Tristan Caro
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tacaro.bsky.social
Tristan Caro
@tacaro.bsky.social
2.7K followers 730 following 220 posts
Microbiologist and geochemist | Postdoc @ Caltech | Formerly @ CU Boulder, NASA, Berkeley | Isotope, dataviz, and pottery enjoyer
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Reposted by Tristan Caro
theplanetaryguy.bsky.social
Open up this picture fully.

Then look at the surface of Mars.

Then look up to the top right.

Spot Mars' moon Phobos high in the sky.

Then notice the bright spot beside Phobos.

That's Earth.
A forlorn landscape of layered rocks in the foreground, with hills fading into the background haze. At upper top right, a small crescent moon, and a bright star.
December 30, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
hansonmark.bsky.social
We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing:

a 🧵 1/n

Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820
Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below. 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. A figure detailing the drain on researcher time. 1. The four-fold drain 1.2 Time The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce, with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure 1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs, grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time. The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many review demands. Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in ‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier, local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision. A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below: 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
torstenseemann.bsky.social
💾 Prokka 1.15.6 is released!

This is the last major release of Prokka. But don't be sad, because @oschwengers.bsky.social already has an excellent replacement called Bakta you can migrate to.
#bioinformatics #microbiology #genomics

github.com/tseemann/pro...
Release Heading into the sunset · tseemann/prokka
The future This is probably the last release of Prokka. I won't be making any code changes except bug fixes. I will update the databases occasionally. I strongly recommend you use Bakta by @oschwen...
github.com
December 15, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
drewsteen.bsky.social
Want to restart the idea machine? Multiply NSF’s budget by 10.

That would bring it to about 40% of annual investment in AI.
vox.com Vox @vox.com · 20d
America, you have spoken loud and clear: You do not like AI. But what if AI is the way to restart the world’s idea machine?
We’re running out of good ideas. AI might be how we find new ones.
What if the best use of AI is restarting the world’s idea machine?
www.vox.com
December 16, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
anne-daebeler.bsky.social
🚨 New paper out: Ecogenomics of Methylobacter 🦠

- three different MMOs to oxidize CH4 in single species
- machinery for nitrogen, sulfur, iron, and hydrogen metabolisms
- adaptations to low O2 conditions
...

led by @wutkowska.bsky.social

tinyurl.com/pmntwuk6
#MicrobeSky #pangenome
Uncovering hidden phylo: and ecogenomic diversity of the widespread methanotrophic genus Methylobacter
Abstract. The globally distributed genus Methylobacter plays a crucial role in mitigating methane emissions from diverse ecosystems, including freshwater a
academic.oup.com
December 15, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
speleoseb.bsky.social
Just a reminder - there is still a place for one of you in our team🤗 looking for PhD position? Interested in redox dynamics in permafrosted karst? Apply now! 👇
December 15, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
tacaro.bsky.social
Wonderful to see a writeup of our recent permafrost work out in @natclimate.nature.com ! "Microbes wake up"

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Microbes wake up - Nature Climate Change
Nature Climate Change - Microbes wake up
www.nature.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:10 PM
tacaro.bsky.social
seismomicrobiology!
December 9, 2025 at 5:43 PM
tacaro.bsky.social
The problem here isn't policy requiring open access. The problem isn't even necessarily journals charging APCs (though, that's certainly a big component). The problem is that we live in an academic environment that values journal title over substance. It's a culture problem. (1/n)
cflaihe.bsky.social Colleen Flaherty @cflaihe.bsky.social · Dec 5
Researchers are reporting that some journals like several high-impact titles owned by Elsevier, Wiley and Springer—are charging authors anywhere from $2,000 to more than $10,000 in article processing charges (APCs) to make their work immediately accessible. www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...
The NIH Policy Holding Researchers “Hostage”
An effort to make NIH-funded research immediately accessible to the public has led to disruption and financial strain for scientists already navigating a precarious funding environment. It also spotli...
www.insidehighered.com
December 5, 2025 at 10:50 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
erictopol.bsky.social
The direct causal evidence of ultra-processed foods for adverse health outcomes is accruing
nature.com/articles/s41...
December 5, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
jbyoder.org
My department at California State University Northridge is hiring! We're looking for a new colleague studying microbiology or molecular/cellular biology. I'm not on the search committee, but happy to answer questions about the department and campus, and life in LA

buff.ly/Pc1KOaC
Career Opportunities
Applicant Log-In
careers.pageuppeople.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
jonathanparra.bsky.social
Recommended reading for those of us who study actinomycetes using untargeted metabolomics. Incredible work by @amcaraballor.bsky.social, @pieterdorrestein.bsky.social, and collaborators. rdcu.be/eSRxT
The undiscovered natural product potential of Actinomycetes
The Journal of Antibiotics - The undiscovered natural product potential of Actinomycetes
rdcu.be
December 3, 2025 at 10:40 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
science.org
"No one should be made to feel inferior or that they do not belong in science because of their origins." #ScienceWorkingLife https://scim.ag/48JF6Pg
An illustration of a man standing in water that comes up to his neck surrounded by fish, with text: I dropped out of high school. Now, I’m living my dream as a fish scientist
December 3, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
dangaristo.bsky.social
An excellent visualization of changes to NSF and NIH funding.
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine
A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.
www.nytimes.com
December 2, 2025 at 8:44 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
mountsthelens1980.bsky.social
#MSH45 | #GivingTuesday
It’s wild that we’re already in the home stretch of this 45th anniversary year.

