Sophia Florence
@sophiaflorence.bsky.social
ChemEng/data/applied math (pharma formulations + disinformation), writer/comedian (stand-up and horror films), health/science/tech policy consultant, copywriter, host of the Crumbling Podcast (about disinformation), Connecticut enthusiast.
thecrumbling.com
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1. New tiers on Patreon with shirts and stickers www.patreon.com/thecrumblingpodcast
2. We'll be revealing our new co-host soon
3. We've got two episodes on the NCAA coming out, two more interviews, then a long series on libertarianism, and then one on Ed and Lorraine Warren
1. New tiers on Patreon with shirts and stickers www.patreon.com/thecrumblingpodcast
2. We'll be revealing our new co-host soon
3. We've got two episodes on the NCAA coming out, two more interviews, then a long series on libertarianism, and then one on Ed and Lorraine Warren
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Prohibited activities include advising Chinese graduate students. For reference, a recent Georgetown report estimated 16% of STEM graduate students in the US are Chinese nationals.
This would take out entire fields at the knees, which is perhaps the point.
This would take out entire fields at the knees, which is perhaps the point.
“The prohibited activities would include joint research, co-authorship on papers, and advising a foreign graduate student or postdoctoral fellow. The language is retroactive, meaning any interactions during the previous 5 years could make a scientist ineligible for future federal funding.”
U.S. Congress considers sweeping ban on Chinese collaborations
Researchers speak out against proposal that would bar funding for U.S. scientists working with Chinese partners or training Chinese students
www.science.org
November 14, 2025 at 2:52 AM
Prohibited activities include advising Chinese graduate students. For reference, a recent Georgetown report estimated 16% of STEM graduate students in the US are Chinese nationals.
This would take out entire fields at the knees, which is perhaps the point.
This would take out entire fields at the knees, which is perhaps the point.
Okay so are we all pretty sold on the idea that Trump had Epstein killed?
November 14, 2025 at 5:48 AM
Okay so are we all pretty sold on the idea that Trump had Epstein killed?
Reposted by Sophia Florence
I finally had a chance to read the Ohio case prohibiting schools from enforcing anti-bullying policies protecting trans kids. This is a shining example of the two-faced nature of ostensible “free speech” legal groups who never seem to feel the same compulsion to actually sue on behalf of trans kids.
November 8, 2025 at 10:28 PM
I finally had a chance to read the Ohio case prohibiting schools from enforcing anti-bullying policies protecting trans kids. This is a shining example of the two-faced nature of ostensible “free speech” legal groups who never seem to feel the same compulsion to actually sue on behalf of trans kids.
I subscribe to a lot of journalism from a lot of people and nothing ever even remotely compares to Laura's audio recordings of her articles. She's got an incredible talent for words, and the way that she reads them captures the actual emotion in a way that most writers just can't.
When you hurt people by shutting down the government, you owe it to thoss people to make that pain mean something. You harden your heart and play to win or you do not play at all
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Hard Heart/Soft Heart
40 Days of Shutdown Pain For Nothing
www.bannedinyourstate.com
November 14, 2025 at 5:44 AM
I subscribe to a lot of journalism from a lot of people and nothing ever even remotely compares to Laura's audio recordings of her articles. She's got an incredible talent for words, and the way that she reads them captures the actual emotion in a way that most writers just can't.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
When you hurt people by shutting down the government, you owe it to thoss people to make that pain mean something. You harden your heart and play to win or you do not play at all
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Hard Heart/Soft Heart
40 Days of Shutdown Pain For Nothing
www.bannedinyourstate.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:58 PM
When you hurt people by shutting down the government, you owe it to thoss people to make that pain mean something. You harden your heart and play to win or you do not play at all
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Playing and giving up halfway through, when the damage is done but nothing is achieved, is rank betrayal
Reposted by Sophia Florence
there's .... so much happening
November 13, 2025 at 1:57 PM
there's .... so much happening
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Re: that Gaetz article in the NYT, I will say that people sometimes don't realise how a publication's legal department will often force you into contorted writing to avoid a libel suit.
But this article is *still* not that. You can meet that standard without doing whatever the hell that was.
But this article is *still* not that. You can meet that standard without doing whatever the hell that was.
November 14, 2025 at 5:40 AM
Re: that Gaetz article in the NYT, I will say that people sometimes don't realise how a publication's legal department will often force you into contorted writing to avoid a libel suit.
But this article is *still* not that. You can meet that standard without doing whatever the hell that was.
But this article is *still* not that. You can meet that standard without doing whatever the hell that was.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
November 14, 2025 at 3:04 AM
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Whole bunch of stuff beginning to make a lot of sense.
