John Fowler (he/him)
@jefowlerjr.bsky.social
At heart, still mostly a geneticist; admittedly over-enthusiastic about maize; in 2025, reminding everyone that the @TheB52s should be in the @rockhall !
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Are you looking for a PhD in Plant Science? Check our our project on barley canopy architecture. Combine genetics and physics to understand how awns influence barley grain development. Find out more here: lnkd.in/eWhWammJ Apply by 14th December. #PhDPosition
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
LinkedIn
This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn
lnkd.in
November 10, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Are you looking for a PhD in Plant Science? Check our our project on barley canopy architecture. Combine genetics and physics to understand how awns influence barley grain development. Find out more here: lnkd.in/eWhWammJ Apply by 14th December. #PhDPosition
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
#PlantSci @instmolplantsci.bsky.social
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Registration for the 68th Maize Genetics Meeting from February 26 to March 1, 2026 in Cologne, Germany is now open! #MGM2026
www.mgcmeeting.com
www.mgcmeeting.com
Maize Genetics Cooperation, Inc Meeting
www.mgcmeeting.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Registration for the 68th Maize Genetics Meeting from February 26 to March 1, 2026 in Cologne, Germany is now open! #MGM2026
www.mgcmeeting.com
www.mgcmeeting.com
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
'Tis the season of flooded inboxes & time to reamplify this brilliant tip from @hannahrsnyder.bsky.social.
As semesters start and you find yourself repeatedly answering emails with the same questions from students, this is my annual reminder that you can make all your frequent responses email signatures and just select them from your signature list to respond. You're welcome. #academicsky
November 9, 2025 at 1:35 PM
'Tis the season of flooded inboxes & time to reamplify this brilliant tip from @hannahrsnyder.bsky.social.
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
So it turns out... the US air travel system was incredibly, deeply dependent on federal funding to just run day-to-day all this time, to the benefit of private airline shareholders, when everyone thinks that state-run trains are leeching off the government. Weird!
November 9, 2025 at 12:10 AM
So it turns out... the US air travel system was incredibly, deeply dependent on federal funding to just run day-to-day all this time, to the benefit of private airline shareholders, when everyone thinks that state-run trains are leeching off the government. Weird!
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
There are lots of answers out there that are beautiful because the truth of the system is beautiful. If I find one of these beautiful facts, it doesn’t make me brilliant. Just right place and right time. True scientific heroes acknowledge that fact.
November 9, 2025 at 12:35 AM
There are lots of answers out there that are beautiful because the truth of the system is beautiful. If I find one of these beautiful facts, it doesn’t make me brilliant. Just right place and right time. True scientific heroes acknowledge that fact.
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
There's still time to RSVP and receive the Zoom link for the Philip N. Benfey Arabidopsis Community Lifetime Achievement Awards webinar featuring Detlef Weigel, Mark Estelle, and Maarten Koornneef!
RSVP---> bit.ly/naascawards
@plantevolution.bsky.social
RSVP---> bit.ly/naascawards
@plantevolution.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 7:22 PM
There's still time to RSVP and receive the Zoom link for the Philip N. Benfey Arabidopsis Community Lifetime Achievement Awards webinar featuring Detlef Weigel, Mark Estelle, and Maarten Koornneef!
RSVP---> bit.ly/naascawards
@plantevolution.bsky.social
RSVP---> bit.ly/naascawards
@plantevolution.bsky.social
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Scientific breakthroughs are rarely unique; someone else would’ve made them soon enough. But when prominent scientists cause harm, that harm isn’t inevitable; the world might simply have been better had the harm not been inflicted.
liorpachter.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/j...
liorpachter.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/j...
