David Pollock
@genomesevolve.bsky.social
Evolutionary and Mathematical Biology, sequence structure and function, genomes evolve, statistical theory and knowledge, empirical-theoretical interface, communication of evolutionary genetics, collaboratives, the mind-body problem, humanism
Just starting to read this paper on genome-wide convergence in fishes. Looks very worthwhile, and nice to see people using CSUBST. @agneeshbarua.bsky.social @msrivastava95.bsky.social Brice Beinsteiner Vincent Laudet @marcrr.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Estimates of molecular convergence reveal multiple genes with adaptive variation across teleost fish
Abstract. Molecular convergence, where specific nonsynonymous changes in protein-coding genes lead to identical amino acid substitutions across multiple li
academic.oup.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:00 PM
Just starting to read this paper on genome-wide convergence in fishes. Looks very worthwhile, and nice to see people using CSUBST. @agneeshbarua.bsky.social @msrivastava95.bsky.social Brice Beinsteiner Vincent Laudet @marcrr.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
academic.oup.com/mbe/article/...
Asking editors to do a semblance of their job seems kind of extremist these days, but is it too late to save peer review?
Peer review would be much improved if editors read papers in full before sending out for review. They could then provide very basic high level feedback (e.g. reorganize the text for readability [in X way], provide p-values for every claim), saving reviewer time for more meaningful feedback.
December 30, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Asking editors to do a semblance of their job seems kind of extremist these days, but is it too late to save peer review?
Midgely is generally a great read
#Biologists 🧪 🌱🐋
Finally got round to reading this excellent book.
Definitely recommend it to - well, anyone!
#philsky #philosophy
Definitely recommend it to - well, anyone!
#philsky #philosophy
December 23, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Midgely is generally a great read
Reposted by David Pollock
That toxic waste will then pollute the data sets used to train the next generation of AI models, leading to ‘model collapse’ as the AI tries and fails to model incoherent garbage, vomiting out yet more incoherent garbage in the process. Meanwhile repositories of scholarly information are destroyed.
December 22, 2025 at 7:52 AM
That toxic waste will then pollute the data sets used to train the next generation of AI models, leading to ‘model collapse’ as the AI tries and fails to model incoherent garbage, vomiting out yet more incoherent garbage in the process. Meanwhile repositories of scholarly information are destroyed.
Reposted by David Pollock
PhD position available at the University of Bern in Prof. Claudia Bank's lab. Application deadline: Jan 9, 2026. Ideal for candidates with a strong math and programming background. More info: https://banklab.github.io/positions/ #phd
Positions | Theoretical Ecology and Evolution
Positions | Theoretical Ecology and Evolution
banklab.github.io
December 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM
PhD position available at the University of Bern in Prof. Claudia Bank's lab. Application deadline: Jan 9, 2026. Ideal for candidates with a strong math and programming background. More info: https://banklab.github.io/positions/ #phd
This looks nice. Thinking of going back to grad school so I can sign up...
The 2026 Guarda Summer Course in Evolutionary Biology is now accepting applications. Amazing place, amazing course, amazing opportunity for early grad students.
tb.ethz.ch/education/gu...
tb.ethz.ch/education/gu...
Summer school:<br> Evolutionary Biology in Guarda
Information about the annual summer school Evolutionary Biology in Guarda
tb.ethz.ch
December 12, 2025 at 10:30 PM
This looks nice. Thinking of going back to grad school so I can sign up...
Reposted by David Pollock
The first of its kind! ecomagazine.com/news/coastal... @azti.bsky.social @lanzen.bsky.social #eDNA #Biodiversity #MarineEcology
A Pioneering Genetic Catalog Reveals Hidden Biodiversity in Basque Estuary Sediments - environment coastal & offshore
An international research team led by the technology center AZTI has created the first gene catalog of estuarine sediments along the Basque coast. This groundbreaking scientific resource provides an i...
ecomagazine.com
December 12, 2025 at 8:55 PM
The first of its kind! ecomagazine.com/news/coastal... @azti.bsky.social @lanzen.bsky.social #eDNA #Biodiversity #MarineEcology
>dev/null
I am repeating myself, but I think this should be the standard treatment for ai slop like this. End of file and send to the abyss as soon as possible.
I am repeating myself, but I think this should be the standard treatment for ai slop like this. End of file and send to the abyss as soon as possible.
Even the the damn twitter card for this Nature Scientific Reports is clearly AI Slop.
December 11, 2025 at 6:18 PM
>dev/null
I am repeating myself, but I think this should be the standard treatment for ai slop like this. End of file and send to the abyss as soon as possible.
I am repeating myself, but I think this should be the standard treatment for ai slop like this. End of file and send to the abyss as soon as possible.
>/dev/null
A new preprint server welcomes papers written and reviewed by AI | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
A new preprint server welcomes papers written and reviewed by AI
With human peer review struggling to keep pace with machine-generated science, aiXiv enlists bots to help
www.science.org
December 11, 2025 at 3:17 PM
>/dev/null
Reposted by David Pollock
It’s officially happening folks! The Microbial Population Biology Gordon Research Conference is back in Andover, New Hampshire starting June 27th of 2027!
