Dr. Kassandra Ford
@kassthefish.bsky.social
Assistant Professor @UMNFWCB & Fish Curator @BellMuseum • The Convergence Lab • Electric fishes • MN fishes • Black Birder • Cat Herder • Wisconsinite • BLM • she/her • 🏳️🌈 ♠️ • www.kassandraford.com • Thoughts are my own
Help needed!! The summer got the best of me in terms of getting my shark sculpture to Minnesota, but now I really REALLY need some help!
If anyone is making road trip legs between Baltimore or Pittsburgh towards the Midwest, PLEASE let me know!
My fish lab would love to see this happen! Thanks 🦈
If anyone is making road trip legs between Baltimore or Pittsburgh towards the Midwest, PLEASE let me know!
My fish lab would love to see this happen! Thanks 🦈
Come meet me to transfer a shark sculpture! It fits in my Honda Odyssey, so any vehicle with at least that much space would work.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
Hi folks, I've got a follow up request about my large (~10ft) shark sculpture 🦈
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
September 27, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Help needed!! The summer got the best of me in terms of getting my shark sculpture to Minnesota, but now I really REALLY need some help!
If anyone is making road trip legs between Baltimore or Pittsburgh towards the Midwest, PLEASE let me know!
My fish lab would love to see this happen! Thanks 🦈
If anyone is making road trip legs between Baltimore or Pittsburgh towards the Midwest, PLEASE let me know!
My fish lab would love to see this happen! Thanks 🦈
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
71.5% cut to BIO. Just...jesus fucking christ on a bike
Presidential budget is out. Here's NSF. Biggest cut, by amount, is $1 billion, or 66.8%, from MPS (Physics & Math directorate). nsf-gov-resources.nsf.gov/files/00-NSF...
May 30, 2025 at 10:31 PM
71.5% cut to BIO. Just...jesus fucking christ on a bike
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Come meet me to transfer a shark sculpture! It fits in my Honda Odyssey, so any vehicle with at least that much space would work.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
Hi folks, I've got a follow up request about my large (~10ft) shark sculpture 🦈
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
May 22, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Come meet me to transfer a shark sculpture! It fits in my Honda Odyssey, so any vehicle with at least that much space would work.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
The first leg is to Pittsburgh and I can meet you halfway.
In this hellscape, bring a little good to your world. Also, my kids think I'm moderately cool now.
Hi folks, I've got a follow up request about my large (~10ft) shark sculpture 🦈
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
May 22, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Hi folks, I've got a follow up request about my large (~10ft) shark sculpture 🦈
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
Can this network help me come up with a caravan of folks who can transport the sculpture from the Baltimore area to the Illinois/Wisconsin/Minnesota area?
The sculpture fit in a minivan! And I can help w/ gas money
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
alright i have my laptop, guess i'm livetweeting the dire wolf preprint.
so a quick reminder: this is not yet peer-reviewed, so there's some different expectations re: quality.
also let's be clear, i'm a hella biased reader, bc i don't trust the hype they're courting
so a quick reminder: this is not yet peer-reviewed, so there's some different expectations re: quality.
also let's be clear, i'm a hella biased reader, bc i don't trust the hype they're courting
Briefly read through this and...hmm. I have thoughts that may merit a deeper dive.
One big concern: while their reference method seems reasonable for research uses, I'm thinking that if you want to claim you're cloning one, I'm sorry but you've actually gotta de novo that.
One big concern: while their reference method seems reasonable for research uses, I'm thinking that if you want to claim you're cloning one, I'm sorry but you've actually gotta de novo that.