November 14, 2025 at 2:34 AM
Whole bunch of stuff beginning to make a lot of sense.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
"The Fallout TV show choosing a canonical ending for New Vegas is an insult to players by invalidating the choices they may have made"
That is a baby take. Go big or go home:
The mere existence of New Vegas is an insult to player agency as it relies on choosing a canonical ending to Fallout 1.
That is a baby take. Go big or go home:
The mere existence of New Vegas is an insult to player agency as it relies on choosing a canonical ending to Fallout 1.
November 13, 2025 at 11:21 PM
"The Fallout TV show choosing a canonical ending for New Vegas is an insult to players by invalidating the choices they may have made"
That is a baby take. Go big or go home:
The mere existence of New Vegas is an insult to player agency as it relies on choosing a canonical ending to Fallout 1.
That is a baby take. Go big or go home:
The mere existence of New Vegas is an insult to player agency as it relies on choosing a canonical ending to Fallout 1.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Yesterday, I pleaded not guilty to the charges that Trump’s DOJ has hit me with in federal court.
This administration is targeting me because they can see that I’ve spoken out against them and will continue to stand up to them.
This administration is targeting me because they can see that I’ve spoken out against them and will continue to stand up to them.
November 13, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Yesterday, I pleaded not guilty to the charges that Trump’s DOJ has hit me with in federal court.
This administration is targeting me because they can see that I’ve spoken out against them and will continue to stand up to them.
This administration is targeting me because they can see that I’ve spoken out against them and will continue to stand up to them.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
If you think this is badass, wait until we win.
katforillinois.com/legal
katforillinois.com/legal
November 14, 2025 at 1:24 AM
If you think this is badass, wait until we win.
katforillinois.com/legal
katforillinois.com/legal
Reposted by Sophia Florence
the way basic human decency hits these days is crazy
So the streamer Ludwig recently found out that one of his earliest regular viewers, who was trans, passed away and tonight he's doing a charity stream for the Trevor Project. So far he's raised over $46,000 in about 5 hours. www.twitch.tv/ludwig
November 14, 2025 at 3:25 AM
the way basic human decency hits these days is crazy
Reposted by Sophia Florence
I say it over and over again: when you have that much money, you want to live where you want to live and you are simply not going to relocate because of marginal tax rates
Alan Dershowitz will never leave Martha’s Vineyard and they won’t even sell him a pierogi
Alan Dershowitz will never leave Martha’s Vineyard and they won’t even sell him a pierogi
NEW: The first two years of Massachusetts' millionaire tax has raised $3 billion more than expected.
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.*
Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:
Millionaire Tax That Inspired Mamdani Fuels $5.7 Billion Haul in Massachusetts
A millionaire levy in Massachusetts that New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani holds up as a model for taxing the rich has generated $3 billion more in revenue than expected without forcing...
www.bloomberg.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:24 AM
I say it over and over again: when you have that much money, you want to live where you want to live and you are simply not going to relocate because of marginal tax rates
Alan Dershowitz will never leave Martha’s Vineyard and they won’t even sell him a pierogi
Alan Dershowitz will never leave Martha’s Vineyard and they won’t even sell him a pierogi
Reposted by Sophia Florence
They are coming to Charlotte literally because of a few right-wing propaganda accounts on X and I am livid.
Gregory Bovino, the top Border Patrol official leading the charge on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in cities, and his officers are heading to Charlotte, according to a source familiar with the planning. That was news to city officials. https://cnn.it/49crpZT
November 13, 2025 at 9:30 PM
They are coming to Charlotte literally because of a few right-wing propaganda accounts on X and I am livid.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
A teenager in Florida with a homeless parent wanted money for braces and ended up having sex for money with powerful men, setting off a chain of events that would have a dramatic impact on her life and help upend the political career of Representative Matt Gaetz. nyti.ms/49PSkL9
November 13, 2025 at 11:38 PM
A teenager in Florida with a homeless parent wanted money for braces and ended up having sex for money with powerful men, setting off a chain of events that would have a dramatic impact on her life and help upend the political career of Representative Matt Gaetz. nyti.ms/49PSkL9
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Thinking about how one of the first Epstein victims was trans and got relentlessly mocked in the media when she spoke up www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/07/when...
When a trans woman first accused Jeffrey Epstein of rape, the media mocked her - LGBTQ Nation
The New York Post called her a "man" and a "gender-bend shocker."
www.lgbtqnation.com
November 13, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Thinking about how one of the first Epstein victims was trans and got relentlessly mocked in the media when she spoke up www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/07/when...
Reposted by Sophia Florence
🚨 NEW: More Republicans are quietly telling Rep Thomas Massie they plan to vote to release the files, and he predicts this could snowball.
