Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Spandrels of San Marco. Strictly speaking ‘pendentives’ but spandrels seems to work much better. 4306
Reposted by Max TelfordThe Palaeontological Association @thepalass.bsky.social · 28/09/2026Dear members, 🦴 The PalAss is pleased to be supporting a three-day Morphological Phylogenetics Workshop with the Systematics Association and the Society of Spanish Researchers in the UK. ⬇️ docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... #workshop 078
Reposted by Max TelfordJudith Mank @judithmank.bsky.social · 23/09/2026So very, very happy to see this out @plosbiology.org : Ancient inversion polymorphisms associate with sexually selected traits across natural guppy populations. Beautiful work by two very clever and talented coauthors, Yuying Lin and @vdbijl.bsky.social . journals.plos.org/plosbiology/... 1/journals.plos.orgAncient inversion polymorphisms associate with sexually selected traits across natural guppy populationsGenomic inversions spanning many genes can persist for millions of years. This study of Trinidadian guppy populations reveals how both ecological conditions and mate choice help maintain this hidden l... 17536
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 23/09/2026Today, 23 Sept, is the centenary of the tragic suicide of Austrian Zoologist and Lamarckian, Paul Kammerer. A fascinating and controversial man. I wrote about him in this week's Nature. www.nature.com/articles/d41...nature.comFraud sealed the fate of controversial zoologist Paul Kammerer — 100 years on, his ideas deserve revisitingAfter an eventful life in the limelight, the discovery of a manipulated specimen preceded the biologist’s death. Questions about his findings remain. 043
Reposted by Max TelfordAna Serra Silva @anaserrasilva.bsky.social · 16/09/2026We are a friendly bunch, who like hearing about anything systematics-related (methods included!) and about any taxon! If you're a student (or recent graduate) working on any aspect of systematics, taxonomy and phylogenetics send your abstract along! (Preferably well in advance of October 24!!!) 039
Reposted by Max TelfordMax Farnworth @maxfarnworth.bsky.social · 17/09/2026Apply, apply, apply (till Monday!) 076
Reposted by Max TelfordZooCELL MSCA-Doctoral Network @zoocell.bsky.social · 15/09/2026🔬 Meet Max Telford, PI of the ZooCELL team at UCL! @maxjtelford.bsky.social From natural history and marine life to reconstructing events from half a billion years ago, get to know Max, his research and his passion for sharing evolutionary biology beyond academia. 🧵👇 194
Reposted by Max TelfordNathaniel Comfort @nccomfort.bsky.social · 12/09/2026By my count, @philipcball.bsky.social has published more than forty books. I haven't come across one yet that wasn't worth reading. Theory alone suggests you should get it. QED. 252
Reposted by Max TelfordRoger Highfield @rogerhighfield.bsky.social · 09/09/2026 I've seen Pressure, out in UK cinemas today, about the D-Day forecast: there's a fair amount of shouting in a country house and it's very good. But the film made me think about AI, which is not what I'd expected: rogerhighfield.substack.com/p/pressure-t...rogerhighfield.substack.comPressure Test: What D-Day Tells Us About AI Weather ForecastsA new film about the momentous D-Day forecast turns out to be an unexpectedly good guide to whether we should trust AI with the weather 152
Reposted by Max TelfordLars Chittka @larschittka.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Looking forward to giving the Huck Distinguished Lecture at Penn State University next week: www.huck.psu.edu/calendar/huc... 061
Reposted by Max TelfordPaul Halpern @phalpern.bsky.social · 25/08/2026In the golden age of Vienna, two brilliant thinkers vied to shape the future of physics. Their passionate struggle led directly to the quantum and relativity revolutions. History of science at its most gripping! THE GREAT ATOM DEBATE Preorder now www.amazon.com/gp/product/1... greatatomdebate.com 48528
Reposted by Max TelfordMatthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · 07/09/2026I just published a brief account of Jim Watson’s life, aimed at students. It leans heavily on the insights of @nccomfort.bsky.social, whose biography of Watson will be out next year. Free link here: rdcu.be/M91CnnE3N4wa 74416
Reposted by Max TelfordStephen Montgomery @ebablab.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Amazing www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukHow a fly brain may help explain the secrets of human behaviourComparing the brains of male and female flies may transform our understanding of how genes shape behaviour, including ours. 081
Reposted by Max TelfordProfile Books @profilebooks.bsky.social · 03/09/2026AN ECONOMIST, GUARDIAN AND CHURCH TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR Meticulously researched and shot through with insight and electrifying detail, @matthewcobb.bsky.social’s CRICK reveals the man who changed our view of life forever. #Crick is out today in paperback 🧬 Find out more: tinyurl.com/bd5bstwk 1138