See you there!!
@wcratcliff.bsky.social @ksbakes.bsky.social @surtlab.bsky.social
#microsky #mevosky
See you there!!
@wcratcliff.bsky.social @ksbakes.bsky.social @surtlab.bsky.social
#microsky #mevosky
December 10, 2025 at 2:35 PM
It’s officially happening folks! The Microbial Population Biology Gordon Research Conference is back in Andover, New Hampshire starting June 27th of 2027!
See you there!!
@wcratcliff.bsky.social @ksbakes.bsky.social @surtlab.bsky.social
#microsky #mevosky
See you there!!
@wcratcliff.bsky.social @ksbakes.bsky.social @surtlab.bsky.social
#microsky #mevosky
Bioluminescence, phylogenetic analysis, ancestral reconstruction. This looks like a fun paper for my reading list. (credit to @evolutionsoup.bsky.social for bringing to my attention).
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
Evolution of bioluminescence in Anthozoa with emphasis on Octocorallia
Abstract. Bioluminescence is a widespread phenomenon that has evolved multiple times across the tree of life, converging among diverse fauna and habitat ty
royalsocietypublishing.org
December 5, 2025 at 9:08 PM
Bioluminescence, phylogenetic analysis, ancestral reconstruction. This looks like a fun paper for my reading list. (credit to @evolutionsoup.bsky.social for bringing to my attention).
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
Good advice to beginning graduate students (and others, maybe everybody):
"good writing is downstream of clear thinking and a strong understanding of the subject matter at hand."
--Jamelle Bouie @jamellebouie.net
"good writing is downstream of clear thinking and a strong understanding of the subject matter at hand."
--Jamelle Bouie @jamellebouie.net
December 5, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Good advice to beginning graduate students (and others, maybe everybody):
"good writing is downstream of clear thinking and a strong understanding of the subject matter at hand."
--Jamelle Bouie @jamellebouie.net
"good writing is downstream of clear thinking and a strong understanding of the subject matter at hand."
--Jamelle Bouie @jamellebouie.net
This is an interesting distraction driven by @jessicacalarco.com. The comment below misses the point that human-support (and art) wage rises are a lagging effect. It seems that what needs to happen is to accelerate the effect to counteract inequality. UBI perhaps? Decrease educational costs?
The Baumol effect leads to rising wages in jobs with low productivity growth (such as dog walking) and thus counteracts inequality across sectors, by the way.
December 5, 2025 at 8:48 PM
This is an interesting distraction driven by @jessicacalarco.com. The comment below misses the point that human-support (and art) wage rises are a lagging effect. It seems that what needs to happen is to accelerate the effect to counteract inequality. UBI perhaps? Decrease educational costs?
Reposted by David Pollock
These two have made a difference. This prize will help them make even more of a difference.
Two scientists who are fast friends, one Nigerian and one American, have won the MacArthur Foundation's 100&Change competition for their network to catch the next disease with pandemic potential.
$100 million prize goes to dynamic duo aiming to stop next pandemic before it starts
Two scientists who are fast friends, one Nigerian and one American, have won the MacArthur Foundation's 100&Change competition for their network to catch the next disease with pandemic potential.
n.pr
November 22, 2025 at 9:11 PM
These two have made a difference. This prize will help them make even more of a difference.
Reposted by David Pollock
"The digestive systems of carnivorous plants"
This looks really cool. 👌 Work from Matthias Freund, Dorothea Graus, Rainer Hedrich & Kenji Fukushima et al.
academic.oup.com/plphys/artic...
#PlantScience
This looks really cool. 👌 Work from Matthias Freund, Dorothea Graus, Rainer Hedrich & Kenji Fukushima et al.
academic.oup.com/plphys/artic...
#PlantScience
The digestive systems of carnivorous plants
A comparison of the forms and functions of digestive and absorptive glands in carnivorous plants sheds light on their convergent evolution.
academic.oup.com
September 15, 2023 at 6:04 PM
"The digestive systems of carnivorous plants"
This looks really cool. 👌 Work from Matthias Freund, Dorothea Graus, Rainer Hedrich & Kenji Fukushima et al.
academic.oup.com/plphys/artic...
#PlantScience
This looks really cool. 👌 Work from Matthias Freund, Dorothea Graus, Rainer Hedrich & Kenji Fukushima et al.
academic.oup.com/plphys/artic...
#PlantScience
recent protein language models can extract embeddings from protein sequences reflecting high-order features, developed statistical tests to evaluate the adaptive convergence of such features.
Interested to see how people will use this (I edited it, not an author).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Interested to see how people will use this (I edited it, not an author).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Language models reveal a complex sequence basis for adaptive convergent evolution of protein functions | PNAS
Convergent evolution, or convergence, refers to repeated, independent emergences of
the same trait in two or more lineages of species during evolut...
www.pnas.org
November 21, 2025 at 3:40 AM
recent protein language models can extract embeddings from protein sequences reflecting high-order features, developed statistical tests to evaluate the adaptive convergence of such features.
Interested to see how people will use this (I edited it, not an author).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Interested to see how people will use this (I edited it, not an author).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by David Pollock
Job Opening **ASSISTANT PROFESSOR MARINE ECOLOGY**, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island.
jobs.uri.edu/postings/15960
jobs.uri.edu/postings/15960
November 10, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Job Opening **ASSISTANT PROFESSOR MARINE ECOLOGY**, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island.
jobs.uri.edu/postings/15960
jobs.uri.edu/postings/15960
Reposted by David Pollock
My department at UT Austin is looking to hire an Assistant Professor in Evolutionary Biology, broadly defined. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.
apply.interfolio.com/177547
apply.interfolio.com/177547
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:23 PM
My department at UT Austin is looking to hire an Assistant Professor in Evolutionary Biology, broadly defined. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.
apply.interfolio.com/177547
apply.interfolio.com/177547
Congratulations Joe!
Congratulations to Joe Felsenstein on being awarded the 2026 Mendel Medal!
November 14, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Congratulations Joe!
Reposted by David Pollock
Happy to share Jialin's first publication. She did a great job exploring the transition to land in animals. Co-supervised by the great Jordi Paps and me and in collaboration with Davide Pisani and @phil-donoghue.bsky.social
Nature research paper: Convergent genome evolution shaped the emergence of terrestrial animals
go.nature.com/4i0i61w
go.nature.com/4i0i61w
Convergent genome evolution shaped the emergence of terrestrial animals - Nature
Comparisons of 154 genomes from 21 animal phyla and outgroups have been used to reconstruct ancestral adaptation to life on land across 11 distinct terrestrialization events, revealing strong evidence for convergent genomic evolution across the animal kingdom and recurring periods of terrestrial colonization.
go.nature.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Happy to share Jialin's first publication. She did a great job exploring the transition to land in animals. Co-supervised by the great Jordi Paps and me and in collaboration with Davide Pisani and @phil-donoghue.bsky.social
Reposted by David Pollock
Reposted by David Pollock
Open position at the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics:
We are looking for a Director of the Center of Pathogen Bioinformatics
apply.refline.ch/499599/0346/...
I am in the Center's steering board together with fantastic colleagues (Emma Hodcroft @firefoxx66.bsky.social, Richard Neher @neher.io, and
We are looking for a Director of the Center of Pathogen Bioinformatics
apply.refline.ch/499599/0346/...
I am in the Center's steering board together with fantastic colleagues (Emma Hodcroft @firefoxx66.bsky.social, Richard Neher @neher.io, and
Director, Center for Pathogen Bioinformatics
The Centre for Pathogen Bioinformatics (CPB) is a unit of SIB which offers expertise and services in pathogen bioinformatics, computational molecular epidemiology and related multi-site project manage...
apply.refline.ch
October 25, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Open position at the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics:
We are looking for a Director of the Center of Pathogen Bioinformatics
apply.refline.ch/499599/0346/...
I am in the Center's steering board together with fantastic colleagues (Emma Hodcroft @firefoxx66.bsky.social, Richard Neher @neher.io, and
We are looking for a Director of the Center of Pathogen Bioinformatics
apply.refline.ch/499599/0346/...
I am in the Center's steering board together with fantastic colleagues (Emma Hodcroft @firefoxx66.bsky.social, Richard Neher @neher.io, and
Reposted by David Pollock
📢 Open Call! The Max Perutz Labs invite applications for a Tenure-Track Professorship in Genome Biology. We are particularly interested in researchers investigating the molecular and biophysical mechanisms underlying genome function and regulation. More details ➡️ tinyurl.com/3t7vvdct
November 5, 2025 at 10:59 AM
📢 Open Call! The Max Perutz Labs invite applications for a Tenure-Track Professorship in Genome Biology. We are particularly interested in researchers investigating the molecular and biophysical mechanisms underlying genome function and regulation. More details ➡️ tinyurl.com/3t7vvdct
Reposted by David Pollock
Now accepting proposals for the Small Grants for Local and Regional Outreach, which provide up to $1000 USD for a variety of evolution education & outreach projects, workshops, and events. Submit your proposal by March 2, 2026! shorturl.at/I8HqO
November 6, 2025 at 8:22 AM
Now accepting proposals for the Small Grants for Local and Regional Outreach, which provide up to $1000 USD for a variety of evolution education & outreach projects, workshops, and events. Submit your proposal by March 2, 2026! shorturl.at/I8HqO
Reposted by David Pollock
I'm super stoked that Colorado voted to fund free meals for kids for schools.
(I've been saying lunches, but the program includes breakfasts, too.)
(I've been saying lunches, but the program includes breakfasts, too.)
November 5, 2025 at 4:23 AM
I'm super stoked that Colorado voted to fund free meals for kids for schools.
(I've been saying lunches, but the program includes breakfasts, too.)
(I've been saying lunches, but the program includes breakfasts, too.)