iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 23h

Eventually I’ll decrease the density… but it makes for such cool photos 🤩

Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Tongue-tied? Maybe tentacle-tied! 🪼🪢🪼 These larval comb jellies (cydippids) got all tangled up after going for the same piece of food (now white debris in the middle of aggregate) 🤦‍♂️ Don’t worry though! It’s nothing a transfer pipette can’t solve 😊 #scicomm #mneniopsis #ctenophore #MarineLife

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Happy #CtenophoreCtuesday! We feel like spitting fun facts today 😎 DYK: upon fusion, two comb jellies undergo rapid physiological integration (e.g. demonstrated by shared neuronal and digestive systems) 🪼🔗🪼 Credit video to @kei-jokura.bsky.social. Read more about it: www.cell.com/current-biol... 🦑

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Tessa Montague @tessamontague.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I'm excited to share our new preprint: Generation of a transgenic cephalopod tinyurl.com/pc86jxz8 Cephalopods (cuttlefish, octopus & squid) are crazy critters that dynamically camouflage to their surroundings by changing the color, pattern, & texture of their skin, which they control w their brain.

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

What I like best about this video is near the end when some of Bob’s progeny swim into view and they are hunting the rotifers as well. Can you spot them? 😍

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

This is Bob. They are a hermaphroditic comb jelly that recently underwent reverse development from adult lobate to larval cydippid, following a period of stress. The event reduced our colony to just Bob. Once our food source stabilized, Bob began to flourish & what was 1 Bob is now 500+ Bobettes! 🦑

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Here are some comb jelly larvae (i.e. cydippids) to brighten your day 🪼 Two months ago, our colony got bottlenecked to one individual (Bob) and has since grown to over 500! #ctenophore #scicomm

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

This video of Pleurobrachia sp. is giving us goose(berry)bumps on #CtenophoreCtuesday! 🫨🪼 Better known by the common name "sea gooseberry," these comb jellies are approximately the same size as the gooseberry fruits in your home garden. Credit video to @montereybayaquarium.org. #scicomm #MarineLife

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

As a fish person, I was always jealous of the annotations/resources for the human genome. Now as a ctenophore researcher, I realize that #zebrafish people don't know how good they actually have it. A silver lining is that the struggles I had with the zebrafish genome have prepared me for this. 😵‍💫

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Work with #zebrafish models of human disease? Or maybe you want to bring awareness to a certain disease? Let ZDMS highlight your work and interests in our running series #KnowYourZDM, which we highlight how this mighty fish is advancing human research 🐟 💪 Reach out directly, if interested!

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Ironically, Moroz et al submitted their paper to Nature in Sept 2013. Two months later, Ryan et al practically "scooped" them with their Science publication, having only submitted their paper for review in July 2013. Now, both papers are cited at the same rate. Hopefully there were no hard feelings!

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Anna Czarkwiani @aniaczark.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Looking forward to sharing my origin story 😁

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

I now understand how quickly a comb jelly bloom can happen. Mnemiopsis are nuts. We had one larval comb jelly (aka cydippid) a month ago and now we are up over 100. 😳

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Happy #CtenophoreCtuesday! For your moment of zen, enjoy this tentacular (comb) jelly roll 🪼🌀 Captured by the ever-talented macro-photographer & scientist @adameykolab.bsky.social 🤩 Stay tuned for next week as we comb through the internet looking for all things #ctenophore! #MarineLife #scicomm

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Already having FOMO about Ctenopalooza Ctwo next week. But unfortunately, I can't leave the UK until my ILR is processed. 😩

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Finally caught a decent video of a comb jelly in action! This is Bob, the biggest one in our facility. Bob underwent reverse development due to stress & transitioned from an adult (lobate) back to a larva (cydippid). Now Bob is developing back into a lobate again! Science is so cool 🤩 #ctenophore

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Pawel Burkhardt @pawelburkhardt.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Postdoc opportunity in Copenhagen! Interested in marine bioluminescence, comb jellies & experimental biology? A great 2-year postdoc (possibility of 1-year extension), working with CRISPR, imaging & EM in the labs of Anders Garm & Cornelia Jaspers. Deadline: 16.08 jobportal.ku.dk/videnskabeli...

jobportal.ku.dk

Postdoc in Marine Bioluminescence - re-advertisement

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

At the moment, this is the only way I know that they're alive after I handle them 😅

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Kei Jokura @kei-jokura.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Our review paper on nerve nets has just been published!! @jekely.biologists.social.ap.brid.gy

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

This isn’t getting enough attention: @amjeve.uk is pairing each talk at #2026SDB with Pokémon that highlight the topic! So creative and fun 🤩 #scicomm

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Watching Bob grow over the last few weeks has definitely been giving me ‘first time seeing zebrafish embryos down a scope’ vibes 🤩 Although I think the wild Mnemiopsis I saw in Woods Hole is false advertising. Those things were massive in comparison to lab-raised 😂

Image of Bob the ctenophore in a glass dish with a dark background

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Been taking care of Bob the comb jelly for the past couple weeks. I can’t get enough of how amazing these little things are. Bob was recently stressed and reverted back from a lobate (adult) to a cydippid (larva). It even regrew their tentacles! Now they are getting bigger again. Can you spot them?