If you’ve learned something here about Mount St. Helens or the science behind it, today’s a good time to support the people and programs keeping that work going.

Links to give in bio!

#PNW
Four-square layout on a green mountain backdrop. Top row shows black-and-white portraits of USGS volcanologist David A. Johnston on the left and volcanology graduate student Harry Glicken on the right. Bottom row shows the Mount St. Helens Institute logo and the Washington Trails Association logo. Text at the top reads “Giving Tuesday."
December 2, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
miriamgoldstein.bsky.social
well Impossible Metals is so mad about this report that they spent all weekend posting about it on my LinkedIn...so you are definitely going to want to tune in! Register here: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
December 1, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
ninadavtian.bsky.social
I am so happy to co-author this #preprint review on archaeal tetraether lipids, aka #GDGTs, as marine paleoenvironmental indicators led by @lipidorama.bsky.social and @climategordon.bsky.social:
doi.org/10.22541/ess...
@cerege.bsky.social
@climatecerege.bsky.social
#TeamArchaea
🧪 ⚒️ 🌊
#PaleoSky
(1/4)
Nina Davtian (that's me!) at her work office, with the laptop screen showing the header of her co-authored preprint by Elling and Inglis et al. Earth and Space Science Open Archive (https://doi.org/10.22541/essoar.176409484.44403346/v1) with her name highlighted in the author list—Nina is the third author of the list. Nina is holding a mug on which the text reads « 2nd international GDGT workshop September 2023, Zürich ».
December 1, 2025 at 3:00 PM
tacaro.bsky.social
Friendly reminder that the current administration is seeking to cut NASA's heliophysics budget by ~75%. Understanding the sun is critical to protecting life on our planet!
nws.noaa.gov National Weather Service @nws.noaa.gov · Dec 1
Sunspot Clusters, Solar Flares, CMEs, and a Coronal Hole High Speed Stream (CH HSS) - these are the primary solar activity threats and events during the week. Stay informed at the Nation's official source for space weather forecasts at spaceweather.gov
Space Weather Story of the Week infographic, dated Mon, Dec 1, 2025. The headline is "WHAT: Massive Sunspot Clusters, Solar Flares, Occasional CMEs, and a Coronal Hole High Speed Stream (CH HSS)." The graphic shows three images: 1) NSO/GONG image showing Sunspot Regions (RGNs) 4299, 4296, 4294, and 4298; 2) GOES-19/COR:1 image showing a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME); and 3) GOES-19/SUVI image showing the Sun with a Coronal Hole (CH 04). The summary text states: "Space Weather Activity Potential is Elevated." A massive cluster of sunspots in the southeast quadrant is rotating towards the center disk. Activity includes R1-R2 (Minor-Moderate) solar flares and Coronal Mass Ejections. A CH HSS will begin to influence Earth with G1 (Minor) storm potential on December 4-5
December 1, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
kencaldeira.com
Some aircraft contrails persist and spread out to form a hazy layer.

This hazy layer may be responsible for 1-2% of global warming.

Who gave the airline industry permission to alter our sky in this way?

contrails.org
Photo of persistent contrails spreading out to form a hazy layer. Contrast enhanced.
November 26, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
xkcd.com
Geologic Core Sample

xkcd.com/3171/
Comic: Typical Geologic core sample. [Cylindrical core sample with labels for difference sections from top to bottom] Topsoil, till, granite bedrock, bottomsoil, roof of subway car, floor of subway car, more granite, municipal water main [gouge in core sample], slightly different granite, piece of screaming spelunker’s forearm, cool crystals with no resale value, mangled fragments of drillbit from previous attempt, some boring intrusive rock that’s basically granite but has a name like “diorite” or “Andalite” that you always have to look up, netherrack, Balrog wing. [break between next chunk of core sample] Granite, topsoil, cement, floorboards, carpet, possessions of a confused and angry homeowner in the other hemisphere.
November 25, 2025 at 10:35 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
hbrappap.bsky.social
So happy to announce our new preprint, “A geothermal amoeba sets a new upper temperature limit for eukaryotes.” We cultured a novel amoeba from Lassen Volcanic NP (CA, USA) that divides at 63°C (145°F) 🔥 - a new record for euk growth!
#protistsonsky 🧵
November 25, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
reckless.bsky.social
I’ve been running around asking tech execs and academics if language was the same as intelligence for over a year now - and, well, it isn’t. @benjaminjriley.bsky.social explains how the bubble is built on ignoring cutting-edge research into the science of thought www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
November 25, 2025 at 1:54 PM
tacaro.bsky.social
Wonderful to see a writeup of our recent permafrost work out in @natclimate.nature.com ! "Microbes wake up"

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Microbes wake up - Nature Climate Change
Nature Climate Change - Microbes wake up
www.nature.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Reposted by Tristan Caro
ent3c.bsky.social
Amazing, depressing article about RFK Jr by Michael Scherer in The Atlantic. This graf at the end stayed with me. Our national policy is now based on the difference between 17 and 21 outcomes out of populations of 22000. As usual, hard to know if it is stupidity or dishonesty.
November 24, 2025 at 2:20 PM