Angie Voyles Askham
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avaskham.bsky.social
Angie Voyles Askham
@avaskham.bsky.social
880 followers 730 following 99 posts
senior reporter at The Transmitter, where I write about neuroscience research / neuroscience PhD / mother of three

Email: angie at thetransmitter dot org
Signal: avaskham.54
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Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
statnews.com
The U.K. has released its plan to phase out animal testing in research, as a number of countries move toward reducing the use of animals.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/11/u...
U.K. releases plan to phase out animal testing in research
The U.K. has released its plan to phase out animal testing in research, as a number of countries move toward reducing the use of animals.
www.statnews.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
“This neural configuration before amputation remains after the amputation. And it’s not ‘use it or lose it,’” says John W. Krakauer.

By @avaskham.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/plasticity/a...
Adult human cortex does not reorganize after amputation
The results from a new longitudinal study contradict classic findings in monkeys but may not warrant a rewriting of the textbooks just yet.
www.thetransmitter.org
August 21, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
jonathanwosen.bsky.social
The Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling NIH grants, slowing new awards, a scathing report by GAO finds. Story via @mmolteni.bsky.social and @aniloza.bsky.social for @statnews.com www.statnews.com/2025/08/05/g...
Trump administration violated impoundment law by canceling NIH grants, slowing new awards, GAO finds
The Government Accountability Office found that the Trump administration, by abruptly canceling NIH grants, had violated a 1974 federal law
www.statnews.com
August 5, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
codysiciliano.bsky.social
Thanks @avaskham.bsky.social & @thetransmitter.bsky.social for including me in this discussion of why individual differences matter. My work & others show that tracking individual behavior can reveal circuits & mechanisms that group averages miss #neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/animal-behav...
Escaping groupthink: What animals’ behavioral quirks reveal about the brain
Neuroscientists have long ignored the variability in animals’ behavioral responses in favor of studying differences across groups. But work on the brain differences that underlie that variability is…
www.thetransmitter.org
August 4, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
Our award-winning news team is looking for an enthusiastic trade journalist to join our fast-paced newsroom in NYC. This is an excellent opportunity for a science journalist to develop a beat in the field of neuroscience. For more info, please visit: bit.ly/4nvAy4k

#neuroskyence
Reporter, The Transmitter
The Transmitter offers up-to-date news and analysis of the field of neuroscience and is dedicated to helping scientists at all career stages stay current and build connections. Our award-winning news ...
simonsfoundation.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
July 2, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
stephaniemlee.bsky.social
In a head-spinning pair of announcements on Wednesday, the National Institutes of Health told staff that it would lift its monthslong freeze on all research funding to Columbia University — then reversed its reversal, emails show.

New from me: www.chronicle.com/article/colu...
Columbia Got Some NIH Funding Back. Then It Didn’t.
In a confusing turn of events, the National Institutes of Health told staff that it would free up some frozen funding to the Ivy League campus — then quickly backtracked.
www.chronicle.com
June 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
carandinilab.net
I'd like to make a list of PhD programs that (1) are in Europe (which does include the UK); (2) offer opportunities in systems neuroscience; and obviously (3) pay a stipend. Please share and/or respond to add your suggestions?
June 17, 2025 at 5:25 PM
avaskham.bsky.social
Great reporting from @claudia-lopez.bsky.social:
June 16, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
For black-capped chickadees, looking out at a location activates the same place cells as actually being there, a study from Columbia University shows.

By @martajhill.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/hippocampus/...
Gazing from afar activates place cells in chickadees
The results help explain how the hippocampus can recall information about a place without an animal physically revisiting it.
www.thetransmitter.org
June 13, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
nicolecrust.bsky.social
In this excerpt, I fast forward to the end of Elusive Cures to explain why I am so unequivocally optimistic about the next steps for brain research.

For those of you who (like me) like to listen, I've narrated this clip (~10 min). The text is there too.

Thank you @thetransmitter.bsky.social team.
June 10, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
For news, perspectives and more to help you navigate the early stages of your neuroscience career, visit our Early-Career Neuroscientists Resource Center: www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...
Early-Career Neuroscientists Resource Center
News, perspectives and resources to help navigate the early stages of your neuroscience career
www.thetransmitter.org
June 10, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
jeremymberg.bsky.social
In the background over the past few weeks, I wrote an obituary of Peter Lax for Nature. He was one of my dad's best friends and one of my favorite people in the world. He was also an incredibly influential mathematician.

[Gift Link thanks to Nature]

rdcu.be/eqmiR
Peter Lax obituary: mathematician who pioneered computer-based solutions to real-world problems | Nature
The Abel prizewinner’s pragmatic approach to solving differential equations was influential across fields ranging from weather forecasting to starting nuclear chain reactions. The Abel prizewinner’s pragmatic approach to solving differential equations was influential across fields ranging from weather forecasting to starting nuclear chain reactions.
rdcu.be
June 10, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
maxkozlov.bsky.social
Democrat Jeff Merkley says "it's my understanding no existing [Alzheimer's grants] have been cancelled."

That's not true. Tens of millions of dollars in Alzheimer's grants — many of them for training — have been cut.

See @scott-delaney.bsky.social & @noamross.net's Grant Watch database here.
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airtable.com
June 10, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
maxkozlov.bsky.social
🚨 NIH director Jayanta Bhattacharya is testifying before the US Senate Appropriations Committee today.

The hearing is bound to be spicy, after more than 300 agency staff wrote him a letter decrying his leadership and actions as director. 🔥

I'll be live-posting the hearing, so follow along here.
June 10, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
Multiple studies by a prominent neural tube researcher at the University of Maryland show potential image manipulation and reuse; an institutional investigation is underway.

By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/academia/mor...
25 papers by neural tube researcher come under scrutiny
One of the studies received an editorial expression of concern in May, after the journal learned of an institutional review of the alleged problems.
www.thetransmitter.org
June 9, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
jeremymberg.bsky.social
More complete analysis of NIH outlays (or lack thereof) from grant-watch.us

grant-watch.us/posts/trends...
Trends in NIH outlays: Brown, Columbia, Cornell, and Northwestern funding drops to $0 – Grant Watch
grant-watch.us
June 8, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
jonathanwosen.bsky.social
President Trump’s 2026 budget proposes slashing NIH's central function, awarding grants to universities, academic medical centers, and other institutions, by 43% compared to 2025 levels. Story via me & @danielpayne.bsky.social for @statnews.com
www.statnews.com/2025/06/06/n...
NIH details how Trump budget would cut support for grants, training, and research centers
President Trump's 2026 budget proposes cutting NIH grants to universities, academic medical centers, and other institutions by 43%
www.statnews.com
June 6, 2025 at 11:46 PM
avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence 🧪
June 5, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
thetransmitter.bsky.social
The Drosophila genetic database FlyBase has lost its nearly $2 million grant. It’s part of the more than $3 billion in federal funding that has been terminated at Harvard University this year.

By @callimcflurry.bsky.social

www.thetransmitter.org/community/fl...
FlyBase funding squashed amid Harvard grant terminations
The team behind the Drosophila genetics database is now requesting donations from labs to keep the resource afloat.
www.thetransmitter.org
June 5, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
ardemp.bskyverified.social
Talked to @KateZernike at @nytimes about my journey and the current moment for scientists in the U.S.

“Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science.”

Read the article here. No subscription required:

www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/u...
The U.S. Lit a Beacon for Science. Under Trump, Scientists Fear It’s Dimming
www.nytimes.com
June 3, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
sydneywyatt.bsky.social
In a recent study, @antoinemadar.bsky.social & Mark Sheffield looked at place cells of the mouse hippocampus in vivo to understand what plasticity rules support learning—spoiler alert, it wasn’t Hebbian plasticity! Go check out my story for @thetransmitter.bsky.social

#neuroskyence 🧪
Learning in living mice defies classic synaptic plasticity rule
Donald Hebb’s theory—memorably summarized as “cells that fire together, wire together”—does not explain the shifting hippocampal connections in mice learning to navigate a virtual environment…
www.thetransmitter.org
June 2, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
drnancypadilla.bsky.social
This academic cycle was really challenging for those students that applied for PhD programs. Please help me share this special episode discussing what to do if you didn't get accepted into a PhD program. open.spotify.com/episode/5tsj...
Didn't get into grad school, what now?
Stories of Women in Neuroscience · Episode
open.spotify.com
June 1, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
scott-delaney.bsky.social
To put these top-line budget numbers in context, cuts of this magnitude would effectively mean no new grants in FY2026. The entire extramural budget would go to existing, continuing grants.

An abject failure of American ambition. And a betrayal of our global leadership in health science innovation.
May 31, 2025 at 12:23 AM
Reposted by Angie Voyles Askham
debivort.bsky.social
Believe it a not, a third multisite connectomic project also lost funding. The multi-PI R01 led by @darbly.bsky.social with myself and @bassemh.bsky.social as co-PIs.
May 28, 2025 at 10:46 PM
avaskham.bsky.social
#neuroskyence 🧪
May 29, 2025 at 1:09 AM