Tamara Caspary

Photo of the CDC memorial honoring employees who gave their lives in the service of public health. The memorial features a curved, perforated metal surface with a raised CDC logo in the center. Attached nameplates include ‘Diane Berry Caves,’ ‘George Flowers,’ ‘Roger Dublingon,’ and ‘Officer David Rose.’ In the background, a dark wall displays the inscription: ‘In Honor of Those Employees of CDC Who Gave Their Lives in the Service of the Public’s Health.’

Officer David Rose, 33, a former Marine and DeKalb County officer, has been added to CDC’s memorial plaque, honoring those who gave their lives in service of public health. He died protecting our CDC campus, staff, and contractors during a 2025 act of domestic terrorism fueled by misinformation.

A color outdoor portrait of American bacterial geneticist Evelyn Witkin in her later years, standing in a sun-dappled garden or courtyard setting with green foliage and a brick building in the soft-focus background. She is an elderly woman with fair skin, short wavy white hair, gentle smile lines, and warm, thoughtful eyes gazing directly at the camera with a kind, serene expression. She wears a white button-up blouse with subtle textured patterns, small earrings, and a distinctive beaded necklace featuring dark and light beads. A small silver dragonfly brooch is pinned to the left side of her blouse, symbolizing her pioneering work on DNA damage repair (often likened to cellular "rescue" mechanisms). The natural daylight softly illuminates her face, highlighting her dignified and approachable presence as a trailblazing scientist and a Lasker Award and National Medal of Science recipient. The overall mood is one of quiet wisdom, resilience, and quiet celebration of a long, impactful career in #WomenInScience. #WomensHistoryMonth

Geneticist Evelyn Witkin (b. #OTD 1921) pioneered work on DNA damage repair & mutagenesis.

Her discovery of the SOS response revealed how cells actively respond to genetic threats, laying foundations for insights into cancer, aging, radiation effects & chemotherapy resistance. #WomenInSTEM #WHM

“He didn't just train scientists; he forged thinkers.”- Gail Brady. The online tributes contain wonderful remembrances and analyses of David Botstein. What a legacy he leaves to the community.

David Botstein | 1942 - 2026 | Online-Tribute.com David was a beloved husband, father, brother, scientist, teacher, mentor, musician, friend, who touched the lives of thousands. David’s wide-ranging scientific career spanned decades with a legacy o…

Farewell to an absolute giant of molecular genetics, David Botstein www.online-tribute.com/DavidBotstein

Senior Scientist, Protein Sciences in South San Francisco, California, United States of America | Research & Development at Genentech Apply for Senior Scientist, Protein Sciences job with Genentech in South San Francisco, California, United States of America. Research & Development at Genentech

Our department at Genentech is hiring. We're looking for a freshly-minted PhD (0-3 years) protein biochemist / structural biologist to join as a Sr Scientist. A rare opportunity to join our group leader job family at a more junior level than we usually hire.

For the Author Accepted Manuscript many publishing contracts grant the author more rights than in the Final Published Article. So often not yet exclusive. But I am not, and won’t become, a lawyer either.

I wish it was a clear unfunded mandate

The Cost of Confusion: Dispelling Myths about the NIH Public Access Policy and Article Processing Charges Last July, the NIH issued an RFI on limiting direct spending on article processing charges (APCs). Over 900 public responses offered valuable perspectives but also exposed widespread misconceptions ab...

“The Reality: Authors can achieve full compliance with the NIH policy at zero cost by depositing their author accepted manuscript directly into PubMed Central, even when publishing in traditional subscription journals.” upstream.force11.org/cost-of-conf...

What NIH Staff Can’t Tell You—And Why That Matters The people who understand most clearly what is being lost at the NIH are also the people least able to say so.

Dr. Ginexi's latest blog states, "Constraint is not the same as consent." My colleagues and I move things. Maybe we move differently from before. Maybe we communicate differently. Please consider our safety. Keep talking with us. #NIHStrong #FEDstrong

Great- I always have an opinion to share 😉

So genetics will not be a training area. Can existing training grants go under different area at renewal?

The Cost of Confusion: Dispelling Myths about the NIH Public Access Policy and Article Processing Charges Last July, the NIH issued an RFI on limiting direct spending on article processing charges (APCs). Over 900 public responses offered valuable perspectives but also exposed widespread misconceptions about the NIH Public Access Policy and scholarly publishing.

Corinna Turbes and I discuss comments submitted to the NIH Office of Science Policy Request for Information on Article Processing Charges from the lens of dispelling myths about public access at The National Institutes of Health in Upstream by FORCE11:

https://doi.org/10.54900/6m4xn-y3m49

Applications for the 2026 CSHL Mouse Development, Stem Cells & Cancer course @cshlcourses.bsky.social are due March 13th. Don't miss this great opportunity to learn all about the mouse model from leaders in the field!

