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Reposted by Justin Brower

Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

It's time for Tox Tuesday and some fountain pen structures! This beast is BREVETOXIN-1, produced by the marine dinoflagellate Karenia brevis. It is also the cause of neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP). But aside from harming humans, it also harms our economy, so buckle up!

The chemical structure of brevetoxin-1, drawn with a TWSBI ECO fountain pen and Iroshizuko Kon-peki ink (a vibrant blue).

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

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Reposted by Justin Brower

Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

No Tox Tuesday today, sorry. But here's a Fountain Pen & Ink structure. I had an awesome poem to go along with it, but there were too many characters 😔. Amanitin is the toxin of "Death Cap" mushrooms ☠️

Chemical structure of amanitin, the toxin of Amanita, "Death Cap" mushrooms. Pen is a Narwahl in Hippocampus purple and the ink is Iroshizuku Yama-budo (pink-purple).

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

Happy Mardis Gras! I got the baby from the king cake.

Small plastic baby from a Mardis Gras king cake.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

I live in hurricane country, but we've got an imbecile with a Sharpie in charge, so I feel OK.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

Happy Tox Tuesday (with a fountain pen & ink later)! Science evolves, and thanks to advances in research and technology, what we believed true years ago may not hold true today. And that's OK, that's science. But sometimes we get things horribly wrong, which is how A SCIENTIST STOLE MY ROOTBEER. 🧵

Six bottles of root beer lined up on my old wooden deck railing. The root beers are, Left to right: Bundaberg, Abita, Americana, Old Red Etye, Tommyknockers, and Saranac.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

Adventures in Fountain Pens. I hope I don't have court next week, I'll look sillier than usual. First, when I raise my left hand because I can never remember, and then when this hand goes up 🙃

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

Good morning, Nerds. It's one of those days - covered in blankets with hot tea and a cool book.

My dog, sleeping on my couch, cozy and covered in a blanket.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

The first two books in the series I'm reading had section breaks like * * * * * and the third one I'm reading the breaks are like ______. I don't like it; I'm not taking this change well.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

It snowed and the roads are covered in ice, so I messaged work and told them all that I couldn't make it into work today. I work from home. Let's see who figures it out first.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

I've seen the name John Doe at least a thousand times in my work. This had me believing I'd meet at least one, but I haven't. Not trying to start a conspiracy theory, but something is going on here.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

And to my surprise, it is actually snowing! This part of NC just doesn't have the resources or infrastructure to deal with snow and ice, so we really will be shut down this week.

A view back door, showing the snowy conditions outside.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

By popular vote, today's Tox Tuesday and Fountain Pen & Ink Poison is T-2 MYCOTOXIN. It has a fascinating history and mechanism of action and is involved in a Cold War conspiracy theory that leads us toward....bee poop. It may be long, so grab some hot cocoa.

The chemical structure of T-2 mycotoxin is drawn with a PenBBS 456 vacuum-filling fountain pen that is various shades of green, kinda like marble. The in k Is a dark green and is Robert Oster River of Fire.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

Schools are already closed and the Governor has declared a state of emergency. It's 51 degrees and sunny.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

What do y'all want to hear about for Tox Tuesday? The science, history, and toxin related to: 1. Bee poop 2. Mutant fish 3. Root Beer 4. Weaponized algae

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

It's gonna be a long week, again, so I cooked a weeks worth of comfort food, mapo tofu. I can't feel my tongue, which is just how I like my Sichuan foods, lol

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

For those of us in the US, A THOUSAND BLOWS, airs on Hulu, Friday 2/21. It looks like it will be a fun watch.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

New additions - fountain pen and crab - to the Crab Army. (Pen is a Jinhao 82 in Peacock Blue and gold crab is sadly not made of gold. Rather, it is 3D-printed.)

A small gold crab that acts as a fountain pen rest, holding the pen above is head in its claws. Pen in a Jinhao 82 - a Sailor GearPro Slim clone, i think.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

New fountain pen and ink day (my sole birthday present to myself)! This is domoic acid, the toxin responsible for amnesic shellfish poisoning. It's also the inspiration for Alfred Hitchcock's THE BIRDS.

Chemical structure of domoic acid, the toxin responsible for amnesia shellfish poisoning. Pen is a Jinhao 82 (a Sailor ProGear Slim clone, I think). It's in peacock blue, which is a green-blue with sparkles. Ink is Diamine Steel Blue, a blue-green color. Not quite teal, it's a bit bluer than that.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

The striped pajama squid are one of the few organisms that are both venomous AND poisonous. They can inject tetrodotoxin with their tiny teeth, and they secrete a poisonous slime when threatened to deter predators. So don't let it bite you and don't bite it. Besides, it's super cute.

