iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dr. Sarah Thomas @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Check out our new article ⬇️ We found greater adolescent cannabis frequency, potency, and cannabis use disorder severity was significantly related to an indicator of subcortical dopamine-related neurophysiology 🧠

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Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Russell Vought, Director of the OMB, has issued a set of proposed changes that would dramatically alter federal grant funding. However, we can each take action to prevent these from taking effect. Here's how, a 🧵 🧪 1/n www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

White House seeks to tighten political oversight of grantmaking

Sweeping proposed rule, now open for comments, would also restrict foreign collaborations and remove federal funding for open-access fees

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Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

Her post also includes detailed and exceptionally helpful suggestions about how to craft the most effective comment, with some detailed examples for scientists or those who support science. 🧪

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Joar Øveraas Halvorsen @joarhalvorsen.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

«(…) our review [of medical cannabis] shows little evidence of efficacy. There is a substantial gap between clinical use and available evidence. It is concerning that the use of these treatments could delay or replace the use of more effective therapies.» www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

thelancet.com

The efficacy and safety of cannabinoids for the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis

There was some evidence that cannabinoids can reduce symptoms of cannabis use disorder, insomnia, tic or Tourette's syndrome, and autism spectrum disorder, but the quality of this evidence was general...

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Greg Folkers @gregfolkers.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Congressional Committees with Oversight of NIH with midterms and 2027 budget percolating, now is the time to write✍️ www.congress.gov/committees

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Joshua Weitz @joshuasweitz.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

A 20% budget cut atop multiyear funding-induced cuts to research and direct terminations of projects underway will further degrade American leadership in science. This is early news & not even a proposal or appropriations - precisely the reason to speak out now. rollcall.com/2026/03/27/s...

rollcall.com

Sources: White House to propose 20 percent cut to NIH funding

The White House is expected to ask Congress to cut National Institutes of Health spending by 20 percent in the president’s fiscal 2027 budget request, according to multiple sources with knowledge of t...

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Mary Anne Franks @maryannefranks.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

If you are wondering what words the all-male Congress found so "blasphemous" that they felt compelled to literally scrape them off the monument, they were: ''Woman, first denied a soul, then called mindless, now arisen, declared herself an entity to be reckoned.''

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Sarah Ross @sarahross1.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

This is very disturbing. It certainly feels like the rumors that the Trump Administration is trying to destroy the NIH from within—partly by having all funding decisions made by Trump appointees—are true. This is a 5-alarm fire for biomedical science in this country.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

🚨 New from me: Grant review at more than half of NIH's institutes could be frozen by the end of the year. That's because crucial NIH grant-review panels are slated to be empty at those institutes by Jan 2027. A wonky bureaucratic problem with big implications. A short 🧵

nature.com

Exclusive: key NIH review panels due to lose all members by the end of 2026

Thirteen of the agency’s advisory councils, which must review grant applications before funding is awarded, are on track to have no voting members.

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William Adler @williamadler78.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

A disaster for the U.S. and the world that will have long term ramifications

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Mark Histed @markhisted.org · 20/11/2025

Lots going on but don’t lose track of the Trump attacks on biomedical research and cancer cures. @jeremymberg.bsky.social posted a leaked #NIH memo today. I want to highlight a few scary parts. They’re about taking power from scientists and experts and giving it to the president’s hacks. 1/ 🧪

DRAFT/PRE-DECISIONAL - FOR ICD INPUT, 08.15.25
Achieving NIH's Mission: Leveraging Funding Policies
Vision: A consistent and unified NIH-wide approach for funding the most meritorious science, addressing health priorities, and supporting a robust biomedical workforce
Purpose: This framework provides a rubric by which ICO funding strategies are to be developed, implemented, and evaluated to achieve NIH's goals. All ICDs, in collaboration with their ICO staff, should review this framework and if needed, adjust respective funding policies and pay plan development processes.
Background: All ICOs have funding policies to support the mission of NIH to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability. Appropriately, ICOs have their own respective, yet complementary, strategic plans to meet their individual ICO missions. It is crucial that there is coordination across ICO strategic plans and resulting funding policies to collectively leverage NIH's successes for the good of the American public.
Core Tenets of ICO Funding Policies: Certain core tenets of funding policies should be consistent to ensure that the NIH mission and health priorities are being achieved. Moving forward, ICO funding policies should:
• Align with NIH's and the ICO's stated mission and strategic priorities
• Prioritize scientific merit, program relevance and program balance
• Incorporate the breadth of the ICO's research portfolio and approaches
• Consider investigator career stage and sustainability of the biomedical research workforce
• Consider the total amount of NIH funding available to the investigator to promote distribution of funding
• Align with the availability of funds from the ICO
Note that while the score and critiques an application receives in peer review are important factors in determining the scientific merit of a proposal, ICOs may not rely on funding "…

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Mark Histed @markhisted.org · 13/11/2025

A bad thing is unfolding at NIH this week: It looks like the Trump administration is trying to replace key civil servant scientific leaders, the Institute Directors, with political hires. These directors control the NIH budget, tens of billions. A bit of a video explainer here: 1/ 🧪

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Dr. Sarah Thomas @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social · 03/11/2025

👇 Our latest preprint, currently under review, and the first paper from my NIDA K23 study! 🧠

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Nature @nature.com · 01/11/2025

Ozempic, MRI machines and flat screen televisions all emerged out of fundamental research decades earlier — the very types of study being slashed by the US government go.nature.com/47hn0n5

go.nature.com

7 basic science discoveries that changed the world

Ozempic, MRI machines and flat screen televisions all emerged out of fundamental research decades earlier — the very types of study being slashed by the US government.

