Jake Yeston
@jakeyeston.bsky.social
Editor at @science.org, shepherding chemistry papers; views here are my own; he/him
Pinned
Jake Yeston
@jakeyeston.bsky.social
· Mar 10
וגר לא תלחץ ואתם ידעתם את נפש הגר כי גרים הייתם בארץ מצרים
Anyway I think a lot of the obits have done a decent job of foregrounding Watson’s bigotry, but there’s a story still to be told about all the stubborn factors that enabled his excessive relative fame, and the fight to change that superstructure.
November 11, 2025 at 3:29 AM
Anyway I think a lot of the obits have done a decent job of foregrounding Watson’s bigotry, but there’s a story still to be told about all the stubborn factors that enabled his excessive relative fame, and the fight to change that superstructure.
“He was a bad guy but did great science”—maybe choose to make “He/She wasn’t a bad person and did great science” the main character even though the bad guy is striving to cling to the spotlight.
I think a lot about why Bardeen is less famous than Feynman despite winning two Nobels. Why isn’t Sanger more famous than Watson? The point is that the double helix isn’t by far the most important thing ever discovered. It’s a narrative that kept getting outsized public exposure. Why was that?
It’s really worth clicking through here and just reading the stark litany of vile stuff Watson said. Also worth reflecting on why he was so extraordinarily famous. The Nobel is awarded every year. Who gets to be a real celebrity? How correlated is breakout fame with vulgar self-promotion?
November 11, 2025 at 3:25 AM
“He was a bad guy but did great science”—maybe choose to make “He/She wasn’t a bad person and did great science” the main character even though the bad guy is striving to cling to the spotlight.
I think a lot about why Bardeen is less famous than Feynman despite winning two Nobels. Why isn’t Sanger more famous than Watson? The point is that the double helix isn’t by far the most important thing ever discovered. It’s a narrative that kept getting outsized public exposure. Why was that?
It’s really worth clicking through here and just reading the stark litany of vile stuff Watson said. Also worth reflecting on why he was so extraordinarily famous. The Nobel is awarded every year. Who gets to be a real celebrity? How correlated is breakout fame with vulgar self-promotion?
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...
November 11, 2025 at 3:21 AM
I think a lot about why Bardeen is less famous than Feynman despite winning two Nobels. Why isn’t Sanger more famous than Watson? The point is that the double helix isn’t by far the most important thing ever discovered. It’s a narrative that kept getting outsized public exposure. Why was that?
It’s really worth clicking through here and just reading the stark litany of vile stuff Watson said. Also worth reflecting on why he was so extraordinarily famous. The Nobel is awarded every year. Who gets to be a real celebrity? How correlated is breakout fame with vulgar self-promotion?
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 11, 2025 at 3:12 AM
It’s really worth clicking through here and just reading the stark litany of vile stuff Watson said. Also worth reflecting on why he was so extraordinarily famous. The Nobel is awarded every year. Who gets to be a real celebrity? How correlated is breakout fame with vulgar self-promotion?
Reposted by Jake Yeston
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 Jake Yeston
Good post by @dereklowe.bsky.social on a recent NYT article about a shuttered generics plant in Shreveport, LA: www.science.org/content/blog... #chemchat 🧪⚗️
Making Pills. But Not Making Them Here.
www.science.org
November 10, 2025 at 6:47 PM
Good post by @dereklowe.bsky.social on a recent NYT article about a shuttered generics plant in Shreveport, LA: www.science.org/content/blog... #chemchat 🧪⚗️
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Resolved: the old landline system was better.
November 10, 2025 at 2:18 AM
Resolved: the old landline system was better.
Reposted by Jake Yeston
As we make plans for 2026 Future of Chemistry events, we'd like to hear what interests you! No subject is too niche, and no format is too difficult. These events are for our community, so help us shape them into the best they can be! form.jotform.com/252515016875054
November 8, 2025 at 9:12 PM
As we make plans for 2026 Future of Chemistry events, we'd like to hear what interests you! No subject is too niche, and no format is too difficult. These events are for our community, so help us shape them into the best they can be! form.jotform.com/252515016875054
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Opinion | Actually, don’t let them eat cake
November 8, 2025 at 12:20 PM
Opinion | Actually, don’t let them eat cake
There’s a sign in my kids’ elementary school cafeteria that says “Be a buddy not a bully” and my daughter was just like “What if NYT had a Spelling Bee Bully that went ‘Have you really not gotten that word yet?!” and I’m dying🤣
November 8, 2025 at 1:24 AM
There’s a sign in my kids’ elementary school cafeteria that says “Be a buddy not a bully” and my daughter was just like “What if NYT had a Spelling Bee Bully that went ‘Have you really not gotten that word yet?!” and I’m dying🤣
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Somewhat regrettably, he died yesterday not today
It is also Lise Meitner’s birthday today
It is also Lise Meitner’s birthday today
November 7, 2025 at 8:44 PM
Somewhat regrettably, he died yesterday not today
It is also Lise Meitner’s birthday today
It is also Lise Meitner’s birthday today
Wait did Watson die on Marie Curie's birthday?
November 7, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Wait did Watson die on Marie Curie's birthday?
Honestly she should do this one day—all blank Connections—and you can only win by chance like Inside UFO 54-40
What was the deal with the Connections today? Was it like the ego-boosting prelude to tomorrow just being sixteen blank squares?
