Roli Roberts

so, is there a war or isn’t there a war? don’t ask Donny — because as always, you’re not going to get a coherent answer out of him. we’re dealing with Schrödinger’s Moron.

so, are we at war with Iran, or are we not at war? is it going to be over soon, or are we just getting started? don't bother asking Mad King Donny, he's too fucked in the head to keep his story straight. thank you for reading my post in which I mock the shit out of it. link is here: bit.ly/3NpGqPv

BYLINES NETWORK, MAKING SENSE OF OUR TIMES

POWER, PEOPLE & DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA

Mike Galsworthy, in conversation with:
Alexandra Hall Hall, Former UK diplomat, Washington DC
Anouska de Georgiou, Epstein survivor
Ben Meiselas, Meidas Touch Network

LIVESTREAM WEBINAR
Sign up here bit.ly/bookBN

1. Are you currently using an AI tool for work-related tasks or projects? * Yes * No, but I would like to (PLEASE SKIP TO QUESTION 7)

My employer asks me to complete a survey on AI usage for which this is the first question (required):

Eric Trump and Donald Trump, Jr. are acquiring a drone company that is seeking to meet Pentagon demand after Trump banned the use of Chinese drones.

We’re barely a week into Trump’s war and already his family has found a way to cash in.

Everything is for sale.

It's been 10 years since I gave a talk at the Micro-Evo-Devo symposium in the #EuroEvoDevo in Upsala 🤯 (I feel old) This year me and my lab will be in Glasgow, and won't miss this symposium!

Yup, Trump & Bhattacharya’s NIH:

“the president, through political appointees, is exerting unprecedented control over what research gets funded and who conducts it….This top-down approach risks harming the US science base”

this is the argument I'd like to see from anyone and everyone who wants to lead us out of this wasteland

At the root of all our problems stands one travesty: politicians’ surrender to the super-rich | George Monbiot There are many excuses for failing to tax the ultra-wealthy. The truth is that governments don’t tackle the problem because they don’t want to, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

It is THE fundamental problem. To survive and prosper we must make billionaires history. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

How much more evidence do we need? The ultra-rich and the governments supporting them will destroy everything for the sake of profit, power and pride. Nothing is precious to them - not human life, not the living world - except their own wealth and status. Our survival depends on resisting them.

A study of social media content 18-24-year olds see in #Finland, #France and #Romania shows that algorithms overwhelmingly feed them right-wing political content - whether or not the users are interested.

Three country average for right wing content was 58% - in Finland, 67%!

yle.fi/a/74-20214134

🌍 Eight synthesis centres, led by sDiv, have completed a joint call on biodiversity & climate change.

💡14 projects + postdocs
💡1.7 million euros
💡214 researchers

💬 @smartenwinter.bsky.social: Researchers will be launching initiatives at a scale we could previously only dream of.

shorturl.at/UvMsu

“He is, of course, a serial liar & prone to espousing completely contradictory positions within moments of each other.” It is extraordinary to me that journalists continue to ‘analyse’ Donald Trump without adding this constant caveat. It does readers, listeners & viewers a grave disservice.

With @saramitri.bsky.social, @sonjalehtinen.bsky.social and L. Lehmann we’ve launched the UNIL Center for Theory in Ecology and Evolution @unil.bsky.social🇨🇭

To kick things off, we’re offering short visiting fellowships for theorists in ecology & evolution. Apply & pls RP 😀

tinyurl.com/2wem36zz

Remembering Phil Bourne Personal reflections on a legendary scientist, leader, builder, and mentor

Remembering Phil Bourne. Personal reflections on a legendary scientist, leader, builder, and mentor. blog.stephenturner.us/p/rememberin...

Interesting to think that Donald Trump may have, completely inadvertently and at a horrific cost, finally woken up the world to how urgent it is we get off our dangerous addiction to fossil fuels.

Total annual budget for NIGMS: 3.2 billion

Total (estimated) daily cost for war in Iran beyond the inestimable cost in human lives and suffering (and gasoline prices if that’s what you care more about, like many do): 900 million dollars (www.cnn.com/2026/03/06/p...)

"The destruction that Kennedy has wrought in 1 year might take generations to repair, and there is little hope for US health and science while he remains at the helm"

@thelancet.com

www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Behold: the first-ever list of news outlets that have banned generative AI in their reporting. As of today, this is literally information that you cannot find on Google.

My goal is to fill the starter pack, so please send over suggestions with supporting evidence!

go.bsky.app/8cn1XfT

"The further away we are from this war the better off we will be."

Quietly, calmly and forensically, BBC just dismantled the Trump communications shitshow on Iran.

No hyperbole, just laying out an unprecedented military, diplomatic and reputational shambles.

Worth a watch.

(🎥 BBC News/BBC Verify)

A picture of PEW poll on global attitude survey, saying the % who rate the morality and ethics of people in their country as good vs bad, where the US has the worst rankings and Canada the best

Americans: we live in a fallen state—embroiled by sin, cheating, lying, and evil. You cannot trust anyone, not even those who claim to know you best

Canadians: I love my neighbors and my friends!

When someone says „Scientists do not want you to know“ you can dismiss everything from there on. Scientists want you to know. They are desperate that you know. They can’t shut up about what they found out and want you to know.

When we talk about Baby Boomers not getting off the stage: In 1997, the US president was born in 1946.

In 2007, the US president was born in 1946.

In 2017, the US president was born in 1946.

And next year in 2027? The US president will have been born in 1946.

$300 Million in jet planes lost to a fuckup.

That’s 83 five year NIH R01 grants burned in minutes due to error, aka poor execution of this unnecessary war which serves only to make the world more dangerous.

Measles outbreaks are costing the U.S. millions of dollars. The true losses can't be counted. As vaccination rates decline, the economic consequences will increase, research suggests.

Every public health professional could have predicted this 👇🏾

Measles outbreaks are costing the U.S. millions of dollars. The true losses can't be counted.

www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-...

This is just the truth.

ExE 2026

Interested in the interface of evolution 🧬 and ecology 🌳? Then you cannot miss #ExE2026! Hosted by @uniexecec.bsky.social in beautiful #Cornwall, this #conference has a stellar line-up of speakers and lots of pre-and post-conference workshops. Space is limited, so register now at evoxeco.uk!

We are 30 today!! 🎂🎈🎉
30 yrs of scientific ups and downs, exciting new findings and totally wrong hypotheses, fundable scores and not, and the privilege of working with all the many people who joined our adventures in the wormverse.
Can’t wait to see everyone again at our lab reunion this summer!

Cover Illustration of a bearded Viking warrior with Horned helmet

Identical illustration of the same warrior, but with the horns removed from his helmet

Old Ladybird Books updated (1976).
Oops.
When you find out a bit late that their helmets didn’t have horns

Artist: Roger Hall

Opinion | What Happened in Chicago When Science Became the Enemy

🚨

"Thirteen months into the second Trump administration, science, medicine and public health have been hijacked by a cadre of grifters and ideologues and by the politicians in obvious thrall to both. Federal institutions have been all but dismantled."

Gift link

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/23/o...