Valentina Di Santo
@vdisanto.bsky.social
Comparative physiologist and biomechanist studying fish locomotion at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego 🌊🦈🐟🐠🐡
www.valentinadisanto.com
www.valentinadisanto.com
Pinned
1/8 For years, it’s been assumed that when fishes hover in open water, they’re just resting. Our new @pnas.org paper shows otherwise: hovering can double metabolic costs compared to true rest in near-neutrally buoyant fishes. Here’s what we found: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
a 🧪 🧵..
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Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Catch my new lecture at the Collège de France entitled “The Origin of Walking.” Thanks to @denisduboule.bsky.social for hosting!
💙🧪
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fNim...
💙🧪
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fNim...
Neil Shubin (2) - Denis Duboule (2025-2026)
YouTube video by Sciences de la vie - Collège de France
m.youtube.com
October 24, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Catch my new lecture at the Collège de France entitled “The Origin of Walking.” Thanks to @denisduboule.bsky.social for hosting!
💙🧪
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fNim...
💙🧪
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fNim...
"What Grant Reviewers Actually Look For (and What They Ignore)" jim-olds.org/2025/10/23/w...
“What Grant Reviewers Actually Look For (and What They Ignore)”
A close colleague of mine at a major US research university begins the process of preparing a grant proposal by creating something he calls a “storyboard”. When I was growing up in LA, the concept…
jim-olds.org
October 23, 2025 at 2:32 PM
"What Grant Reviewers Actually Look For (and What They Ignore)" jim-olds.org/2025/10/23/w...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
UPDATE: The 2025-2026 list of faculty and postdoc positions in ecology and evolutionary biology is out! Be sure to check out this active and helpful community run resources! docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
ecoevojobs.net 2025-26
docs.google.com
September 19, 2025 at 9:47 PM
UPDATE: The 2025-2026 list of faculty and postdoc positions in ecology and evolutionary biology is out! Be sure to check out this active and helpful community run resources! docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
🧪 University of California leads the nation in academic research www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/univers...
The University of California leads the nation in academic research, new ranking finds
UC San Diego and UC Berkeley lead the way for public university research, with eight UC campuses total among the top 30 influential and impactful public research institutions.
www.universityofcalifornia.edu
September 15, 2025 at 4:16 AM
🧪 University of California leads the nation in academic research www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/univers...
The NSF GRFP is back. Students interested in applying to work in my lab at SIO can email me directly with a CV and a letter to outline how their interests and research experience might align with the work we do. I'm recruiting students interested in biomechanics. www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo... 🧪 🐟
September 13, 2025 at 5:58 PM
The NSF GRFP is back. Students interested in applying to work in my lab at SIO can email me directly with a CV and a letter to outline how their interests and research experience might align with the work we do. I'm recruiting students interested in biomechanics. www.nsf.gov/funding/oppo... 🧪 🐟
Apply for the Scripps Postdoctoral Fellowship! I'm looking to support a strong candidate in fish physiology and/or biomechanics. Deadline: Oct 9, 2025. Eligibility: PhD by Nov 30, 2026 with ≤3 years postdoc experience. 2 years, $74K salary, $6K research allowance 👉 apol-recruit.ucsd.edu/JPF04348 🧪 🐟
Scripps Postdoctoral Scholar Award - 2026
University of California, San Diego is hiring. Apply now!
apol-recruit.ucsd.edu
September 10, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Apply for the Scripps Postdoctoral Fellowship! I'm looking to support a strong candidate in fish physiology and/or biomechanics. Deadline: Oct 9, 2025. Eligibility: PhD by Nov 30, 2026 with ≤3 years postdoc experience. 2 years, $74K salary, $6K research allowance 👉 apol-recruit.ucsd.edu/JPF04348 🧪 🐟
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
UC Berkeley's Martin Fish Speciation Lab seeks a part-time lab manager for pupfish research. Requires a biology degree and some lab experience. Flexible hours, multi-year position. Apply: chmartin@berkeley.edu. More info at https://ib.berkeley.edu/labs/martin/ #job
Martin Lab
Martin Lab
ib.berkeley.edu
September 7, 2025 at 5:16 AM
UC Berkeley's Martin Fish Speciation Lab seeks a part-time lab manager for pupfish research. Requires a biology degree and some lab experience. Flexible hours, multi-year position. Apply: chmartin@berkeley.edu. More info at https://ib.berkeley.edu/labs/martin/ #job
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Something exciting just left the gym -- meet Arnold the first generalist musculoskeletal control policy!
The human body has 600+ muscles, yet we seamlessly coordinate them for everything from whispering a syllable to felling a forrest. How? www.arxiv.org/abs/2508.18066
The human body has 600+ muscles, yet we seamlessly coordinate them for everything from whispering a syllable to felling a forrest. How? www.arxiv.org/abs/2508.18066
September 4, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Something exciting just left the gym -- meet Arnold the first generalist musculoskeletal control policy!