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Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 09/10/2025

Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE

nyti.ms

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Biological Psychiatry @biologicalpsych.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

In this review, @lucinauddin.bsky.social and Hugh Garavan examine how task and resting-state fMRI can reveal brain-behavior relationships in youth, highlighting current controversies and challenges, outlining solutions, and proposing future directions in developmental neuroscience research.

biologicalpsychiatryjournal.com

Task and resting state fMRI modelling of brain-behavior relationships in developmental cohorts

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data are often used to inform individual differences in cognitive, behavioral, and psychiatric phenotypes. These so-called “brain-behavior” association stu...

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U.S. Senator Jack Reed @reed.senate.gov · 12/09/2025

NEW: $8M for Bradley Hospital’s dedicated mental health professionals to boost research & strengthen services. This federal grant will help build a new facility to improve pediatric psychiatric research & make it easier to access top-notch services in one centralized, modern facility.

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Alt NIH Bluesky 🧪 @altnih4science.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

this ends with a description of what YOU can do. Please get involved now. Everyone can take one of these actions.

you are a lab head, this affects you; if you are a student, this
threatens your future The NIH grant system was already hyper- competitive before Trump. This policy will make it brutal. Without immediate resistance from the research community, this policy will go forward with devastating consequences for
US science.
What can you do? • Contact your Congressional representatives. It is best to show up in person. Explain and tell them to oppose this forward funding mandate. Share this article if it helps! Tell them to protect NIH
funding. • For researchers: Make noise within your institution. Ask your research office what they re doing to push back. Talk to your
program officers. Demand transparency. • Tell your local press that Trump is destroying US medical research, and find
local activist groups to reach out to. • There are many engaged citizens across the country affected by cancer, or Alzheimer's, that want more information from scientists to help them advocate to
their elected officials and to the press.
Offer to talk to them, and help them do

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Leslie Brick @lesliebrickphd.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

We’re heading in to Day 2 of our pre-college summer course at Brown 🧬 🧠 Conducting Research at the Forefront of Science: Mental Health, Policy, and Social Implications of Cannabis Use in the U.S. It’s always a blast teaching with @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social

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Ardem Patapoutian @ardemp.bskyverified.social · 25/06/2025

So important! Please contact your Republican senators, especially Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL), and Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA). 🙏 amplify!

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Dr. Sarah Thomas @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

I am hiring a clinical research assistant for a project on adolescent cannabis use that will use MRI 🧠 and behavioral tasks 🎮 More information is available in the link below, and applicants can send a CV and cover letter to me. Please share—thank you! tinyurl.com/msn8h2ce

tinyurl.com

Thomas_TEDS Lab RA Position.pdf

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Dr. Sarah Thomas @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

tinyurl.com

Thomas_TEDS Lab RA Position.pdf

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Kristian G. Andersen @kgandersen.bsky.social · 30/05/2025

Here's the NIH's proposed budget - from $48 billion to $27 billion. NIAID, current ~$7 billion cut to ~$4.2 billion. The proposed 15% cap on indirect costs remains. Again, these budgets are passed, and our leadership in science, technology, and innovation is gone. www.hhs.gov/sites/defaul...

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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

The original deadline for comments of May 23 has been extended to June 7 in response to requests from the public for more time to weigh in, an OMB spokesperson told STAT. 4/n

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Drug Monkey @drugmonkey.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Please comment. The Administration is trying to turn the NIH IC Directors and program staff roles into political appointees that serve at the whim of the President. Imagine if each change in administration brought sweeping changes in professional NIH staff across your favorite ICs.

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Clara Jeffery @clarajeffery.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

If you do in fact want Covid boosters for yourself or anyone, you can submit public comment to the FDA here: www.regulations.gov/commenton/FD...

regulations.gov

Regulations.gov

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Jon Freeman @freemanjb.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

🚨 A new rule would let career scientists like NSF/NIH program officers be replaced by political appointees Already 14,000+ public comments, deadline is Friday 📣 Comments can be short. Courts consider them—and scientists with NSF/NIH experience are especially impactful Speak up! shorturl.at/WKuBj

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Dr. Sarah Thomas @sarahathomasphd.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

I hope this isn’t true. We all need to contact our elected officials and get them to do more to support research right now

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

New from me: Everything feels overwhelming. But here is a tangible thing you can do: write a comment to oppose Trump's plan to convert 50,000 career civil servants into political appointees. Deadline is May 23. Please share! donmoynihan.substack.com/p/here-is-a-...

donmoynihan.substack.com

Here is a specific thing you can do to fight Trump's politicization of public services

Plus: what I wrote in Science about the revised Schedule F

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Association for Psychological Science @psychscience.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

Contact your Representative and Senators & urge them to support investments in NSF and NIH. The Administration’s proposed cuts to these vital agencies will harm #science and hinder our prosperity, health, and well-being. www.psychologicalscience.org/act-now

psychologicalscience.org

Act Now: Share your Concerns with Your Representative and Senators

It does not matter whether your Representative or Senators agree with you. They must hear from you to understand how federal policy changes are influencing the people they were elected to represent.