November 7, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Honestly she should do this one day—all blank Connections—and you can only win by chance like Inside UFO 54-40
What was the deal with the Connections today? Was it like the ego-boosting prelude to tomorrow just being sixteen blank squares?
November 7, 2025 at 7:07 PM
What was the deal with the Connections today? Was it like the ego-boosting prelude to tomorrow just being sixteen blank squares?
Reposted by Jake Yeston
For a more detailed look, I also strongly recommend Chris Glass' blog:
Hemorrhaging Beneath Headlines of 1% Growth
OPT did not mask massive international enrollment declines, but a K-shaped enrollment cycle might be.
distributedprogress.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:55 PM
For a more detailed look, I also strongly recommend Chris Glass' blog:
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Somewhat surprising news: the total number of international students in the US has stayed relatively flat, year-over-year.
I dug into the data and threats on the horizon which could lead to precipitous declines next year.
I dug into the data and threats on the horizon which could lead to precipitous declines next year.
International PhD student numbers in US hold steady — for now
Trend flies in face of Trump-administration policies, but could yet see a rapid decrease, especially in science fields.
www.nature.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Somewhat surprising news: the total number of international students in the US has stayed relatively flat, year-over-year.
I dug into the data and threats on the horizon which could lead to precipitous declines next year.
I dug into the data and threats on the horizon which could lead to precipitous declines next year.
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Nightmarish as pitcher plants might seem, there's evidence that they give back to the insect communities they feed on. That and more of the best from @science.org and science in this edition of #ScienceAdviser: www.science.org/content/arti... 🧪
November 7, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Nightmarish as pitcher plants might seem, there's evidence that they give back to the insect communities they feed on. That and more of the best from @science.org and science in this edition of #ScienceAdviser: www.science.org/content/arti... 🧪
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Check out this cover paper and its related perspective in @science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
November 7, 2025 at 11:21 AM
Check out this cover paper and its related perspective in @science.org
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Happy 158th Birthday, Marie Skłodowska Curie! She was the first woman to receive a Nobel Prize and the first person to receive the honor twice.
In 2017, #ScienceBooks toured the dynamics that established her as "the most iconic of all female scientists." https://scim.ag/47tkKYA
In 2017, #ScienceBooks toured the dynamics that established her as "the most iconic of all female scientists." https://scim.ag/47tkKYA
The making and remaking of Marie Curie
The famous physicist's legacy looms large 150 years after her birth
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Happy 158th Birthday, Marie Skłodowska Curie! She was the first woman to receive a Nobel Prize and the first person to receive the honor twice.
In 2017, #ScienceBooks toured the dynamics that established her as "the most iconic of all female scientists." https://scim.ag/47tkKYA
In 2017, #ScienceBooks toured the dynamics that established her as "the most iconic of all female scientists." https://scim.ag/47tkKYA
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Restoring an endangered species takes more than improving genetic diversity. This week on the @science.org podcast, we visit the endangered Pacific pocket mouse breeding facility at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance to learn about their reintroduction project.
www.science.org/content/podc...
www.science.org/content/podc...
November 7, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Restoring an endangered species takes more than improving genetic diversity. This week on the @science.org podcast, we visit the endangered Pacific pocket mouse breeding facility at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance to learn about their reintroduction project.
www.science.org/content/podc...
www.science.org/content/podc...
Reposted by Jake Yeston
This week, in Science, I tell the story of a unique partnership between archeologists and the Kuikuro Indigenous peoples of Brazil. For more than 30 years, they have been working together to uncover the past of human occupation in the Amazon forest
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
To unearth their past, Amazonian people turn to ‘a language white men understand’
A model partnership between archaeologists and the Kuikuro people has helped rewrite the history of early Amazonian societies
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 1:45 PM
This week, in Science, I tell the story of a unique partnership between archeologists and the Kuikuro Indigenous peoples of Brazil. For more than 30 years, they have been working together to uncover the past of human occupation in the Amazon forest
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Congratulations to our two NOMIS & Science Grand Prize Winners @rachitdubey.bsky.social and Jiacheng Miao whose essays just published in @science.org
www.science.org/content/page...
www.science.org/content/page...
November 7, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Congratulations to our two NOMIS & Science Grand Prize Winners @rachitdubey.bsky.social and Jiacheng Miao whose essays just published in @science.org
www.science.org/content/page...
www.science.org/content/page...
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Conferees on Defense bill asked to jettison House language that would end US collaborations with Chinese scientists and former students back in China www.science.org/content/arti...
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 7, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Conferees on Defense bill asked to jettison House language that would end US collaborations with Chinese scientists and former students back in China www.science.org/content/arti...
Reposted by Jake Yeston
Huge paper for the Arctic Ocean published today in @science.org - a new 30,000 year history of Arctic Ocean sea-ice cover reconstructed from the accumulation of cosmic dust-derived helium-3! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (1/n)
Cosmic dust reveals dynamic shifts in central Arctic sea-ice coverage over the past 30,000 years
Arctic sea-ice loss affects biological productivity, sustenance in coastal communities, and geopolitics. Forecasting these impacts requires mechanistic understanding of how Arctic sea ice responds to ...
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Huge paper for the Arctic Ocean published today in @science.org - a new 30,000 year history of Arctic Ocean sea-ice cover reconstructed from the accumulation of cosmic dust-derived helium-3! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... (1/n)