“Trump will protect you… if you vote to cover up for pedophiles… but… this vote is going to be on your record longer than Trump is going to be president.”
“Trump will protect you… if you vote to cover up for pedophiles… but… this vote is going to be on your record longer than Trump is going to be president.”
November 13, 2025 at 10:31 PM
🚨 NEW: More Republicans are quietly telling Rep Thomas Massie they plan to vote to release the files, and he predicts this could snowball.
“Trump will protect you… if you vote to cover up for pedophiles… but… this vote is going to be on your record longer than Trump is going to be president.”
“Trump will protect you… if you vote to cover up for pedophiles… but… this vote is going to be on your record longer than Trump is going to be president.”
Reposted by Sophia Florence
The woman whom the House Ethics Committee determined Matt Gaetz paid for sex when she was 17 years old was living in a homeless shelter, working at McDonald's, and needed the money for braces www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/u...
November 13, 2025 at 6:31 PM
The woman whom the House Ethics Committee determined Matt Gaetz paid for sex when she was 17 years old was living in a homeless shelter, working at McDonald's, and needed the money for braces www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/u...
Reposted by Sophia Florence
This article is utterly damning for the New York Times and also for Vanity Fair and ABC, whose editorial teams were apparently intimidated into silence by a mix of legal and violent threats. Virginia Giuffre did not stand a chance against all this.
This story by @davidfolkenflik.bsky.social about Landon Thomas, former NYT reporter now appearing in the latest email tranche, soliciting a $30k contribution from Jeffrey Epstein?
Yes, you can read it here
www.npr.org/2019/08/22/7...
Yes, you can read it here
www.npr.org/2019/08/22/7...
November 13, 2025 at 10:17 AM
This article is utterly damning for the New York Times and also for Vanity Fair and ABC, whose editorial teams were apparently intimidated into silence by a mix of legal and violent threats. Virginia Giuffre did not stand a chance against all this.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
According to the car wash owner, agents arrested employees before they could obtain their documentation from their work lockers. So many were likely here legally.
Here's hoping this article on Zac boasting about how he ruined some immigrants' lives follows him around for a very long time.
Here's hoping this article on Zac boasting about how he ruined some immigrants' lives follows him around for a very long time.
BU College Republicans president says he called ICE to ‘detain these criminals’ at Allston Car Wash
The president of Boston University College Republicans wrote on X he called the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement requesting it detain employees at Allston Car Wash, the site of a Nov. 4 raid w...
dailyfreepress.com
November 13, 2025 at 4:03 PM
According to the car wash owner, agents arrested employees before they could obtain their documentation from their work lockers. So many were likely here legally.
Here's hoping this article on Zac boasting about how he ruined some immigrants' lives follows him around for a very long time.
Here's hoping this article on Zac boasting about how he ruined some immigrants' lives follows him around for a very long time.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Not the main point, but can we just say that this is a very odd email exchange for a reporter (Michael Wolff) to conduct with a source (Jeffrey Epstein)?
Esp a source who, 7 years pvs, had pled guilty to solicitation of prostitution w/ a minor, and who'd been sued by a victim just 3 months earlier.
Esp a source who, 7 years pvs, had pled guilty to solicitation of prostitution w/ a minor, and who'd been sued by a victim just 3 months earlier.
November 12, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Not the main point, but can we just say that this is a very odd email exchange for a reporter (Michael Wolff) to conduct with a source (Jeffrey Epstein)?
Esp a source who, 7 years pvs, had pled guilty to solicitation of prostitution w/ a minor, and who'd been sued by a victim just 3 months earlier.
Esp a source who, 7 years pvs, had pled guilty to solicitation of prostitution w/ a minor, and who'd been sued by a victim just 3 months earlier.
Reposted by Sophia Florence
Love to see these two brilliant, handsome, and friendly contributors to @flaminghydra.com having some fun IRL, please buy their books:
Rax King www.betterworldbooks.com/author/rax-k...
Luke O'Neil www.betterworldbooks.com/author/luke-...
Rax King www.betterworldbooks.com/author/rax-k...
Luke O'Neil www.betterworldbooks.com/author/luke-...
Me and @raxkingisdead.bsky.social enjoying being the lowest level of famous possible
November 13, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Love to see these two brilliant, handsome, and friendly contributors to @flaminghydra.com having some fun IRL, please buy their books:
Rax King www.betterworldbooks.com/author/rax-k...
Luke O'Neil www.betterworldbooks.com/author/luke-...
Rax King www.betterworldbooks.com/author/rax-k...
Luke O'Neil www.betterworldbooks.com/author/luke-...
Reposted by Sophia Florence
As of this morning, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE. And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history.
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX
November 13, 2025 at 11:33 AM
As of this morning, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE. And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history.
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX