Joel Atallah
@jatallah.bsky.social
Associate professor in genomics and developmental biology at the University of New Orleans. Dad×3. I post about science, parenting, culture and world events.
Just landed in Washington D.C. for an AAAS bootcamp for new Principal Investigators on National Science Foundation S-STEM awards (the $2M grant we received last year to provide scholarships & support for low-income students applying to the University of New Orleans (UNO).
January 29, 2026 at 6:58 PM
Just landed in Washington D.C. for an AAAS bootcamp for new Principal Investigators on National Science Foundation S-STEM awards (the $2M grant we received last year to provide scholarships & support for low-income students applying to the University of New Orleans (UNO).
"Due to the exceptionally cold weather, all parents should wear 2 pairs of pajamas when dropping off children."
January 15, 2026 at 1:01 PM
"Due to the exceptionally cold weather, all parents should wear 2 pairs of pajamas when dropping off children."
"Due to the exceptionally cold weather, all parents should wear 2 pairs of pajamas when dropping off children."
January 15, 2026 at 12:52 PM
"Due to the exceptionally cold weather, all parents should wear 2 pairs of pajamas when dropping off children."
Eric and Wendy Schmidt will fund the construction of a large exoplanet-hunting space telescope and three highly ambitious ground arrays by 2030. This is the most exciting astronomy news I've heard in my lifetime. www.science.org/content/arti...
Ex–Google CEO funds private space telescope bigger than Hubble
Schmidt Sciences announces investments in orbiting observatory and three ground-based instruments
www.science.org
January 8, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Eric and Wendy Schmidt will fund the construction of a large exoplanet-hunting space telescope and three highly ambitious ground arrays by 2030. This is the most exciting astronomy news I've heard in my lifetime. www.science.org/content/arti...
Joan of Arc - the first parade of the New Orleans Mardi Gras season! youtu.be/E3rlrmW5C4w?...
The 2026 Joan of Arc parade in the French Quarter opens the Mardi Gras Season!
YouTube video by Joel Atallah
youtu.be
January 7, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Joan of Arc - the first parade of the New Orleans Mardi Gras season! youtu.be/E3rlrmW5C4w?...
Merry Christmas to all who follow the Julian calendar!
January 7, 2026 at 2:09 PM
Merry Christmas to all who follow the Julian calendar!
Reposted by Joel Atallah
When you make friends with Newfoundlanders, you have friends forever. Received a care package of books, trinkets, and snacks today. Genuinely touched by kindness.
January 5, 2026 at 8:20 PM
When you make friends with Newfoundlanders, you have friends forever. Received a care package of books, trinkets, and snacks today. Genuinely touched by kindness.
Chimp Haven has expanded the discovery days when you can visit and see the chimps up close! Not that long ago, chimps were bred for research in the US. When studies using chimps were effectively banned, a large sanctuary was created in Louisiana to house the retirees.
Chimp Haven - World’s Largest Chimpanzee Sanctuary
Chimp Haven is home to more than 300 former research chimps who now live on 200 acres of beautiful, forested sanctuary.
chimphaven.org
December 24, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Chimp Haven has expanded the discovery days when you can visit and see the chimps up close! Not that long ago, chimps were bred for research in the US. When studies using chimps were effectively banned, a large sanctuary was created in Louisiana to house the retirees.
It's shameful that YouTube and other platforms allow accounts to advertize AI fabrications as the work of real artists, deceiving the listener and sullying the reputation of the artist. The title should state explicitly, "AI-generated song inspired by artist X."
December 21, 2025 at 2:40 PM
It's shameful that YouTube and other platforms allow accounts to advertize AI fabrications as the work of real artists, deceiving the listener and sullying the reputation of the artist. The title should state explicitly, "AI-generated song inspired by artist X."
Authorities claim that Claudio Neves Valente was the person responsible for both the Brown University shooting and the murder of MIT physics prof Nuno Loureiro. Valente, who is Portuguese, was a graduate physics student at Brown over 20 years ago. He was found dead in a storage unit today.
December 19, 2025 at 4:09 AM
Authorities claim that Claudio Neves Valente was the person responsible for both the Brown University shooting and the murder of MIT physics prof Nuno Loureiro. Valente, who is Portuguese, was a graduate physics student at Brown over 20 years ago. He was found dead in a storage unit today.
Reposted by Joel Atallah
Just decline the peer review invitation.
What are you people even doing?
What are you people even doing?
More than half of researchers now use AI for peer review — often against guidance
A survey of 1,600 academics found that more than 50% have used artificial-intelligence tools while peer reviewing manuscripts.
www.nature.com
December 16, 2025 at 10:39 PM
Just decline the peer review invitation.
What are you people even doing?
What are you people even doing?
MIT professor Nuno Loureiro shot and killed at home. Devastating.
December 17, 2025 at 12:03 AM
MIT professor Nuno Loureiro shot and killed at home. Devastating.
"The Food and Drug Administration this week granted approval to a new gene therapy for a rare immune disorder, the maker of which is notably not a drug company, but an Italian charity."
www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/n...
www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/n...