April 12, 2025 at 12:37 AM
alright i have my laptop, guess i'm livetweeting the dire wolf preprint.
so a quick reminder: this is not yet peer-reviewed, so there's some different expectations re: quality.
also let's be clear, i'm a hella biased reader, bc i don't trust the hype they're courting
so a quick reminder: this is not yet peer-reviewed, so there's some different expectations re: quality.
also let's be clear, i'm a hella biased reader, bc i don't trust the hype they're courting
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Thanks RC @rchoover.bsky.social for giving a really toothy talk about dentition in Stichaeids to my ichthyology class, today! Also, special thanks to the research mentors as well! @kassthefish.bsky.social, @karlycohen.bsky.social, and @cmdonatelli.bsky.social
April 10, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Thanks RC @rchoover.bsky.social for giving a really toothy talk about dentition in Stichaeids to my ichthyology class, today! Also, special thanks to the research mentors as well! @kassthefish.bsky.social, @karlycohen.bsky.social, and @cmdonatelli.bsky.social
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Scientists love to debate and argue, but if there are 3 things every scientist absolutely agrees on, it's that:
1. Climate change is real
2. Vaccines work
3. Those are NOT dire wolves 😤
🧪
1. Climate change is real
2. Vaccines work
3. Those are NOT dire wolves 😤
🧪
April 8, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Scientists love to debate and argue, but if there are 3 things every scientist absolutely agrees on, it's that:
1. Climate change is real
2. Vaccines work
3. Those are NOT dire wolves 😤
🧪
1. Climate change is real
2. Vaccines work
3. Those are NOT dire wolves 😤
🧪
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
And this is why science communication and science literacy is so important. 🧪
in case you're wondering, "what's the harm in claiming an extinct species has been brought back from the dead" when it most certainly has not, our interior secretary is already using it to justify taking animals off the endangered species list
April 8, 2025 at 8:44 PM
And this is why science communication and science literacy is so important. 🧪
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
“De-extinction” is to biodiversity loss what “Mars colonization” is to climate change—wishful thinking that is at its core impossible but nevertheless sucks up attention and resources from actual solutions to these crises (which, ultimately, might be the whole point)
April 8, 2025 at 9:00 PM
“De-extinction” is to biodiversity loss what “Mars colonization” is to climate change—wishful thinking that is at its core impossible but nevertheless sucks up attention and resources from actual solutions to these crises (which, ultimately, might be the whole point)
All jokes I've made about species concepts during my career aside....
YIKES. This is BS.
YIKES. This is BS.
Joking aside, this stuff about species concepts is such transparent BS.
[deleted & reposted, as first draft was too annoyed.]
www.newscientist.com/article/2475...
[deleted & reposted, as first draft was too annoyed.]
www.newscientist.com/article/2475...
![And Colossal claims it has turned grey wolves into dire wolves by making just 20 gene edits?
That is the claim. In fact, five of those 20 changes are based on mutations known to produce light coats in grey wolves, Shapiro told New Scientist. Only 15 are based on the dire wolf genome directly and are intended to alter the animals’ size, musculature and ear shape. It will be a year or so before it’s clear if those changes have had the intended effects on the genetically modified animals, says Shapiro.
So these pups aren’t really dire wolves at all, then?
It all comes down to how you define species, says Shapiro. “Species concepts are human classification systems, and everybody can disagree and everyone can be right,” she says. “You can use the phylogenetic [evolutionary relationships] species concept to determine what you’re going to call a species, which is what you are implying… We are using the morphological species concept and saying, if they look like this animal, then they are the animal.”](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4f6q2myyn7loi6pesip43sct/bafkreidrzlxiucnn6uwlzswjdztj7b5ai4mnmwe5iekpejeyejvobj3yha@jpeg)
April 9, 2025 at 1:27 AM
All jokes I've made about species concepts during my career aside....
YIKES. This is BS.
YIKES. This is BS.
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
The NSF's flagship fellowship program typically gives offers to 2,000+ young scientists. This year, in the face of looming budget cuts, that number was halved: only 1,000 received an offer. Our story on what that means for the science talent pipeline: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
NSF slashes prestigious PhD fellowship awards by half
US National Science Foundation announces lowest number of Graduate Research Fellowship Programme recipients in 15 years.
www.nature.com
April 8, 2025 at 10:15 PM
The NSF's flagship fellowship program typically gives offers to 2,000+ young scientists. This year, in the face of looming budget cuts, that number was halved: only 1,000 received an offer. Our story on what that means for the science talent pipeline: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Well, UMN has officially been hit. We just got an email from our president that an international grad student was detained yesterday. No further details provided.
This. Is. Crushing.
This. Is. Crushing.
March 28, 2025 at 10:37 PM
Well, UMN has officially been hit. We just got an email from our president that an international grad student was detained yesterday. No further details provided.