❤️

The world has lost a hero. Bill Foege helped lead smallpox eradication, guided the CDC in the early AIDS era, and shaped global health at the Gates Foundation and the Carter Center. As the Bill Foege Professor at Emory, I heard one refrain again and again: “Bill Foege is my hero.” He was mine too.

Meet the Minds of CDIB: Van Sciver’s journey to PKD discovery | Heersink School of Medicine News Meet the Minds of CDIB spotlights the diverse faculty who power the department’s groundbreaking research. Through candid interviews, it gives readers a closer look at the career paths, passions, and…

In this installment of Meet the Minds of CDIB, Robby Van Sciver, Ph.D., discusses his research on polycystic kidney disease and cilia biology using mouse models.

Learn more 🔗 buff.ly/vTSjhfv

Leafcutter ant holds up a large piece of leaf that says "Call for Scientists."

Seeking scientist volunteers for the 2026 spring semester! Want to practice science communication and help author a 🌟comic🌟 about your research? Apply by 1/25. Please share widely. bit.ly/comicscollabspring2026

Tank of zebrafish

I love that the Oregon ad in the #CFAPeachBowl includes this tribute to George Streisinger, who did his seminal zebrafish work in the 80’s at UO. #oregon #devbio #zebrafish

Tired of drawing cilia or centrioles for slides and papers? I feel you.

Check out CiliaBuilder for ChimeraX → cxtoolshed.rbvi.ucsf.edu/apps/chimera...

Build custom 3D cilia & centriole models (tips + primary cilia included).

Also a beneficiary of Jim Hunt’s work - an NCSSM outreach program exposed me to research at the universities in RTP (as a middle schooler!), got me excited to apply and attend NCSSM in HS, and lead me to pursue a career in scientific research. A legend…

Incredibly grateful for his leadership in education. It got me started as a scientist at NCSSM and then at UNC. And he made sure to focus on what mattered. He was one of NC’s greatest.

Decline and say that you wouldn’t be able to get to it until X date. I once had them circle back and ask again so was able to help- more sanely.

Become a Summer Intern in DCEG DCEG offers a summer research internship in cancer epidemiology, biostatistics, or genetics fo college, postbaccalaureate masters-level students, and graduate students, including medical and dental st...

The #NIH IRP Summer (paid!) Internship Program for 2026 has opened its application portal. This opportunity is open to US Citizens who are college students (including rising first-years), postbaccalaureate, and graduate students, including medical and dental. The deadline is 2026/02/18!

We're hiring an Assistant/Associate Professor of #Genomics & #Bioinformatics, #PhD, #MD, or both #Computational #Biology

Come work with us at the Institute for Genome Sciences
@medschool.umaryland.edu in #Baltimore!

Learn more/Apply: bit.ly/GenoBioinfo

So ciliavilized.

Huge shoutout to all the NIH scientific review officers and external academics who stepped up after the government shutdown to help reschedule hundreds of study sections. Thanks to this great community, my fellowship review was rescheduled within two months of its original review date 🧪

🧠 We're hiring! 🧠 Are you passionate about neuroscience and education? Join our faculty at UNC Chapel Hill to inspire and teach the next generation of neuroscientists. Apply now: 🔗​​https://unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/308455

#Neuroscience #TeachingJobs #AcademicJobs #HigherEd

Some funding good news for a change (from AAAS policy alert)

The House and Senate released a final version of the National Defense Authorization Act. Of importance to the research community, the bill prohibits the DOD from imposing a 15% cap on indirect costs to institutions of higher education.

I completely forgot the fact that Carolina gives exams on Saturdays. 33 years later I am now remembering Dr. Kier’s biophysics final, one of my favorite classes ever! Glad you are embracing the moment!

Are you attending #CellBio2025 and interested in discussing your research with JCB editors? Our editorial team will be available starting tomorrow!
🗓️ Sunday, Dec. 7, 1:00 pm–4:00 pm
🗓️ Monday, Dec. 8, 12:00 pm–4:00 pm
🗓️ Tuesday, Dec. 9, 12:00 pm–3:00 pm
📍 Booth #1224

Notice of Request for Information; Accelerating the American Scientific Enterprise The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) requests input from all interested parties on Federal policy updates that aim to accelerate the American scientific enterprise, enable groundbreaking...

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is seeking input on Federal policy updates to accelerate the American scientific enterprise.

This is your chance to give some feedback on how the past ~10 months have gone for science.
www.federalregister.gov/documents/20...

I plan to highlight: