Graham Doskoch
@astrohde.bsky.social
Astronomy PhD candidate at WVU working on pulsars and gravitational wave detection with PTAs. Runner, avid reader, Astrobites alum.
It's entirely possible that this is the result of an administrative error -- I like to give NSF program officers the benefit of the doubt -- but it's also exactly what I would do if I were a political appointee higher up the chain who wanted to reduce GRFP applicants and further marginalize people.
This week, NSF added *another* bizarre requirement: Now, applicants must submit official transcripts. The original solicitation -- as in past years -- permitted students to submit *un*official transcripts, which was free for applicants and far simpler.
We'll update our Bite accordingly.
We'll update our Bite accordingly.
In this bite, the Astrobites authors discuss recent changes to the NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help. 🔭✨☄️
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
November 6, 2025 at 11:00 PM
It's entirely possible that this is the result of an administrative error -- I like to give NSF program officers the benefit of the doubt -- but it's also exactly what I would do if I were a political appointee higher up the chain who wanted to reduce GRFP applicants and further marginalize people.
In mildly positive news, Democrats on the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology sent this letter to Acting NSF Director Stone on Friday, asking the NSF to reconsider its decision and make several other related changes.
democrats-science.house.gov/imo/media/do...
🧪🔭
democrats-science.house.gov/imo/media/do...
🧪🔭
October 20, 2025 at 3:19 PM
In mildly positive news, Democrats on the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology sent this letter to Acting NSF Director Stone on Friday, asking the NSF to reconsider its decision and make several other related changes.
democrats-science.house.gov/imo/media/do...
🧪🔭
democrats-science.house.gov/imo/media/do...
🧪🔭
@giantmolecular.cloud, Bill Smith and I wrote about why the new modification to the eligibility rules for the premier NSF graduate fellowship is actually A Really, Really Big Deal -- and not in a good way.
In this bite, the Astrobites authors discuss recent changes to the NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help. 🔭✨☄️
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
Big Changes to the NSF’s Graduate Fellowship Mean Big Problems
In this bite, the authors discuss recent changes to the NSF's Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help.
astrobites.org
October 6, 2025 at 1:58 PM
@giantmolecular.cloud, Bill Smith and I wrote about why the new modification to the eligibility rules for the premier NSF graduate fellowship is actually A Really, Really Big Deal -- and not in a good way.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
new from me and a few others at astrobites 🧪 🔭
In this bite, the Astrobites authors discuss recent changes to the NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help. 🔭✨☄️
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...
Big Changes to the NSF’s Graduate Fellowship Mean Big Problems
In this bite, the authors discuss recent changes to the NSF's Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help.
astrobites.org
October 5, 2025 at 9:44 PM
new from me and a few others at astrobites 🧪 🔭
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
NEW: NRAO to Outfit the VLBA with New Ultra Wideband Receivers
A major upgrade is coming to the NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) – state-of-the-art ultra wideband receivers capable of operating across the frequency range of 8 - 40 gigahertz (GHz).
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VLBA
A major upgrade is coming to the NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) – state-of-the-art ultra wideband receivers capable of operating across the frequency range of 8 - 40 gigahertz (GHz).
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VLBA
National Radio Astronomy Observatory to Outfit the VLBA with New Ultra Wideband Receivers - National Radio Astronomy Observatory
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is upgrading the NSF Very Long Baseline Array with new ultra wideband receivers spanning 8–40 GHz, expanding its scientific reach and enabling Ka-band observat...
public.nrao.edu
September 26, 2025 at 6:07 PM
NEW: NRAO to Outfit the VLBA with New Ultra Wideband Receivers
A major upgrade is coming to the NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) – state-of-the-art ultra wideband receivers capable of operating across the frequency range of 8 - 40 gigahertz (GHz).
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VLBA
A major upgrade is coming to the NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) – state-of-the-art ultra wideband receivers capable of operating across the frequency range of 8 - 40 gigahertz (GHz).
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VLBA
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
The GRFP announcement from NSF cuts out an entire cohort of 2nd year students from consideration, without warning. This is so deeply unfair that it warrants a formal protest from the scientific community. If someone wants to work with me to craft an open letter and solicit signatures, LMK.
New: After a long wait, the GRFP solicitation is live! Deadlines have been extended to early November, so applicants have a bit over a month to submit. www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo...
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
www.nsf.gov
September 26, 2025 at 5:10 PM
The GRFP announcement from NSF cuts out an entire cohort of 2nd year students from consideration, without warning. This is so deeply unfair that it warrants a formal protest from the scientific community. If someone wants to work with me to craft an open letter and solicit signatures, LMK.
Ugh. The eligibility change would *completely* screw over anyone who entered grad school last year but decided to wait a year before applying (as well as many folks in the future who may have wanted to take that path).
I know a *lot* of people who are gonna be hurt by this.
I know a *lot* of people who are gonna be hurt by this.
Astronomy 🔭 and physics ⚛️ GRFP applications are due Nov 14! Only seniors and 1st-year grad students can apply now (no second years).
New: After a long wait, the GRFP solicitation is live! Deadlines have been extended to early November, so applicants have a bit over a month to submit. www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo...
September 26, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Ugh. The eligibility change would *completely* screw over anyone who entered grad school last year but decided to wait a year before applying (as well as many folks in the future who may have wanted to take that path).
I know a *lot* of people who are gonna be hurt by this.
I know a *lot* of people who are gonna be hurt by this.
It took me most of an astronomy PhD, but I finally have my own telescope! It's a Tasco 66TE-5 Cosmic II 5-mm refractor, found at a thrift store for $18. It's 59 years old and needs a tripod and more eyepieces (and proper polishing!), but it should be functional enough.
September 1, 2025 at 5:47 PM
It took me most of an astronomy PhD, but I finally have my own telescope! It's a Tasco 66TE-5 Cosmic II 5-mm refractor, found at a thrift store for $18. It's 59 years old and needs a tripod and more eyepieces (and proper polishing!), but it should be functional enough.
Hello from Green Bank, West Virginia! We're halfway through the first day of the 2025 Pulsar Science Collaboratory camp. I'm super excited to teach the students about single pulse searching and the Crab. . .
August 3, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Hello from Green Bank, West Virginia! We're halfway through the first day of the 2025 Pulsar Science Collaboratory camp. I'm super excited to teach the students about single pulse searching and the Crab. . .
For folks interested in interstellar objects: There's a new preprint out searching for similar bodies using the latest @nanograv.bsky.social data release, led by @gwacwvu.bsky.social researchers Lankeswar Dey, Ross Jennings, Jackson Taylor, Joe Glaser, and Maura McLaughlin!
arxiv.org/abs/2507.19475
arxiv.org/abs/2507.19475
NANOGrav 15-year Data Set: Search for Gravitational Scattering of Pulsars by Free-Floating Objects in Interstellar Space
Free-floating objects (FFOs) in interstellar space$-$rogue planets, brown dwarfs, and large asteroids that are not gravitationally bound to any star$-$are expected to be ubiquitous throughout the Milk...
arxiv.org
July 30, 2025 at 7:18 PM
For folks interested in interstellar objects: There's a new preprint out searching for similar bodies using the latest @nanograv.bsky.social data release, led by @gwacwvu.bsky.social researchers Lankeswar Dey, Ross Jennings, Jackson Taylor, Joe Glaser, and Maura McLaughlin!
arxiv.org/abs/2507.19475
arxiv.org/abs/2507.19475
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
A companion star …. Inside Betelgeuse’s atmosphere…. You think you know some stuff about the Universe but there’s always more surprises! 🙃🔭✨
From @noirlabastro.bsky.social: Astronomers using
Gemini North found a hidden companion star orbiting inside Betelgeuse’s atmosphere, the first close-in companion ever seen around a supergiant star.
🔗 noirlab.edu/public/news/...
📷GeminiObs/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA #astronomy
Gemini North found a hidden companion star orbiting inside Betelgeuse’s atmosphere, the first close-in companion ever seen around a supergiant star.
🔗 noirlab.edu/public/news/...
📷GeminiObs/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA #astronomy
Gemini North Discovers Long-Predicted Stellar Companion of Betelgeuse - Gemini North telescope in Hawai‘i reveals never-before-seen companion to Betelgeuse, solving millennia-old mystery
Astronomers have discovered a companion star in an incredibly tight orbit around Betelgeuse using the NASA and U.S. National Science Foundation-funded ‘Alopeke instrument on Gemini North, one half of ...
noirlab.edu
July 21, 2025 at 8:30 PM
A companion star …. Inside Betelgeuse’s atmosphere…. You think you know some stuff about the Universe but there’s always more surprises! 🙃🔭✨
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
🧪 For those following indirect rates (not normally an issue with so much drama!):
Senate bill, out today, seeks to block the admin from making abrupt changes to indirect rates at NSF, NASA, and NOAA: www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
Senate bill, out today, seeks to block the admin from making abrupt changes to indirect rates at NSF, NASA, and NOAA: www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
July 18, 2025 at 8:50 PM
🧪 For those following indirect rates (not normally an issue with so much drama!):
Senate bill, out today, seeks to block the admin from making abrupt changes to indirect rates at NSF, NASA, and NOAA: www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
Senate bill, out today, seeks to block the admin from making abrupt changes to indirect rates at NSF, NASA, and NOAA: www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
The Senate CJS report is out, and the recommendations are positive! They suggest "full operational funding" for NRAO, and funding for GBO at FY2024 levels. They also -- pretty bluntly -- completely reject the idea of shutting down one LIGO detector. 🔭
www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
www.appropriations.senate.gov
July 18, 2025 at 2:51 PM
The Senate CJS report is out, and the recommendations are positive! They suggest "full operational funding" for NRAO, and funding for GBO at FY2024 levels. They also -- pretty bluntly -- completely reject the idea of shutting down one LIGO detector. 🔭
www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
These are some of the most odious people alive.
July 18, 2025 at 1:05 PM
These are some of the most odious people alive.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
I received a very scary scam call saying they are going to arrest me cause I didn’t fill out some immigration form. They were very scary, they acted on my fear of prison and deportation, and they do this to many international students. I didn’t send anything, but have to warn all other students.
July 18, 2025 at 1:19 AM
I received a very scary scam call saying they are going to arrest me cause I didn’t fill out some immigration form. They were very scary, they acted on my fear of prison and deportation, and they do this to many international students. I didn’t send anything, but have to warn all other students.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
This reiterates the point I’ve made a few times on here: the US’s loss will be other countries’ gain, but overall it will be an enormous loss. There is no other country that can replicate the US research investment or environment, and the primary brain drain will be out of research, not overseas.
July 17, 2025 at 12:07 PM
This reiterates the point I’ve made a few times on here: the US’s loss will be other countries’ gain, but overall it will be an enormous loss. There is no other country that can replicate the US research investment or environment, and the primary brain drain will be out of research, not overseas.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
It remains way past time to shut down all the automated plagiarism machines.
And it is also way past time for Nature to stop taking money to run "AI" hype advertisements.
And it is also way past time for Nature to stop taking money to run "AI" hype advertisements.
Researchers have been sneaking secret messages into their papers in an effort to trick AI tools into giving them a positive peer-review report
Read the full story: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Read the full story: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
July 15, 2025 at 3:27 PM
It remains way past time to shut down all the automated plagiarism machines.
And it is also way past time for Nature to stop taking money to run "AI" hype advertisements.
And it is also way past time for Nature to stop taking money to run "AI" hype advertisements.
There's now also a short Nature Astronomy meeting report on the conference!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
July 14, 2025 at 2:41 PM
There's now also a short Nature Astronomy meeting report on the conference!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
Professor in the flagship university of the whitest state (Maine) and this absolutely tracks. We’ve been facing the demographic cliff everyone has warned about for years. We also have a campus food bank. Most of our students are first-gen, blue-collar.
I'm a professor at the flagship university for the fourth whitest state in the US. Over 80% of our students are white.
The biggest barrier to access here is that due to lack of state funding, we have top 10 highest tuition per capita of public unis in the country.
We also have a food pantry.
The biggest barrier to access here is that due to lack of state funding, we have top 10 highest tuition per capita of public unis in the country.
We also have a food pantry.
oh, we have some straightforward gutter racism. “the blacks and the browns are the reason white people can’t get ahead” www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...
July 12, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Professor in the flagship university of the whitest state (Maine) and this absolutely tracks. We’ve been facing the demographic cliff everyone has warned about for years. We also have a campus food bank. Most of our students are first-gen, blue-collar.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
Also, what so many of these xenophobic, racist critics don’t realize is the full-pay international students are how we can afford generous aid packages to in-state, mostly white students. 🙃
July 12, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Also, what so many of these xenophobic, racist critics don’t realize is the full-pay international students are how we can afford generous aid packages to in-state, mostly white students. 🙃
I've had the privilege of working at JPL for the last two weeks, doing radio transient studies. Despite the current scientific climate -- or maybe *because* of it -- it's been an unforgettable experience.
Dare mighty things -- and, importantly, fund those mighty things. Fund science, not fascism.
Dare mighty things -- and, importantly, fund those mighty things. Fund science, not fascism.
July 11, 2025 at 5:26 PM
I've had the privilege of working at JPL for the last two weeks, doing radio transient studies. Despite the current scientific climate -- or maybe *because* of it -- it's been an unforgettable experience.
Dare mighty things -- and, importantly, fund those mighty things. Fund science, not fascism.
Dare mighty things -- and, importantly, fund those mighty things. Fund science, not fascism.
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
🧪 BREAKING (good news): Senate subcommittee says NO! to Trump's proposed slashes to NASA & NSF funding.
Today, the subcommittee said to keep NASA + NSF funding at $33.9 billion, the same as in FY24.
See 7:15 below. Full Senate appropriations committee meets tomorrow about it.
🧵 1/3
Today, the subcommittee said to keep NASA + NSF funding at $33.9 billion, the same as in FY24.
See 7:15 below. Full Senate appropriations committee meets tomorrow about it.
🧵 1/3
Subcommittee Markup of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act | United States Senate Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate Committee on Appropriations
www.appropriations.senate.gov
July 10, 2025 at 12:23 AM
🧪 BREAKING (good news): Senate subcommittee says NO! to Trump's proposed slashes to NASA & NSF funding.
Today, the subcommittee said to keep NASA + NSF funding at $33.9 billion, the same as in FY24.
See 7:15 below. Full Senate appropriations committee meets tomorrow about it.
🧵 1/3
Today, the subcommittee said to keep NASA + NSF funding at $33.9 billion, the same as in FY24.
See 7:15 below. Full Senate appropriations committee meets tomorrow about it.
🧵 1/3
Reposted by Graham Doskoch
In a study of professors, women got 378 new work requests over 4 weeks vs 118 for men. Women spent more time on service, advising & teaching; men on research. Orgs should track who is taking extra duties & ensure they are rewarded and distributed fairly. www.forbes.com/sites/kimels...
Being Too Helpful At Work Can Hurt Your Career—Here’s How To Say No
Women are more likely to take on behind-the-scenes duties at work—extra tasks like onboarding or event planning—and it's hurting their careers. Here's how to say no.
www.forbes.com
July 7, 2025 at 8:03 PM
In a study of professors, women got 378 new work requests over 4 weeks vs 118 for men. Women spent more time on service, advising & teaching; men on research. Orgs should track who is taking extra duties & ensure they are rewarded and distributed fairly. www.forbes.com/sites/kimels...