James Watson in his own words
“Some anti-Semitism is justified” “Whenever you interview fat people, you feel bad, because you know you’re not going to hire them” “Japan should be bombed for d…
liorpachter.wordpress.com
November 8, 2025 at 4:29 AM
Scientific breakthroughs are rarely unique; someone else would’ve made them soon enough. But when prominent scientists cause harm, that harm isn’t inevitable; the world might simply have been better had the harm not been inflicted.
liorpachter.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/j...
liorpachter.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/j...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
When people celebrate the individual genius of folks in science, they should also
mourn the collective loss of genius of folks who were actively discouraged or disadvantaged from a career in science because of the same person(s)
mourn the collective loss of genius of folks who were actively discouraged or disadvantaged from a career in science because of the same person(s)
November 7, 2025 at 11:43 PM
When people celebrate the individual genius of folks in science, they should also
mourn the collective loss of genius of folks who were actively discouraged or disadvantaged from a career in science because of the same person(s)
mourn the collective loss of genius of folks who were actively discouraged or disadvantaged from a career in science because of the same person(s)
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
One thing to do, especially if you’re a science writer or editor, is when you have occasion to mention the names of the discoverers of the structure of DNA, just say “Watson, Crick, and Franklin.” No one can stop us, and it is correct.
November 7, 2025 at 9:52 PM
One thing to do, especially if you’re a science writer or editor, is when you have occasion to mention the names of the discoverers of the structure of DNA, just say “Watson, Crick, and Franklin.” No one can stop us, and it is correct.
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Rosalind Franklin and the damage of gender harassment
Spurred by a recent report on sexual harassment in academia, our columnist revisits a historical case and reflects on what has changed—and what hasn’t
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
An Asgard archaeon with internal membrane compartments
Brilliant study led by @fmacleod.bsky.social and Andriko von Kügelgen. Tight collaboration with @buzzbaum.bsky.social and lab. Congrats to all authors!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Brilliant study led by @fmacleod.bsky.social and Andriko von Kügelgen. Tight collaboration with @buzzbaum.bsky.social and lab. Congrats to all authors!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
November 7, 2025 at 10:44 AM
An Asgard archaeon with internal membrane compartments
Brilliant study led by @fmacleod.bsky.social and Andriko von Kügelgen. Tight collaboration with @buzzbaum.bsky.social and lab. Congrats to all authors!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Brilliant study led by @fmacleod.bsky.social and Andriko von Kügelgen. Tight collaboration with @buzzbaum.bsky.social and lab. Congrats to all authors!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Don’t look away.
What some people call ‘suicidal empathy’ other (medical professionals) might call ‘psychopathy’
What some people call ‘suicidal empathy’ other (medical professionals) might call ‘psychopathy’
One analytical model shows that, as of November 5th, the dismantling of U.S.A.I.D. has already caused the deaths of 600,000 people, two-thirds of them children. https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/jUzNSc
The Shutdown of U.S.A.I.D. Has Already Killed Hundreds of Thousands
The short documentary “Rovina’s Choice” tells the story of what goes when aid goes.
newyorkermag.visitlink.me
November 7, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Don’t look away.
What some people call ‘suicidal empathy’ other (medical professionals) might call ‘psychopathy’
What some people call ‘suicidal empathy’ other (medical professionals) might call ‘psychopathy’
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Check out this new paper on the Arabidopsis MLS8 channel and its importance for oscillatory growth
and cell wall dynamics in pollen tubes!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
and cell wall dynamics in pollen tubes!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Mechanosensitive ion channel MSL8 is required for oscillatory growth and cell wall dynamics in Arabidopsis pollen tubes - Plant Reproduction
The male gametophyte in flowering plants, pollen, both performs the critical role of fertilization and represents a unique and accessible system for interrogating plant cell mechanics. A key component...
link.springer.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Check out this new paper on the Arabidopsis MLS8 channel and its importance for oscillatory growth
and cell wall dynamics in pollen tubes!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
and cell wall dynamics in pollen tubes!
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
ROOT & SHOOT 2026 travel awards are open for SACNAS, MANRRS, or AISES student/mentor pairs. Up to $3,000 per pair (US) / $4,000 (intl) to attend select plant-science conferences.
Apply by Dec 5, 2025.
Details & application:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Apply by Dec 5, 2025.