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Joshua Weitz @joshuasweitz.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

“However bad everyone on the outside thinks it is, it is a million times worse. They’re dismantling and destroying everything.” Read, share, respond. Call your representatives. The health and well-being of Americans & America's innovation economy are at stake. www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

NIH insiders: Trump is ‘dismantling and destroying everything’

After just 100 days, agency scientists say U.S. health institutes are demoralized and have lost essential staff and funding

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

A 50% cut to science funding (which is close to what Trump is proposing for NIH) would result in huge negative long-term economic outcomes: *7.6% cut in GDP *8.6% cut in federal revenues *equivalents of making the average American $10,000 poorer

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This American Life @thisamericanlife.org · 28/04/2025

A scientist who is used to organizing data starts tracking scientific meetings that seem to exist only on paper. The NIH website shows one reality; the empty conference rooms tell another story. link.podtrac.com/2ly1unpx

link.podtrac.com

Chaos Graph

People immersed in chaos try to solve for what it all adds up to. Prologue: A scientist who is used to organizing data starts tracking scientific meetings that seem to exist only on paper—meetings…

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Alex Shackman @ajshackman.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

Please consider making a public comment opposing the possibility of making NIH directors, program officers, and other staff (e.g. SRO, GMS) political appointees. This only took me ~90 seconds. Please repost. Thanks 👍

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Katie Witkiewitz @katiew.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

A visualization I created to share with family and friends about how the NIH indirect rate costs will hurt science AND our economy.

To understand the devastation for U.S. science right now. Here is how NIH grants work:
somebody comes up with a research idea, like a tree sapling
NIH invests in the “direct cost” of that idea, aka buys the sapling
Let’s say that sapling is $100

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Lucina Uddin @lucinauddin.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

Introducing a new tool from @tsbolt.bsky.social, find-viz (FMRI Interactive Navigation and Discovery Viewer)! It’s a browser-based visualization tool built with one purpose in mind: get researchers to spend more time looking at their fMRI data 🧠 @ohbmofficial.bsky.social @ohbmtrainees.bsky.social

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Jess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 11/04/2025

Make sure your less-than-plugged-in friends know that the House passed the SAVE Act. I'm seeing women who *never* post political stuff getting very angry about this online.

Post from a generally non political friend saying how the SAVE Act will prevent her from voting unless she gets a passport in her current married name.

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Jess Peters, PhD @jrpeters.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

Great turnout in Providence today! Hearing estimates of 8-10k; was hard to set a sense of on the ground bc we couldn’t even see to either end of the river of people streaming through the city. Felt good to be in a sea of other humans ready to fight against these injustices! #handsoff

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Nina C. Christie | PhD, MPH @ninachristie.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

Feeling particularly grateful to have had the chance to end the #CPA2025 conference and march in the Hands Off! rally today in Providence, RI with thousands of others to continue to stand up for science and public goods. @standupforscience.bsky.social @sufsnewmexico.bsky.social

A march with the Hands Off! organization and Stand Up For Science displaying a walking crowd of individuals in the street with various protest signs, including one that reads "the time is now".

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Kenneth Miller @kenmillerwrites.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

Happy #WorldSleepDay! A perfect day to buy my book, Mapping the Darkness: The Visionary Scientists Who Unlocked the Mysteries of Sleep—and to remember that without the NIH, many of the amazing advances in sleep science of the past 70 years would never have happened. bit.ly/47v5UQx

bit.ly

Mapping the Darkness

WINNER OF THE 2024 ASJA BOOK AWARD, BIOGRAPHY/HISTORY NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 BY THE NEW YORKER NEW YORK TIMES EDITOR'S CHOICE SELECTIONFrom...

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Better Things Are Possible @internethippo.bsky.social · 07/03/2025

All I'm saying is, if you ran a campaign on democracy being at stake and democracy lost, isn't it time to be massively freaking out instead of doing this

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Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 13/03/2025

The thing about scientific research is that it’s one of the few national investments that’s a clear public good even if you entirely discount the actual ostensible point of it.

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Margaret Crane, PhD @margaretcrane.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

1 week until we Stand Up for Science in RI! 🗓️ Friday, March 7, 12-4pm 📍 RI State House South lawn @standupforscience.bsky.social

poster for stand up for science RI rally on 3/7 from 12-4. bit.ly/RIregistration

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Dr. Rebecca Barnes (she/her) @waterbarnes.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

This is amazing 😍😍 @500womensci.bsky.social has made cards for each state on funding for NSF and NIH avail for download bit.ly/NSF_bystate & bit.ly/NIH_bystate if they are helpful for folks

bit.ly

NSF state cards - Google Drive

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