Mike Sears

Hard to think we are celebrating independence tomorrow. Feels more like succumbing to tyrrany, bowing to a king, giving up on the dream.

SaveNSF is a coalition of concerned scientists and allies who are working to save funding for scientific grants through the NSF.

The mission is to support and advocate for the continuation of vital research and innovation.

Join: www.savensf.com

About NSF’s new(est) bulletin -

15% indirect cost rates will kill universities.

Apparently that’s the point.

I am sick.

We are hiring. If you have strong stats skills & are passionate for access to education, please apply…https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mike-sears-741a56142_senior-academic-researcher-activity-7316510462060179459-d3Sf?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAACKu2aEB08g85G9Gu9-ma6WpsZ2pmKqEUg4

I was at ASU+GSV and can confirm that the Sec of Education referred to AI as A1. She’s not wrong…the kids need the sauce, lol. As they say in the South…”bless her heart”

So, I’ve been away. Anything interesting happening?

I hope my retirement can survive the Trump slump.

It doesn’t!

I refuse to wear one of those silly Russian hats…you know, the red ones.

This week has been tough watching my friends, colleagues, collaborators & past students lose funding and jobs. Given my current role, I have to be careful what I say publicly, but know that I’m helping in all the ways I can & I have your backs. DM me if you think I can help in anyway. Stay strong.

So sorry (and angry) to hear this.

Dear federal scientists: If you have been affected by the probationary firings and would be willing to speak with Science, please reach out to me by email (klangin@aaas.org) or on Signal. We can guarantee annonymity.

Embracing skunk works.

When I hear the POTUS say things like the accident wouldn’t have happened if not for DEI, I hear him saying that only old white dudes could have prevented it…which statistically is wrong. Like, he’s basically saying the silent part out loud.

I wouldn’t be a scientist if it weren’t for the NSF REU program, and quite a number of students who went through an NSF REU program I led are now scientists. Breaks my heart to see this program potentially die at the hands of the man baby president.

I guess I got out before I was effectively forced out. No way the man baby would have allowed my work on climate change to be funded. Sad to see so many of my friends’ labs on hold or shut down. Seems we are on a race to the bottom. Great again my ass.

But yeah, we were overreacting. Never thought this could happen here.

No, we won’t be referring to Denali, our husky, as McKinley. That’s dumb.

The new administration is killing education. I’ll be dead before we recover.

Only if there’s space

Details : Research Fellow in Mammalian Movement Ecology and Energetics : The University of Melbourne Careers at The University of Melbourne

Please circulate: Postdoc position on responses of Australian mammal pests to climate change. Part of my ARC Laureate Fellowship research. Lots of hands-on fieldwork. Learn about biophysical models. Remote locations. Collaboration with #EcologicalHorizons and #AWC jobs.unimelb.edu.au/en/job/91880...

Extinction of experience among ecologists Fieldwork-based research and education in ecology are under multiple threats and are progressively declining. We call for greater attention to this ongoing loss of direct field experience within the ecology community, as it could have widespread consequences for science and education, ultimately hindering efforts to address the ongoing biodiversity crisis.

Where are all the field studies?

This ⬇️ important but rather depressing paper describes how conducting, & crucially initiating, field studies is becoming harder & rarer.

A short 🧵 (and a call for more fieldwork)
www.cell.com/trends/ecolo...

So is “Hook” by Blues Traveler.

Just in case you hadn’t thought otherwise, the new year is simply arbitrary. Keep doing what works for you, don’t feel the need to re-invent yourself, be kind to yourself and others. That’s all.

Code sharing in ecology and evolution increases citation rates but remains uncommon Biologists increasingly rely on computer code to collect and analyze their data, reinforcing the importance of published code for transparency, reproducibility, training, and a basis for further work...

I'd like to encourage folks to publish their code. Not only does it make studies more transparent and reproducible, but it also increases citation rates!

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Fantastic opportunity!

Kellogg Biological Station is searching for a new Director! A great community, would be great to lead this ship!

OK, non science post. Plotting a Baja trip for late December…Phoenix to Tijuana to Ensenada to Valle de Guadalupe to Tecate to Phoenix. Anyone done this loop or similar. Recs/advice?