): Voluntary agreements lack transparency, efficacy & serve corporate interests. Canadians are making clear their strong opposition to AI data centres: the federal govt is abdicating its governance role in hiding behind a voluntary framework. www.hilltimes.com/2026/09/09/w...
hilltimes.com
Why Canada’s new voluntary framework for AI data centres won’t work - The Hill Times
Voluntary principles, as outlined in the government’s national framework for AI, have no legally binding force. They typically lack efficacy and transparency, even as governments and tech companies of...
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Nature Portfolio @natureportfolio.nature.com · 08/09/2026
Changes in the female brain during menopause contrast sharply with those seen during pregnancy and puberty, according to research in Nature Communications. go.nature.com/4qZRLoJ #Neuroskyence 🧪
This is figure 1, which shows monthly rates of gray matter volume change across three female hormonal transitions.
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
🫶🏻
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Good luck and HBD! 🍀🧁
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Fab day for a flight! Love seeing the #Snowbirds #LoveTO 🫶🏻
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Béryl Laplace-Builhé Aka biologiste antique @berylbiologist.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
New Prelight out! 🐸 @prelights.bsky.social Neural crest migration and neural tube closure: two tissues in conversation. Read it here: prelights.biologists.com/highlights/r... Original preprint from @mayorlab.bsky.social here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... #NeuralCrest #Xenopus #preLights
prelights.biologists.com
Reciprocal mechanochemical feedback couples neural crest migration and neurulation - preLights
Neural crest migration and neural tube closure: two tissues in conversation. Neural crest cells help the neural tube close by building a fibronectin-rich interface, while neural tube bending mechanica...
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Reposted by Kristin Connor
Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Do you like pirates & are looking forward to "Talk like a Pirate Day" (Sept 19). Do you love botany and exotic plants? Do you like guacamole? How about 17t!h century exploration history? if any of these is true, this story is for you 1/n ncbg.unc.edu/2026/09/03/a...
ncbg.unc.edu
Arrgh Matey, Yer Plant Press or Yer Life: William Dampier, Pirate and Plant Collector - North Carolina Botanical Garden
by Cannonball Carol Ann McCormick Curatrix, University o’ North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium ORCID: 0000-0003-3785-8433 The farther we went, the more knowledge and experience I should get, which ...
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Jordan Roberts @corruptario.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Yay, more Palantir. Other countries are raising pitchforks against Palantir. In Canada, most turnips think Palantir isn't here. Which is very wrong.
National Observer from 2024: Cohere a 5.5B Canadian AI startup is quietly working with PalantirCohere is quietly working with PalantirFed announcement: Canada partners with CohereFed announcement: $240 for Cohere
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Alex Usher @alexusherhesa.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Here is my letter to the MacDonald Laurier Institute on the subject of their appalling research. Use as you will. I recommend sending something of your own, though. And if you know anyone associated with MLI - and Board directors, say - send it to them, too.
docs.google.com
Alex Usher email to Brian Lee Crowley
(text of an email sent to Brian Lee Crowley of the MacDonald Laurier Institute on September 2, 2026) Dear Brian, I am writing to you and your board with respect to the publication “The equity excelle...
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Shannon Mattern @shannonmattern.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Over the past six years researchers have paid over $1B to publish in Elsevier journals. Elsevier has a ~36% profit margin and roughly $2.3B in profit last year. www.linkedin.com/posts/doug-w...
linkedin.com
RELX reports H1 earnings with 7% revenue growth | Doug Way posted on the topic | LinkedIn
RELX, Elsevier’s parent company, held its H1 earnings call on July 23, 2026.  Below are some observations from a librarian’s perspective.   The numbers (growth %’s are underlying): - REXL revenue: £4...
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Natalie Brender @nataliebrender.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Nothing's more important on my radar today than our federal government acting on this: "Google and other big tech companies have made clear that they will acquiesce to American government requests, but they will push back forcefully when the Canadian government tries to set its own rules."
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Meredith Conroy @meredithconroy.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Im putting together some analysis of social issues and gender gaps x education for my substack appropriately named GENDER GAP! Subscribe if you don’t want to miss it: open.substack.com/pub/meredith...
open.substack.com
GENDER GAP | Meredith Conroy | Substack
Welcome to GENDER GAP, where I'll be writing about gender gaps in American politics. Where are gender gaps, why do they emerge, and how do they matter for understanding our current political moment? C...
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
“If we want pan-Canadian science, we must build for it deliberately, with resources that match the ambition” I love the framing ✨collaboration as infrastructure✨ & much of what is in this commentary resonates for both the pan-Canadian work we are involved in & our global health work between 🇨🇦🫱🏽‍🫲🏿🇧🇯
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
This 🇨🇦company is great. I use their unscented body wash for sensitive skin. Had to find an alternative ~a year ago when retailers here stopped carrying the US-based product I had used for years. Hard to find products free of certain ingredients, but Attitude is doing it right!
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
3 more hours into it and technically I’m within page limits!! Good time to take a movement break then come back to the last sections just in case I can find some additional improvements and buffer room 😅
static.klipy.com
Almost There Buddy: Endure to the End
ALT: Almost There Buddy: Endure to the End
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Precisely! Whole thread and essay on close reading it points to are must reads. How I ✨long for more time✨ to just read and write out arguments! (Not *those* kind of arguments 💪🏻…but maybe, sometimes those too 😉)
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Kristin Connor @kconnor.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Ok 4-ish hours later and only 11 lines over. This may be possible.
static.klipy.com
Yes... Possibly
ALT: Yes... Possibly
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