Details & application:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
NSF Research Coordination Network: ROOT & SHOOT. 2026 travel award application for members of SACNAS, MANRRS, or AISES
The NSF-funded LEAPS: RCN: ROOT & SHOOT (Rooting Out Oppression Together and SHaring Our Outcomes Transparently) aims to strengthen plant science to become more welcoming to all. Part of this mission ...
docs.google.com
November 6, 2025 at 3:52 PM
ROOT & SHOOT 2026 travel awards are open for SACNAS, MANRRS, or AISES student/mentor pairs. Up to $3,000 per pair (US) / $4,000 (intl) to attend select plant-science conferences.
Apply by Dec 5, 2025.
Details & application:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Apply by Dec 5, 2025.
Details & application:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Greetings from the Dirksen federal courthouse, where U.S. District Court Judge Sara Ellis has just taken the bench to rule on federal agents actions' during a series of increasingly aggressive raids across Chicago and the suburbs.
Background, for @wttw.bsky.social from @bymattmasterson.bsky.social
Background, for @wttw.bsky.social from @bymattmasterson.bsky.social
Judge Set to Rule Thursday in Case Centering on Federal Immigration Agents’ Use of Force: ‘I Could See Inside the Barrel’
Protesters, clergy members and others who say they’ve been directly impacted by a series of increasingly aggressive raids across Chicago and the suburbs will testify before a federal judge weighing wh...
news.wttw.com
November 6, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Greetings from the Dirksen federal courthouse, where U.S. District Court Judge Sara Ellis has just taken the bench to rule on federal agents actions' during a series of increasingly aggressive raids across Chicago and the suburbs.
Background, for @wttw.bsky.social from @bymattmasterson.bsky.social
Background, for @wttw.bsky.social from @bymattmasterson.bsky.social
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Federal workers—including furloughed workers—are entitled to backpay after the shutdown ends. That is the LAW.
Trump and his administration of crooks saying anything otherwise are LYING to try and scare and intimidate federal workers.
Trump and his administration of crooks saying anything otherwise are LYING to try and scare and intimidate federal workers.
November 6, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Federal workers—including furloughed workers—are entitled to backpay after the shutdown ends. That is the LAW.
Trump and his administration of crooks saying anything otherwise are LYING to try and scare and intimidate federal workers.
Trump and his administration of crooks saying anything otherwise are LYING to try and scare and intimidate federal workers.
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
For @msnbc.com I wrote about how Tuesday's election gives Democrats the blueprint for overcoming Republican anti-trans attacks and how thus should settle all the talk about throwing trans people under the bus.
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Opinion | Democrats’ election wins showed they don't need to hide their support for trans rights
Republicans repeated Trump's anti-trans strategy from 2024 and lost big. This should be instructive for Democrats.
www.msnbc.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:41 AM
For @msnbc.com I wrote about how Tuesday's election gives Democrats the blueprint for overcoming Republican anti-trans attacks and how thus should settle all the talk about throwing trans people under the bus.
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
1/ Preprint alert:
🌾 The developing leaf of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon at single-cell resolution
👉 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
A 70k-cell single-cell RNA-seq atlas of the developing grass leaf—from the shoot meristem to mature leaf tissues. @cerealcell.bsky.social @lbmountain.bsky.social
🌾 The developing leaf of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon at single-cell resolution
👉 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
A 70k-cell single-cell RNA-seq atlas of the developing grass leaf—from the shoot meristem to mature leaf tissues. @cerealcell.bsky.social @lbmountain.bsky.social
November 5, 2025 at 12:32 PM
1/ Preprint alert:
🌾 The developing leaf of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon at single-cell resolution
👉 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
A 70k-cell single-cell RNA-seq atlas of the developing grass leaf—from the shoot meristem to mature leaf tissues. @cerealcell.bsky.social @lbmountain.bsky.social
🌾 The developing leaf of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon at single-cell resolution
👉 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
A 70k-cell single-cell RNA-seq atlas of the developing grass leaf—from the shoot meristem to mature leaf tissues. @cerealcell.bsky.social @lbmountain.bsky.social
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
The 2026 plant science conference travel award program is open!