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

I’m particularly proud of my growing ALT text skills 🤭

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

*Kid scrolling through my phone* Him: “Why do you have so many pictures of fish?” Me: 😅

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Ctenophores Rock! @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Happy #CtenophoreCtuesday! For your moment of zen, enjoy these cydippid comb jellies feeding on some tasty copepods 🔊🪼😋🪳 Their sticky tentacles contract with a spinning motion to bring the prey to their mouths. #ctenophore #scicomm 🌊 🦑 Credit 📽️ to Dr. Richard Kirby (@PlanktonPundit/X) 🎵: Megisss

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

I've officially started in the Sachkova Group at @bristolbiosci.bsky.social, which means it's full flow ahead with @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social 🪼🥁 Ctime to brush up on my tenta-cool comb jelly puns! #SciComm #ctenophore

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Slowly figuring out this new community with the help of @ctenophoresrock.bsky.social. Finding lots of cool stuff like my current background noise, courtesy of @mbarinews.bsky.social. I've already learned so much and I haven't even officially started yet (That starts tomorrow!) 😲

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

People are going to miss my fish jokes 😘 I'll need to come up with some #ctenophore puns to start the new job next week. I know you're jelly! 😉

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

I’ll be new to this community as of next week but to call a colleague’s work “extremely dodgy” in a formal setting is beyond me. Especially when this could shape the careers of more-junior researchers. 😳

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

My brain crashed trying to remember how to pronounce "petri dish" 🧫 So I said both "PET-ree" and "PEE-tree" and left even more confused. Almost as bad as me trying to pronounce "macrophage" (as "MACK-roh-fayj" and MACK-ruh-fayj"). 🤷

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

What started as an outlet to share fun facts about #zebrafish, turned into a community resource. There’s been ups and downs but there’s been one constant throughout all of this: I’m still considered a trainee 😭

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Tessa Montague @tessamontague.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Do you know an outstanding aquarist? We're hiring a Senior Aquarist to help run our cephalopod facility at Columbia University. Our team maintains a colony of 250+ cuttlefish, develops new husbandry techniques (inc transgenics) & studies cuttlefish camouflage and social behavior. 1/3 [Pls repost!]

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

The thing I like best about this series is that they have a wide range of career stages amongst the speakers - from Graduate Students to Postdocs to Group Leaders. Do try to attend these if you are free this week. And check out the rest of the series, if keen: www.zdmsociety.org/2026-zdms-ri... 🐟

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

The free half-term activity at our local library was make your own jellyfish! 🪼 My 4.5yo made some for me 🥰 (see angriest ones). I didn’t have the heart to tell him (or any of my family tbh) that jellyfish and comb jellies are completely different. These will eventually be going in my new office 😊

Three jellyfish made from half a paper plate and some strips of colorful tissue paper.

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

I really want to go to this just to get a Ctenopalooza t-shirt 😝

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

My kid really has a sixth sense for when I’m stressed/overwhelmed that he proceeds to climb my head like it’s Mount Everest. 😩

static.klipy.com

Cute Panda Cubs Stacked to Climb Tree

ALT: Cute Panda Cubs Stacked to Climb Tree

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

I’m not convinced Bluesky is the right home for this. I think it’s time to shelve it for a couple months 🤷‍♂️

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Looking to schedule an online event for an international audience but confused over the different time zones? I prefer to use www.worldtimebuddy.com. You can input a date & compare local times at several locations to better communicate with your potential audience. h/t @katwrog.bsky.social #scicomm

Screenshot of WorldTimeBuddy.com showing various locations and the respective time zones. You can easily hover over different times and see the corresponding time in another location.

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

If you know who the one on the left is, I share your commiserations as a parent and stand in solidarity 😂 😭

Chalk drawing of two popular characters including one of a man wearing an orange and blue hat and a dinosaur with a flame on his tail (supposed to be Charmander)

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Reposted by Kevin Thiessen, PhD

Zebrafish Disease Models Society (ZDMS) @zdmsociety.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

🚨 One week left to submit abstracts for #ZDM19! With plenty of talks available (to be selected based on abstracts), don't miss your chance to present in front of the cordial #ZDMS community 😊 For more details, visit: www.zdmsociety.org/zdm19-abstra.... Please share with your colleagues & labmates!

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Kevin Thiessen, PhD @kevinthiessen.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

I've been staring at these images too long as they are starting to look like random objects 😵‍💫 Anyone else see the red planet? 😜 #zebrafish #SciArt

Image of a circular wound on an adult zebrafish. It strangely looks like Mars. Color adjusted to look more like the red planet. All experiments performed under direction of UK Home Office license.

Rendering of Mars by Digital World as part of Scientific American.

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Vengamanaidu Modepalli @venky-vnm.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

Interested in miRNAs, early animal evolution, and RNA biology? We’re recruiting a BBSRC-funded Postdoctoral Research Associate @bristolbiosci.bsky.social #Postdoc #microRNA #RNAbiology Apply by 14 May 2026. 👉 www.bristol.ac.uk/jobs/find-in...

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Tessa Montague @tessamontague.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Excited to share a new review by @kocherlab.bsky.social and me: Nature-inspired neuroscience We discuss diverse sensory systems and behaviors across the animal kingdom and argue for their integration into neuroscience. New tools in diverse systems are making this possible ✨ tinyurl.com/y5y9du27

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