Reposted by Max TelfordManuel Irimia @mirimiam.bsky.social · 03/09/2026🚨🚨🚨 As part of the MSCA-DN DECODES, we're looking for a PhD student to study splicing programs in beta cells and diabetes at @melisupf.bsky.social @crg.eu Join 14 other PhD students across Europe to decipher the splicing code in human disease. More info below 👇 www.findaphd.com/phds/project...findaphd.comDECODES at University of Santiago de Compostela on FindAPhD.comPhD Project - DECODES at University of Santiago de Compostela, listed on FindAPhD.com 1813
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Important paper by @kaplipa.bsky.social and colleagues. Advocating for the importance of Natural History museum collections in genomics. www.nature.com/articles/s41...nature.comSpecies-dense genomics through natural history collections - Nature Reviews GeneticsLarge-scale genome initiatives are transforming biodiversity genomics, but genomes remain taxonomically sparse and difficult to compare across species. Kapli and colleagues argue that natural history ... 04730
Reposted by Max TelfordHenry Gee 亨利·纪 @endofthepier.bsky.social · 27/08/2026Timeo Danaos Et Dona Ferentes. So buy one for yourself. 142
Reposted by Max TelfordHoyaboya @hoyaboya1.bsky.social · 23/08/2026Branigan et al. (2026-08 preprint, bioRxiv) 「クラウン有胎盤類の急速な放散のモデル化」 Modelling a rapid radiation of crown-group placentals doi.org/10.64898/202... 055
Reposted by Max TelfordHoyaboya @hoyaboya1.bsky.social · 23/08/2026Ordoñez & Wollesen (2026, Communications Biology) 「毛顎動物Spadella cephalopteraの前後軸パターン形成により,左右相称動物の神経系および尾部の進化に示唆が与えられる」 Anterior-posterior patterning in the chaetognath Spadella cephaloptera informs bilaterian nervous system and tail evolution doi.org/10.1038/s420... 096
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 21/08/2026I recently spoke to podcaster Bob Wells about my book 'The Tree of Life'. It was a great experience, Bob is a great interviewer who asked really interesting questions. I think the podcast is really worth a listen. Please repost! open.spotify.com/episode/6RcC...open.spotify.comThe Tree of Life: The Four Billion Year Journey to Us with Max TelfordUndercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science & much more. · Episode 131
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 20/08/2026Very cool looking paper. Congrats. Looking forward to reading. 141
Reposted by Max TelfordNeil Miles @neilsmiles.com · 17/08/202629th August 1985 - An excited Michael Fish gets to deploy the rarely seen red number as the temperature gets up to an incredible 26 degrees in London! 521655712
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 18/08/2026I’m not telling where this deserted beach in Dorset is. The sea is lovely. Feels very fin de saison ;-). 030
Reposted by Max TelfordW. W. Norton & Company @wwnorton.com · 18/08/2026"In FORCE OF NATURE, biologist and legal scholar Owen Jones argues convincingly that understanding how evolution by natural selection works can inform humans’ interactions with their environment and with each other." Read the full Nature review here: www.nature.com/articles/d41...nature.comWhen should you treat a fever? Evolution holds the answerUnderstanding natural selection can improve medical treatments, social policies and crop yields. 032
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 17/08/2026Flattered to be followed by Shropshire obviously. But worried it’s just because I’m called Telford. 020
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 17/08/2026Lovely review of my book 'The Tree of Life'. Thanks @lhug.bsky.social! 0113
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 12/08/2026Forgive the mild blasphemy. It was beyond amazing. In Spain near León. 0120
Reposted by Max TelfordRob Waterhouse @rmwaterhouse.bsky.social · 10/08/2026A broad taxonomic representation enables a phylum-wide assessment to systematically evaluate, refine, and revise current understanding of the evolutionary dynamics of the moulting genetic toolkit academic.oup.com/mbe/article/... #biodiversity #evolutionary #genomicsacademic.oup.comEvolutionary dynamics of the arthropod molting machineryAbstract. Exoskeletons define arthropods, providing support for segmented bodies and appendages while protecting against environmental stress and predation 073
Reposted by Max TelfordGaspar Jekely @jekely.biologists.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/07/2026In our new preprint, Réza Shahidi, Alexandra Kerbl and Karel Mocaer give an exquisitely detailed manual on serial sectioning for electron microscopy. "Volume Electron Microscopy: Tips & Tricks on Micromanipulator-Assisted Serial Sectioning for Array […] [Original post on biologists.social] 0178
Reposted by Max TelfordJay Shendure @jshendure.bsky.social · 31/07/2026Thrilled to post thread re: new single-cell lineage of mouse embryo reconstructed w/ DNA Typewriter. One animal, zygote to late organogenesis (E13.5). Tree has 1,340,794 transcriptionally profiled, annotated tips (cells), 1,142,588 dated internal nodes, rooted at zygote 1/n 313458
Reposted by Max TelfordGaspar Jekely @jekely.biologists.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/07/2026If you are interested in nervous system evolution you may want to read our review with Kei Jokura on nerve nets: "Revisiting nerve nets: functional organization and evolutionary implication" link.springer.com/article/10.1038/s… […] [Original post on biologists.social] 27230