A striped pajama squid. They're about 2 inches long and are white with black stripes that run lengthwise down its body.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

The weather guessers predict up to 7" of snow Wednesday in Raleigh. That means we'll get 1/32" and the entire state of NC shut down for a week.

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Reposted by Justin Brower

Maureen Johnson @maureenjohnsonbooks.com · 16/02/2025

I normally would not play this card, but today is my birthday. What I wish for most is for everyone who can, once on every device they have, to hit this link to vote for ASISTA to get a #P4A2025 grant. That's it. Takes under 5 seconds and will save lives! It's just a vote--no email, nothing.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Hey, @bsky.app, any chance we can get polls? I can't decide whether to play Skyrim or RDR2 tonight and need some expert guidance.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Oh, sweet baby Jesus. Those molecules are as fake as the cheese on gas station nachos.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

If you need to unplug and chill - and I hope that's not a euphemism for something freaky - dive into a cozy mystery. This series is a great place to start. Am currently reading book #2, DIM SUM OF ALL FEARS, and loving it.

Book two of Vivien Chien's book series A Noodle Shop Mystery, DIM SUM OF ALL FEARS.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

I liked my white crab fountain pen holder so much I 3D-printed one in gold. Printing a crab army might be in my weekend plans.

A gold 3D-printed crab fountain pen holder. The crab has their front legs in the air and the pen rests on their claws. The pen in a red aluminum Moonman T1. You can see the white one in the background.

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BookGeekGrrl 💗💜💙 @bookgeekgrrl.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

this thread is perfection. I especially love rule #3. (and I forever adore PM)

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Reposted by Justin Brower

Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

It's Thursday and we need some levity around here. So, I bring you one of my favorite movies, PRACTICAL MAGIC. Not because of my decades-long crush on Sandra Bullock, but because it was the inspiration for a murder gone wrong and "Justin's Three Rules of Murder." This may be long, so grab some tea.

Movie poster for the movie PRACTICAL MAGIC, starring Sandra Bullock.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

It's a hot chocolate for lunch, hot chocolate for dinner kind of day. I dreamt of this as a kid.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

What do you see? When I ink my fountain pens, I often shake off the excess ink and make these ink blots. I promise not to psychologically profile you too much.

A multi-color ink blot, like a Rorschach test.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Even if this cut is over 10 years, as reported by some as the news gets more traction, the end result is the same, just slower. And if you're still ok with that, I can't help you.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

This is essentially all of Medicaid. People will die. If it goes away: 1. 80M lose health coverage - the poor, pregnant women, children, elderly, disabled 2. Hospitals, especially in rural areas, will close 3. Nursing homes will close. Hope granny likes the streets 4. Private insurance will go up

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

If you're hungry and can't decide what to eat, the answer is hot chocolate

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Reposted by Justin Brower

Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Happy ToxTuesday! I love spring; it's like nature's way of starting over. And in much of the southeastern U.S., one of the first signs of spring is the lovely Sanguinaria canadensis, commonly known as BLOODROOT. It's definitely beautiful and definitely dangerous, so read on! (Plant photos by me)

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Really @acs.org? Did you think we wouldn't notice the scrubbing of DEIR, which you pushed just a month ago? Why did you feel the need to preemptively cave? FAFO time, I guess. And since I'm being honest with you, 21.4% of my ire is because I've never received any mugs from you in the last 25 years.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

In 10 years, the NFL can do the funniest thing ever and have their big game overseas - Super Bowl 69 Nice, France.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

My little joke about murder geese attracted every Canadian here. I love y'all so much 🤣

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

A broken can opener is called a can't opener

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

Call me crazy, but I think if you really wanted to uncover financial fraud, you'd want a team of forensic accountants, not hackers.

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Justin Brower @naturespoisons.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

Unsure what capping indirect costs from NIH grants to 15% means, in layperson terms? When a researcher is awarded an NIH grant, which is HARD to get, a portion of it goes to the university to support its infrastructure. It's usually in the 40-60% range. 1/?

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Reposted by Justin Brower

Manini AF @maninialex.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

🚨 NIH Indirect Cost Cuts: A Thread 🚨 1/ Late on a Friday, NIH dropped a bombshell—effective next week, ALL NIH grants will have a flat 15% indirect cost cap. No negotiation. No exceptions. 📉💰 grants.nih.gov/grants/guide... #ResearchFunding #SciencePolicy #medsky

grants.nih.gov

NOT-OD-25-068: Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates

NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates NOT-OD-25-068. OD

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