The human body has 600+ muscles, yet we seamlessly coordinate them for everything from whispering a syllable to felling a forrest. How? www.arxiv.org/abs/2508.18066
The human body has 600+ muscles, yet we seamlessly coordinate them for everything from whispering a syllable to felling a forrest. How? www.arxiv.org/abs/2508.18066
New paper from my postdoc, Francesco Masnadi (co-advised with Agnes Karlson), in Harmful Algae. 🧪 🐟 We looked at how sticklebacks cope with cyanobacterial 🦠 blooms, from toxin accumulation and detox enzyme activity to predator escape responses.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Sub-lethal effects of natural cyanobacterial blooms on fish: Enzymatic activity and swimming performance in Gasterosteus aculeatus
Cyanobacterial blooms are intensifying worldwide due to eutrophication and climate change, increasing cyanotoxin exposure to aquatic organisms. This s…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 4, 2025 at 5:06 PM
New paper from my postdoc, Francesco Masnadi (co-advised with Agnes Karlson), in Harmful Algae. 🧪 🐟 We looked at how sticklebacks cope with cyanobacterial 🦠 blooms, from toxin accumulation and detox enzyme activity to predator escape responses.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
A bit late to sharing, but this amazing study from @vdisanto.bsky.social @scrippsocean.bsky.social is too good not to share🐟✨ Read about the amazing 6th sense that help blind fish navigate underwater caves in my Outside @jexpbiol.bsky.social 🌌🔦
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
Blind cave fish navigate through the dark with a sixth sense
Humans have five senses: sight, smell, sound, taste and touch. Fish, however, can tap into an extraordinary sixth sense called the lateral line. This sense – which consists of rows of special cells wi...
journals.biologists.com
August 28, 2025 at 1:53 PM
A bit late to sharing, but this amazing study from @vdisanto.bsky.social @scrippsocean.bsky.social is too good not to share🐟✨ Read about the amazing 6th sense that help blind fish navigate underwater caves in my Outside @jexpbiol.bsky.social 🌌🔦
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Hovering—maintaining a fixed position in the water—is energetically expensive for fish. A study finds hovering is twice as metabolically expensive as resting. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
July 28, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Hovering—maintaining a fixed position in the water—is energetically expensive for fish. A study finds hovering is twice as metabolically expensive as resting. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Our research is on the cover of @pnas.org this week! Proud of what we accomplished and grateful for an amazing team (and some truly memorable fishes). 🐟
Link to the paper: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Link to the paper: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
July 17, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Our research is on the cover of @pnas.org this week! Proud of what we accomplished and grateful for an amazing team (and some truly memorable fishes). 🐟
Link to the paper: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Link to the paper: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Some personal news…
The NAS Council has approved the nomination of Neil H. Shubin to be the next president of the National Academy of Sciences. An evolutionary biologist and science communicator, Shubin would succeed Marcia McNutt when her term ends on June 30, 2026. Read more: www.nasonline.org/news/neil-h-...
July 14, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Some personal news…
Fluttuare nell’acqua? Non è affatto riposo: i pesci consumano il doppio dell’energia
I pesci quando stanno "sospesi" in acqua, non stanno riposando: anzi! Consumano pure di più!
I pesci quando stanno "sospesi" in acqua, non stanno riposando: anzi! Consumano pure di più!
Pesci: "fluttare" nell'acqua non li fa riposare, anzi!
I pesci sembrano sospesi nell'acqua come se fosse la cosa più naturale del mondo. Ma una nuova ricerca smentisce questa visione!
tech.icrewplay.com
July 11, 2025 at 8:12 AM
Fluttuare nell’acqua? Non è affatto riposo: i pesci consumano il doppio dell’energia
I pesci quando stanno "sospesi" in acqua, non stanno riposando: anzi! Consumano pure di più!
I pesci quando stanno "sospesi" in acqua, non stanno riposando: anzi! Consumano pure di più!
Hovering in fish is surprisingly hard work 🧪 🐟
Hovering in fish is surprisingly hard work
Fish often need to hover (stay still in the water) to catch prey, explore, or guard their nests. For a long time, scientists thought that for fish with a swim bladder (which makes them nearly “weightl...
link.growkudos.com
July 11, 2025 at 8:05 AM
Hovering in fish is surprisingly hard work 🧪 🐟
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Fish hovering = not so chill 🐟💨
New research led by Scripps Oceanography's @vdisanto.bsky.social found fish use nearly 2X more energy hovering than resting, overturning old assumptions and offering insight for underwater robot design. Dive in to learn more about the study published by @pnas.org. ⬇️
New research led by Scripps Oceanography's @vdisanto.bsky.social found fish use nearly 2X more energy hovering than resting, overturning old assumptions and offering insight for underwater robot design. Dive in to learn more about the study published by @pnas.org. ⬇️
For Fish, Hovering Is Not Restful
Fish make hanging motionless in the water column look effortless, and scientists had long assumed hovering was a type of rest. Now, a new study reveals that fish use nearly twice as much energy when h...
scripps.ucsd.edu
July 8, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Fish hovering = not so chill 🐟💨
New research led by Scripps Oceanography's @vdisanto.bsky.social found fish use nearly 2X more energy hovering than resting, overturning old assumptions and offering insight for underwater robot design. Dive in to learn more about the study published by @pnas.org. ⬇️
New research led by Scripps Oceanography's @vdisanto.bsky.social found fish use nearly 2X more energy hovering than resting, overturning old assumptions and offering insight for underwater robot design. Dive in to learn more about the study published by @pnas.org. ⬇️
1/8 For years, it’s been assumed that when fishes hover in open water, they’re just resting. Our new @pnas.org paper shows otherwise: hovering can double metabolic costs compared to true rest in near-neutrally buoyant fishes. Here’s what we found: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
a 🧪 🧵..
a 🧪 🧵..