This. Is. Crushing.
This. Is. Crushing.
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Congratulations to Bell affiliate @pjhundt.bsky.social on his recent publication, which describes several new species of studfish! Peter Hundt has added many fish specimens to the Bell’s collections. Read more about his research in our blog post: www.bellmuseum.umn.edu/blog/newly-d...
Phylogenomic species delimitation of studfishes (Fundulidae: Fundulus ): evidence for cryptic species in agreement with the central highlands vicariance hypothesis
| Zootaxa
www.mapress.com
March 28, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Congratulations to Bell affiliate @pjhundt.bsky.social on his recent publication, which describes several new species of studfish! Peter Hundt has added many fish specimens to the Bell’s collections. Read more about his research in our blog post: www.bellmuseum.umn.edu/blog/newly-d...
Trying to come up with the words to say.
I'm terrified for our students.
We just received an email that an international grad student at UMN has been detained. Minnesota has laws stating police are not required to provide info to ICE. Admin claims no info was given.
How can we protect our people?
I'm terrified for our students.
We just received an email that an international grad student at UMN has been detained. Minnesota has laws stating police are not required to provide info to ICE. Admin claims no info was given.
How can we protect our people?
March 28, 2025 at 10:54 PM
Trying to come up with the words to say.
I'm terrified for our students.
We just received an email that an international grad student at UMN has been detained. Minnesota has laws stating police are not required to provide info to ICE. Admin claims no info was given.
How can we protect our people?
I'm terrified for our students.
We just received an email that an international grad student at UMN has been detained. Minnesota has laws stating police are not required to provide info to ICE. Admin claims no info was given.
How can we protect our people?
TransGENETIC ≠ TransGENDER
Say it again louder for those in the back (and apparently also those in the front who are unable to read things correctly)
Say it again louder for those in the back (and apparently also those in the front who are unable to read things correctly)
Transgenic means that genes from 1 organism have been put into another. We make transgenic mice to understand how genes influence biological processes. We make transgenic plants to make them more nutrient rich. We make transgenic bacteria so they make medicine for us. It's wide-ranging & v. useful.
March 6, 2025 at 3:03 PM
TransGENETIC ≠ TransGENDER
Say it again louder for those in the back (and apparently also those in the front who are unable to read things correctly)
Say it again louder for those in the back (and apparently also those in the front who are unable to read things correctly)
Okay huge ask/question. Do I know anyone in the Baltimore area who could store a ~10ft shark sculpture for me? I was supposed to go pick it up this month but my schedule has gotten chaotic. I could pick it up later in the spring or early summer 👀
It should fit in a mini van or Suburban for transit
It should fit in a mini van or Suburban for transit
March 5, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Okay huge ask/question. Do I know anyone in the Baltimore area who could store a ~10ft shark sculpture for me? I was supposed to go pick it up this month but my schedule has gotten chaotic. I could pick it up later in the spring or early summer 👀
It should fit in a mini van or Suburban for transit
It should fit in a mini van or Suburban for transit
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Yay!! A federal judge in California sided with a coalition of unions, temporarily barring the Office of Personnel Management from ordering federal agencies to terminate probationary workers, stating that the firings were ‘illegal, should be stopped, and rescinded.’
February 28, 2025 at 1:10 AM
Yay!! A federal judge in California sided with a coalition of unions, temporarily barring the Office of Personnel Management from ordering federal agencies to terminate probationary workers, stating that the firings were ‘illegal, should be stopped, and rescinded.’
Today was the kind of day where a turkey visits your office window 🦃
It *really* wanted to be let into the building 😂
It *really* wanted to be let into the building 😂
February 28, 2025 at 2:23 AM
Today was the kind of day where a turkey visits your office window 🦃
It *really* wanted to be let into the building 😂
It *really* wanted to be let into the building 😂
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
BREAKING: The mass firing of upwards of 1,800 workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, including top climate scientists and weather forecasters, has begun.
The firings reportedly include workers at the National Weather Service.
The firings reportedly include workers at the National Weather Service.
February 27, 2025 at 10:11 PM
BREAKING: The mass firing of upwards of 1,800 workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, including top climate scientists and weather forecasters, has begun.