In a first, a nonprofit wins FDA approval for rare disease gene therapy
The FDA has granted approval to a new gene therapy for a rare immune disorder, the maker of which is notably not a drug company, but an Italian charity.
www.statnews.com
December 11, 2025 at 2:13 AM
"The Food and Drug Administration this week granted approval to a new gene therapy for a rare immune disorder, the maker of which is notably not a drug company, but an Italian charity."
www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/n...
www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/n...
Off to the bus stop! First day back at school after Thanksgiving.
December 1, 2025 at 12:54 PM
Off to the bus stop! First day back at school after Thanksgiving.
Reposted by Joel Atallah
This is a pretty useful page en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikiped...
Wikipedia:Signs of AI writing - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
November 26, 2025 at 10:13 PM
This is a pretty useful page en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikiped...
Two West Virginia National Guard members - a woman and a man - were shot this afternoon two blocks from the White House. Devastating violence the day before Thanksgiving.
November 26, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Two West Virginia National Guard members - a woman and a man - were shot this afternoon two blocks from the White House. Devastating violence the day before Thanksgiving.
Just when you thought things couldn't get creepier: a vacuum cleaner that collects data
November 2, 2025 at 1:11 AM
Just when you thought things couldn't get creepier: a vacuum cleaner that collects data
The Grand Egyptian Museum, one of the largest museums in the world, opens today after 20 years of construction
November 1, 2025 at 4:59 PM
The Grand Egyptian Museum, one of the largest museums in the world, opens today after 20 years of construction
Reposted by Joel Atallah
The amount of AI generated art in slides at this conference, primarily used by older scientists, is killing me. Scientists please. Don’t use these ai platforms to make your figures or slides. They look bad and I have yet to see them meaningfully improve the message of talks.
October 31, 2025 at 3:09 AM
The amount of AI generated art in slides at this conference, primarily used by older scientists, is killing me. Scientists please. Don’t use these ai platforms to make your figures or slides. They look bad and I have yet to see them meaningfully improve the message of talks.
Reposted by Joel Atallah
Thrilled about our new publication in Frontiers Cell Dev Bio. w/ the Adi Dubash lab at Furman!
In this paper, we identified that desmosomal cadherin Dsg-2 can regulate the ECM in keratinocytes via NF-kB signaling, potentially providing a link between junctional control & inflammatory signaling.
In this paper, we identified that desmosomal cadherin Dsg-2 can regulate the ECM in keratinocytes via NF-kB signaling, potentially providing a link between junctional control & inflammatory signaling.
Frontiers | The desmosomal cadherin Desmoglein-2 controls extracellular matrix expression and remodeling via NF-κB signaling in keratinocytes
Desmogleins are transmembrane cadherin proteins and obligate members of the desmosome, a cell-cell adhesion complex which connects adjacent cells and provide...
www.frontiersin.org
October 31, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Thrilled about our new publication in Frontiers Cell Dev Bio. w/ the Adi Dubash lab at Furman!
In this paper, we identified that desmosomal cadherin Dsg-2 can regulate the ECM in keratinocytes via NF-kB signaling, potentially providing a link between junctional control & inflammatory signaling.
In this paper, we identified that desmosomal cadherin Dsg-2 can regulate the ECM in keratinocytes via NF-kB signaling, potentially providing a link between junctional control & inflammatory signaling.
The Grand Egyptian Museum, the largest museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization, opens November 1, after 20 years of construction
www.voguearabia.com/article/gran...
www.voguearabia.com/article/gran...
Inside the Grand Egyptian Museum: A First Look at the World’s Largest Museum Dedicated to a Single Civilisation
Set against the Giza pyramids, Egypt’s long-awaited $1 billion Grand Egyptian Museum isn’t just the world’s largest archaeological institution—it’s a reclamation of legacy, told in limestone and light
www.voguearabia.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:08 AM
The Grand Egyptian Museum, the largest museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization, opens November 1, after 20 years of construction
www.voguearabia.com/article/gran...
www.voguearabia.com/article/gran...
Reposted by Joel Atallah
Every ai video sucks because they’re never more than their prompts, you’re like ‘yeah that’s a video of a dinosaur eating chips whilst skateboarding,” but like that’s it - you could just post your prompt and it’d be the same. But every real piece of film contains MORE than just its script
October 19, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Every ai video sucks because they’re never more than their prompts, you’re like ‘yeah that’s a video of a dinosaur eating chips whilst skateboarding,” but like that’s it - you could just post your prompt and it’d be the same. But every real piece of film contains MORE than just its script
Sarah Mullaly, the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, who has openly spoken of her struggles with dyslexia, will be an advocate for people with disabilities
Dame Sarah Mullally named as first female Archbishop of Canterbury
The Church of England has been without its top bishop since January when Justin Welby formally left office over failures in handling an abuse scandal.
www.irishnews.com
October 3, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Sarah Mullaly, the first female Archbishop of Canterbury, who has openly spoken of her struggles with dyslexia, will be an advocate for people with disabilities
RIP Dr. Jane Goodall (1934-2025). You were the surprise guest of honor at my Ph.D. commencement, and I recall the moment you congratulated us in the language of the chimpanzees you'd worked with.
October 1, 2025 at 7:11 PM
RIP Dr. Jane Goodall (1934-2025). You were the surprise guest of honor at my Ph.D. commencement, and I recall the moment you congratulated us in the language of the chimpanzees you'd worked with.