July 7, 2025 at 10:22 PM
1/8 For years, it’s been assumed that when fishes hover in open water, they’re just resting. Our new @pnas.org paper shows otherwise: hovering can double metabolic costs compared to true rest in near-neutrally buoyant fishes. Here’s what we found: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
a 🧪 🧵..
a 🧪 🧵..
Just saw that @jexpbiol.bsky.social wrote a highlight on our recent cavefish paper! Turns out, when blind fish lose their lateral line, they go from careful explorers to reckless daredevils.
Here’s the paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.cb...
The highlight is here:
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
Here’s the paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.cb...
The highlight is here:
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
Blind cave fish navigate through the dark with a sixth sense
Humans have five senses: sight, smell, sound, taste and touch. Fish, however, can tap into an extraordinary sixth sense called the lateral line. This sense – which consists of rows of special cells wi...
journals.biologists.com
July 4, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Just saw that @jexpbiol.bsky.social wrote a highlight on our recent cavefish paper! Turns out, when blind fish lose their lateral line, they go from careful explorers to reckless daredevils.
Here’s the paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.cb...
The highlight is here:
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
Here’s the paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.cb...
The highlight is here:
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...
TT Assistant prof in biological sciences -- elasmobranch biology 🦈 🧪 @calstate.bsky.social #academicjobs
csucareers.calstate.edu/en-us/job/54...
csucareers.calstate.edu/en-us/job/54...
CSU Careers
csucareers.calstate.edu
June 25, 2025 at 3:33 AM
TT Assistant prof in biological sciences -- elasmobranch biology 🦈 🧪 @calstate.bsky.social #academicjobs
csucareers.calstate.edu/en-us/job/54...
csucareers.calstate.edu/en-us/job/54...
The Rainbow wrasse 🌈 Coris melanura
I love this fish! 🧪🐟
I love this fish! 🧪🐟
June 3, 2025 at 4:51 AM
The Rainbow wrasse 🌈 Coris melanura
I love this fish! 🧪🐟
I love this fish! 🧪🐟
My dream job @scrippsocean.bsky.social 🧪
May 26, 2025 at 12:42 AM
My dream job @scrippsocean.bsky.social 🧪
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
New paper from the lab: Our teeth arose as sensory organs on the outside of the body of ancient jawless fish.!! Congrats to Yara Haridy and the team!
Background and video: phys.org/news/2025-05...
Open Access Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
News and Views: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Background and video: phys.org/news/2025-05...
Open Access Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
News and Views: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Teeth first evolved as sensory tissue in the armored exoskeletons of ancient fish, fossil scans find
Anyone who has ever squirmed through a dental cleaning can tell you how sensitive teeth can be. This sensitivity gives important feedback about temperature, pressure—and yes, pain—as we bite and chew ...
phys.org
May 21, 2025 at 3:27 PM
New paper from the lab: Our teeth arose as sensory organs on the outside of the body of ancient jawless fish.!! Congrats to Yara Haridy and the team!
Background and video: phys.org/news/2025-05...
Open Access Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
News and Views: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Background and video: phys.org/news/2025-05...
Open Access Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
News and Views: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
Super happy #xCEBRA was presented as a peer-reviewed proceedings paper today at #AISTATS2025 by @stes.io et al! This extends #CEBRA with the ability to attribute specific inputs to latents over time 🙌
📝: openreview.net/forum?id=aGr...
Code: github.com/AdaptiveMoto...
Demo: cebra.ai/docs/demo_no...
📝: openreview.net/forum?id=aGr...
Code: github.com/AdaptiveMoto...
Demo: cebra.ai/docs/demo_no...
May 3, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Super happy #xCEBRA was presented as a peer-reviewed proceedings paper today at #AISTATS2025 by @stes.io et al! This extends #CEBRA with the ability to attribute specific inputs to latents over time 🙌
📝: openreview.net/forum?id=aGr...
Code: github.com/AdaptiveMoto...
Demo: cebra.ai/docs/demo_no...
📝: openreview.net/forum?id=aGr...
Code: github.com/AdaptiveMoto...
Demo: cebra.ai/docs/demo_no...
Reposted by Valentina Di Santo
I am looking for a postdoc position! I have experience in host-parasite interactions, animal behavior, sexual selection, science outreach, and science education. Plus, I'm a photographer and illustrator which could come in handy! Please reach out if you have any positions open or know someone.
May 4, 2025 at 4:36 PM
I am looking for a postdoc position! I have experience in host-parasite interactions, animal behavior, sexual selection, science outreach, and science education. Plus, I'm a photographer and illustrator which could come in handy! Please reach out if you have any positions open or know someone.