Awards are given to student/mentor pairs.
At lease one of the pair must be a member of SACNAS or MANRRS or AISES.
Please share, applications due by Dec 5, 2025.
@sacnas.bsky.social
rootandshoot.org/2026-root-sh...
Awards are given to student/mentor pairs.
At lease one of the pair must be a member of SACNAS or MANRRS or AISES.
Please share, applications due by Dec 5, 2025.
@sacnas.bsky.social
rootandshoot.org/2026-root-sh...
November 5, 2025 at 8:50 AM
The 2026 plant science conference travel award program is open!
Awards are given to student/mentor pairs.
At lease one of the pair must be a member of SACNAS or MANRRS or AISES.
Please share, applications due by Dec 5, 2025.
@sacnas.bsky.social
rootandshoot.org/2026-root-sh...
Awards are given to student/mentor pairs.
At lease one of the pair must be a member of SACNAS or MANRRS or AISES.
Please share, applications due by Dec 5, 2025.
@sacnas.bsky.social
rootandshoot.org/2026-root-sh...
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Today, I officially started my new position at @ The University of Kansas as a KU Center for Genomics Fellow and NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Biology. I'm excited to be joining the lab of Dr. Maggie Wagner 🌱 🌽 #PlantSci #PlantScience
November 4, 2025 at 2:49 AM
Today, I officially started my new position at @ The University of Kansas as a KU Center for Genomics Fellow and NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Biology. I'm excited to be joining the lab of Dr. Maggie Wagner 🌱 🌽 #PlantSci #PlantScience
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Dolly Parton releases “9 to 5” 45 yrs ago today.
“I knew what it was like to be a working woman trying to make a decent living, trying to be taken seriously. .. I wanted a song that sounded playful on the surface but spoke to that frustration .. A song about women .. saying, ‘We deserve better.’”
“I knew what it was like to be a working woman trying to make a decent living, trying to be taken seriously. .. I wanted a song that sounded playful on the surface but spoke to that frustration .. A song about women .. saying, ‘We deserve better.’”
November 3, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Dolly Parton releases “9 to 5” 45 yrs ago today.
“I knew what it was like to be a working woman trying to make a decent living, trying to be taken seriously. .. I wanted a song that sounded playful on the surface but spoke to that frustration .. A song about women .. saying, ‘We deserve better.’”
“I knew what it was like to be a working woman trying to make a decent living, trying to be taken seriously. .. I wanted a song that sounded playful on the surface but spoke to that frustration .. A song about women .. saying, ‘We deserve better.’”
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
They better not go and shake that man’s hand while he’s kidnapping folks from the community that made them
November 2, 2025 at 4:19 AM
They better not go and shake that man’s hand while he’s kidnapping folks from the community that made them
Reposted by John Fowler (he/him)
Socioeconomic roots of academic faculty
Tenure-track faculty are up to 25 times more likely to have a parent with a Ph.D. Moreover, this rate nearly doubles at prestigious universities and is stable across the past 50 years.
#AcademicSky
Tenure-track faculty are up to 25 times more likely to have a parent with a Ph.D. Moreover, this rate nearly doubles at prestigious universities and is stable across the past 50 years.
#AcademicSky
Socioeconomic roots of academic faculty - Nature Human Behaviour
Studying socioeconomic backgrounds and intergenerational transmission in the US academia, Morgan et al. find that faculty have a parent with a Ph.D. degree a striking 25 times more often than the gene...
www.nature.com
November 1, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Socioeconomic roots of academic faculty
Tenure-track faculty are up to 25 times more likely to have a parent with a Ph.D. Moreover, this rate nearly doubles at prestigious universities and is stable across the past 50 years.
#AcademicSky
Tenure-track faculty are up to 25 times more likely to have a parent with a Ph.D. Moreover, this rate nearly doubles at prestigious universities and is stable across the past 50 years.
#AcademicSky