Reposted by Max TelfordHoyaboya @hoyaboya1.bsky.social · 29/07/2026McDermott et al. (2026-07, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences) 「動物における対称性の進化に対する形態系統学的アプローチ」 A morphological phylogenetic approach to the evolution of symmetry in animals doi.org/10.1098/rspb... うおおおおおおお!!!!! 01410
Reposted by Max TelfordMatthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · 28/07/202622 years ago today, Francis Crick died. You can read about his life, his brilliance and his failures in my biography, available in hardback in the UK and USA (and as an audiobook and ebook) and soon in a chonky UK paperback. 16314
Reposted by Max TelfordAylwyn Scally @aylwyn-scally.bsky.social · 28/07/2026Thoroughly enjoyed this. Lots of science, and it prompted me to read some of Crick's original writing. He had that incredible insight, like Turing, into the implications of his work and others'. Plus a fun puzzle trying to work out who some of his secret lovers were, with the aid of Google. 274
Reposted by Max TelfordZooCELL MSCA-Doctoral Network @zoocell.bsky.social · 28/07/2026🔬 Meet Kevin Grüner, DC in the ZooCELL team at IGFL! Kevin completed his BSc in Biology and MSc in Zoology at the Uni. of Innsbruck, where he also worked at the EM facility and tutored different courses. He is now a DC in ZooCELL, investigating limb regeneration. 🧵 Read on to get to know Kevin. 164
Reposted by Max TelfordZooCELL MSCA-Doctoral Network @zoocell.bsky.social · 23/07/2026🔬 Meet Mathilde Paris, PI and co-leader of the ZooCELL team at IGFL! In this thread, Mathilde shares what first drew her to EvoDevo, the questions that drive her research, and what she enjoys most about mentoring the next generation of scientists. 🧵👇 #EvoDevo #genomics #regeneration #MSCA #IGFL 1175
Reposted by Max TelfordPhoebe Cohen @phoebefossil.bsky.social · 16/07/2026Super excited that our paper led by @sandinmm.eurosky.social in PNAS is out! We show that crown-group eukaryotes were already taxonomically and ecologically diverse throughout the Mesoproterozoic, revealing complex communities well before the Neoproterozoic radiation. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...pnas.orgEnvironmental phylogenetics supports a steady diversification of crown eukaryotes starting from the mid-Proterozoic | PNASMolecular clock and preservation of early microfossil assemblages suggest that eukaryotes were present and already diverse more than ~1600 million ... 29034
Reposted by Max TelfordMatthew Cobb @matthewcobb.bsky.social · 16/07/2026The paperback of CRICK is back from the printers! Out in 6 weeks. £14.99. Has the colour plates and fewer misteaks! 1277
Reposted by Max TelfordKatie Holmes @runyoung50.bsky.social · 15/07/2026Fabulous to see my book Rulebreakers and Ghost Runners out in the wild on social media! #SportsHistory #WomensHistory #Skystorians 094
Reposted by Max TelfordDr Lucy Rogers @drlucyrogers.com · 15/07/2026Please re-post to your networks :) 125
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 04/07/2026For anyone else gutted @nedboulting.bsky.social and co. are no longer on tv for Tour de France follow this link…. neverstraysfar.comneverstraysfar.comNever Strays Far | Cycling PodcastHosted by Ned Boulting, David Millar and Pete Kennaugh. The three talk about lots of things, although they never stray far from the core issue, bike racing. Expect guests from the racing world and som... 000
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Oh bloody hell I’d forgotten. And no @nedboulting.bsky.social. Life is a little worse. Enshitification?? 100
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 04/07/2026Uk in second place. Politicians should be asked what the optimal number of citizens in prison should be (correct answer is surely zero) and what they’re doing to achieve that. 010
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 01/07/2026HELP? Trying to get original, untrimmed alignments from this paper. Have looked very hard. Anyone able to help?? Philippe et al. Multigene analyses of bilaterian animals corroborate the monophyly of Ecdysozoa, Lophotrochozoa, and Protostomia Mol Biol Evol. 2005 May;22(5):1246-53. 011
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 01/07/2026I gave a talk about my book The Tree of Life at a very hot Linnean Society last Thursday. This is now available to view on YouTube. www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzT2...youtube.comThe Tree of Life (A User’s Manual) | Max TelfordYouTube video by Linnean Society 093
Reposted by Max TelfordZooCELL MSCA-Doctoral Network @zoocell.bsky.social · 30/06/2026🔬 Meet Ina Arnone, ZooCELL PI at @szndohrn.bsky.social In this Q&A, she shares how she discovered EvoDevo, the big questions driving their research and her passion for mentoring the next generation of scientists. Follow the thread to learn more. 👇 #MSCA #ZooCELL #EvoDevo @arnonelab.bsky.social 1177
Max Telford @maxjtelford.bsky.social · 27/06/2026Righteous anger. Excellent. open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...open.substack.comOn Holding Elon Musk AccountableWhy aren't we talking more about DOGE? 000