The firings reportedly include workers at the National Weather Service.
The firings reportedly include workers at the National Weather Service.
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Firings at the NWS will kill people
I am now hearing from multiple folks in the past two hours (including some who have personally been fired) that mass firings have now commenced within NOAA--including, yes, at the National Weather Service.
February 27, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Firings at the NWS will kill people
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Research universities are often the largest employers in their region. They are often the primary health care providers to communities. This funding shift will not only reduce US research leadership, it will put working people out of work and reduce healthcare access.
Excellent 🧵 on this evening's NIH announcement of a dramatic reduction in indirect rates for research institutions, which amounts to a generational restructuring of the US research and development ecosystem. These cuts are effective immediately, not just for new grants but for existing ones.
6. The policy does not just affect funding going forward. All existing NIH grants will have their indirect rates cut to 15% as of today, the date of issuance.
For a large university, this creates a sudden and catastrophic shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars against already budgeted funds.
For a large university, this creates a sudden and catastrophic shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars against already budgeted funds.
February 8, 2025 at 1:40 AM
Research universities are often the largest employers in their region. They are often the primary health care providers to communities. This funding shift will not only reduce US research leadership, it will put working people out of work and reduce healthcare access.
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
The NIH announced it will slash billions of dollars of support to universities and research centers.
This is one of the biggest attacks on science we have ever seen. It could dismantle the biomedical research system, shut down clinical trials, and halt development of treatments.
This is one of the biggest attacks on science we have ever seen. It could dismantle the biomedical research system, shut down clinical trials, and halt development of treatments.
February 8, 2025 at 3:02 AM
The NIH announced it will slash billions of dollars of support to universities and research centers.
This is one of the biggest attacks on science we have ever seen. It could dismantle the biomedical research system, shut down clinical trials, and halt development of treatments.
This is one of the biggest attacks on science we have ever seen. It could dismantle the biomedical research system, shut down clinical trials, and halt development of treatments.
Reposted by Dr. Kassandra Ford
Scientists and journalists need to figure out right quick how to explain to the average person how a massive change in research indirects will impact the medical care they and their children get (eg at the local children’s hospital), the education their children will get, the price of tuition, etc.
February 8, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Scientists and journalists need to figure out right quick how to explain to the average person how a massive change in research indirects will impact the medical care they and their children get (eg at the local children’s hospital), the education their children will get, the price of tuition, etc.
This is going to be absolutely catastrophic for academic research. The amount of support public universities get from grants is astronomical, so those universities can be functional. It's not a waste; it literally supports our country's medical research.
Science is valid!!!
Science is valid!!!
1. Today the NIH director issued a new directive slashing overhead rates to 15%.
I want to provide some context on what that means and why it matters.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
I want to provide some context on what that means and why it matters.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
NOT-OD-25-068: Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates NOT-OD-25-068. OD
grants.nih.gov
February 8, 2025 at 3:53 AM
This is going to be absolutely catastrophic for academic research. The amount of support public universities get from grants is astronomical, so those universities can be functional. It's not a waste; it literally supports our country's medical research.
Science is valid!!!
Science is valid!!!
Not the university changing to a new HR & purchasing system (called PEAK) to make things more "centralized."
Sadly the E in PEAK doesn't stand for Efficiency 🤦🏾♀️
My folks are dealing with late pay, missing research checks, incorrect tuition reimbursements, and lack of health insurance 😬
Sadly the E in PEAK doesn't stand for Efficiency 🤦🏾♀️
My folks are dealing with late pay, missing research checks, incorrect tuition reimbursements, and lack of health insurance 😬
February 7, 2025 at 12:11 AM
Not the university changing to a new HR & purchasing system (called PEAK) to make things more "centralized."
Sadly the E in PEAK doesn't stand for Efficiency 🤦🏾♀️
My folks are dealing with late pay, missing research checks, incorrect tuition reimbursements, and lack of health insurance 😬
Sadly the E in PEAK doesn't stand for Efficiency 🤦🏾♀️
My folks are dealing with late pay, missing research checks, incorrect tuition reimbursements, and lack of health insurance 😬